Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1946-01-16

have broken" with President Tru-
man and are now engaged in what
seems to be a campaign of petty
personal disparagement. They 60
about Washington commiseratingly
saying Poor little Mr.. Truman" and
making other similar remarks of a
not very kindly nature. 1t Is the line
taken by the Daily Worker and other
liberal" publications.
This Is not hurting the President
very much. In fact, the idea that
the Communist organization and
the radicals generally are contemp-
tuous OF and angry at Mr.. Truman
rather commends him to a great
many Democrats of whom large
numbers have been voting Republi-
can in national elections since 1886
and many others have been voting
Democratic with great reluctance.
Need Rallying Point.
But, clearly, this radical dispar-
agement of Mr.. Truman will be en-
tirely futile unless these groups, so
long under the Roosevelt wing, can
find a new figure around whom to
rally. They need such figure very
badly and, strangely enough, Henry
Wallace, most vocal champion of the
common man." no longer seems to
meet their requirements-cert
not for 1913.
So, with rather striking unanimity.
they seem to have centered on Mr..
Stassen, and journalistic refiectors
OF the extreme left view have been
busy lately offering Mr.. Stassen un-
sought advice as to his 1948 strategy.
First, they assure him that Presi-
dent Truman will continue pro-
gressively to ALLEVIATE the independ-
ent, liberal and labor votes" Thus,
driven out of the Democratic party,
these groups, 1t is said, will put pres
sure on the Republicans to nom
mate a candidate whom they can
support.
Course Laid Out.
Mr.. Stassen, they say, can become
that candidate. All he has to do is
to make his alliance with the CLIO.
come out strongly for the CIO-
Roosevelt policies to which Mr.. Tru-
man gives ESQ they complain) lip
service only, and follow up the as
sault Of his Oregon friend, Senator
Wayne Morse, on Senator Taft, the
old Guard and the alleged ef-
fort to nominate Ohio's ex-Gov.
Bricker.
If he will just operate along those
lines, Mr.. Stassen is told, the Glib
eraP' groups will throw him their
support and his path to the White
House will be cleared. It seems q
simple enough plan, the way they
present it. But it isn't very sound.
One trouble is that it ignores all
the realities of politics. Another is
that it assumes Mr.. Stassen is an
economic crackpot as well as a |
political idiot.
OF course, he is neither one of
those things. For example, it is
certainly clear to him, as to every
one else with a grain of political
sense, that the surest way to end
his chance of being nominated
would be to adopt the liberal" ideas
now being urged on him.
Would Switch Votes.
No one linked with the CLIO and
Endorsing the Roosevelt policies
could possibly get by in the Re-
publican convention. But even If
it were possible to get the nomina-
ton thus labeled, a Republican
candidate sufficiently left wing to
get the CLIO Endorsement would
stand practically no chance of cleo
ton. The millions of ti-Roosevelt
Democrats who have been voting
Republican as protest against
Democratic radicalism would swing
back to their own party and they
would be followed by millions of
conservative Republicans.
And what such a candidate and
such an alliance would do to the
Republican party's finances can be
imagined. On the whole, it is an
extremely silly notion in which Mr..
Stassen is not likely to take any
stock.
His friends believe he has a real
chance of being nominated and far
too much sense to fall into such a
trap. They say he is young, vigor-