Henderson daily dispatch., 1946-08-15
The Boy Senator

Robert NJ. LaFollettc. for nearly
three terms United States senator
from Wisconsin. and vino succeed
ed his father in that capacity, went
down to defeat i'll the primary cleo
tor in his home State last Tuesday
Had he won out II would not have
been surprising. and the victory
would have been Il tribute To his
personal leadership and doctrines
AT the same time. his defeat is not
the most shocking event of this
years elections.
The LaFolletteS rose to power IN
the Northwest as liberal thinkers.
The father once led AN abortivc
third party movement in rebellion
against both the Republican and
Democratic organizations of his
State and the nation. The senator's
younger brother. Philip. became
governor of Wisconsin and before
his subsequent defeat introduced
many radical reforms in that State
The Republican party came 10
life, however. after lengthy suppress
sion al the hands of the ProgreSSivcs.
and its comeback was so swift and
SO strong that the senator was quick
10 read the handwriting and him
self led the movement to disband the
Progressive group and to lead that
element back into the Republican
fold. He was seeking the straigh;
out Republican nomination when he
was defeated. His prodigality years
ago evidently had not been forgiven
and certainly had not been forgot
ten. with the result that he fell VIC
tim To the rcjuvCnatcd G.. O. =. III
Wisconsin. Hence his enforced re-
tircmcnt to private life.
In his early years in the Senate,
LaFolicttc was known as the bow
senator He was one of the young
est men ever 10 acquire membership
in that body-if not the youngest.
al least IN modrcI times. In those
years he was recognized as an ultra
liberal and was among those far
thcst TO the left in politics. But COM
ing of the Roosevelt era left HIM be-
hind and imposed upon the country
such lcitwInG doctrines that even
. LaFollcttc was unwilling TO swal-
low all the medicine.
One of the outstanding character
iStics Of young Bob" was his ma
tionaliSm. or isolationism. In that he
followed in the footsteps of his father
before him. Neither relished too
, much collaboration with foreign ma
tons. But both extended themselves
in plugging for that American whom
Henry Wallace since has character
lied as the common man. Once.
during the Hoover administration.
young Bob spoke for hours in the
Senate in advocacy of relief ap-
preparation of five billion dollars.
The idea was regarded then as cX-
travagance and as shocking pro-
posal for expenditure of public
. funds, and failed. That at time.
p, too, when the national debt was
only about twenty billion dollars. or
less. in contrast to the S270 billions
today. LaFollette was pioneering in
; that thought, in the very depths Of
the depression. But two or three
, years later the Roosevelt admins
tration thought it nothing repeatedly
! to vote five billions for leaf-raking
, and other doles equally as absurd.
; LaFollette's defeat marks a re-
; vcrsal in thinking in the Northwest.
, in the coming of spirit of inter-
nationalism. and perhaps also even
+. & retrenchment to some degree in
: left-wing ideologies. The boy SEN
, ator served his day and generation.
as did his father before him. and
! his brother was contemporary for
part Of the time. But men and ideas
are changing, and with them also
, their representatives in the seats of
the mighty. Thus young Bob La
Toilette passes off the stage of pub
lie life at middle age, and at time
when II would seem he could have
been Of more and greater service
had ne sailed his ship under a diff
fers~t- flag.