Evening star., 1947-07-24
The Political Mil
Kenny Carries the Ball
For Wallace in California
Lawyer, Master of Sarcasm, Goes
About Job in Practical Fashion
BY Gould Lincoln

About Job in Practical Fashion
By Gould Lincoln
SAN FRANCISCO, July 24-Henry WAL
laces California Warwick is stocky 46-year-old
Robert w. Kenny of Los Angeles, lawyer, poll.
tician and master of sarcasm.
Bob" Kenny, as he Is known to thousa Ids,
seized the ball. after Mr.. Wallace's rather SEN
sational trip into this State on his return from
Europe, and ran with it. In consequence, it
was Mr.. Kenny who issued the firA call for q
Wallace-for- President meeting. who more or
less single-handed engineered that meeting in
Fresno, and who is prepared to go ahead with q
Wallace campaign in the other Western States
and the whole country, If he can work it.
Mr.. Kenny loves the game for itself. although
he is now crusading Wallace-ite. with pas
sion for liberalism" and particular hatred
for the Truman doctrine. bred in him perhaps
by the violent opposition to that doctrine
uttered by his candidate for President. Mr..
Wallace Nor is Mr.. Kenny a stranger to the
game of politics. He had his finger in the pie
when Mayor Roph Of San Francisco was nomi.
mated and elected Governor of California AS
reward he was appointed a superior judgs
in Los Angeles.
Bench Too Tame.
Work on the bench, however, was too tame for
the active minded Mr. Kenny. He ran for and
was elected az State Senator and served term
in the Legislature. BY this time he was good
New Dealer. When Gov. Warren, who had
been attorney general of California, moved
into the Governors mansion. Bob Kenny got
himself elected attorney general Although
New Deal Democrat he was friendly with
Republican Gov. Warren-and worked with him
AS his attorney general.
Two years ago Mr. Kenny was the only Demo-
crat in important State Office in California. He
the patronage dispenser, SO far as Demo-
cratic patronage was concerned. Generally, it
was believed, he preferred to be the power be-
hind the throne. However last year he threw his
hat in the ring for the gubernatoral nomina-
tion against his old friend, Mr. Warren who
was seeking a second term. Last year was a
poor year for Democrats in California. Gov.
Warren won not only the Republican nomina.
tion, but he also won the Democratic nomina-
ton for Governor-a real blow to Mr. Kennys
ambitions and prestige.
His difficulty in that primary was that many
of the more conservative Democrats would not
vote for him-they preferred Gov. Warren, who
had never been violent partisan and who had
proved an excellent chief executive. There
wasn't enough of the radical Democrats to put
Mr.. Kenny across for the nomination. This
is the difficulty he is facing now In his drive
for Wallace-for President California delega-
ton in the 194s Democratic National Conven-
tion. None Of the conservative Democratic
leaders has showed up 50 far In the Wallace
camp.
Good Snowman.
Mr.. Kenny is a good Snowman. quick and
witty speaker with a gift for phrase making.
A smooth, round and ruddy face gives him the
appearance of an amiabe political cherlb,
which the barbed comments he makes on his
opponents frequently belle, however. He has
a passion for the practical in politics.
"All of us want to be practical" he says.
although all OF us would be happy II we could
be certain Henry Wallace would be our next
President. All of us are group-up people who
know that Presidents aren't found under cab
bage leaves or deposited in the White House by
the stork."
And so he goes about this Wallace drive in
an extremely practical fashion. He Is organ
izing from the ground up, planning Wallace
committees in every county and district and
down to the precincts. He Is flrm In his COM
ment that the ordinary people will support his
candidate-the same kind of people, he insists,
that supported Franklin D. Roosevelt and gave
him California's electoral votes four times.
The group Of Democrats and radicals which
met in Fresno last week at Mr.. Kennys call
were mostly run of the mine Americans. No big
shots, though some of the lesser lights in the
Democratic Party came out 1t was begin
ming, and that's about all that can be said for
that meeting. The potentalties are there, II
Mr.. Kenny and his candidate can stir these
people.
Mr.. Kenny's family had money He was
reputedly playboy at college-Stanford. Later
he took whirl at newspaper work and then
became a lawyer. He has never had to worry
about wolf at the door-and he wouldn't know
anyway, for he has built himself lucrative
law practice.
This is the man who has challenged the
Truman supporters in California. He Is ready
to go to the mat for his candidate, whether
1t ruins the chances OF President Truman or
not. He's looking to the future and beyond 194s.