Evening star., 1947-08-10

Will CIleer. AL Lne same time 1t
was announced that Senator Taft
would also make a tour of the West
and Midwest about September 10,
covering much of the territory
which Gov. Dewey visited.
Former Gov. Stassen of Minne-
sofa. who has been an announced
candidate for a year or more, has
campaign headquarters in WASH
ington, almost opposite the offices
of the Republican National Com
mittee, and has been beating the
bushes regularly-traveling across
and up and down the country.
The Eisenhower Threat
The greatest threat to the hopes
OF these leaders in the race for the
nomination is the recurring de-
mand that Gen. Eisenhower get into
the race-or at least permit himself
to be drafted for the presidential
nomination. Up to date there has
been no real Eisenhower movement.
1t has been pretty nebulous-al-
though there is growing talk that
the general is being boosted pri-
vately by some of the monied Re-
publicans in New York and else
where, who do not care too much
about Gov. Dewey
Up to date the only comments
from Gen. Eisenhower himself have
been definitely that he is not a
candidate and does not wish to be
one. Sometime after" the first of
the year he is to take over the
presidency of Columbia University,
an office which was relinquished by
DR.. Nicholas Murray Butler in 1945.
There was a time when DR.. Butler,
then president of Columbia, was a
constant knocker at the door for
the Republican presidential NOM
lnation. Indeed, at one time he
was nominated for Vice President
on the ticket with President Will
liam Howard Taft-by the Repub-
lican National Committee after
Vice President Sunny Jim" Sher-
man died while the campaign of
1912 was at it's height. This does
not mean that Gen. Eisenhower
necessarily will become pros
pective presidential candidate when
he takes over the presidency of
Columbia. But 1t is a coincidence.
Movement Would Spread
So far the public demands for
Eisenhower have come almost en-
tirely from Kansas Republicans
among them Senators Capper and
Reed, with former Gov. Alf Landon
putting in his plug, too. Kansas
present Governor, Frank Carlson,
ADMITS that tine state delegation
would go overheard in minute for
Eisenhower if the generals name
should be proposed for the presi-
Dental nomination. Without Eisen-
hover in the race, however, the
delegation in all probability will line
up for Dewey. Eisenhower grew up
in Kansas, although he was born in
Texas, and he was appointed to West
Point from Kansas.
And should the Eisenhower draft"
idea start rolling, other States
nearby would fall over themselves
getting on the Eisenhower band
wagon. Nor would the movement
be confined to the Midwest, it is
but would spread
through the East and West.
The name of Carroll Reece has
been included in the "favorite son"
list. Mr.. Reece is Republican ma
tional chairman and it is unusual
to have national chairman of
either major political party put for
ward for presidential nomination.
The national chairman is supposed
to keep his hands off such matters,
and only to become active after a
presidential nomination has been
made-in the interest of electing a
candidate. An exception to this rule
was James A. Farley of New York,
Democratic national chairman. who
ran the Roosevelt campaigns of 1882
and 1896. He split with Roosevelt
over the third term issue, and be-
came himself a candidate for tne
nomination in 1910.
Farley went down the line In this
effort believing that only by. such
tactic could he make the issue and
convince the country that the
Roosevelt third term nomination
was not the result OF a unanimous
draft" movement.
Tennessee's Plan
The suggestion that Mr.. Reece
have a pledged delegation from
Tennessee does not come from Mr..
Reece, but from Republicans in
Tennessee. They believe that by
sending Reece. delegation to the
convention, they will be freer when
the time comes to jump to the
candidate whom they desire and
who appears to have the better
chance for the nomination. Fur
thermore, it might relieve Chairman
Reece of considerable embarrass-
ment. It has been charged in the
past that he was Taft man, COM
mitted to the Ohio Senator's cam
didacy for the presidential nomina-
tion. If on the first ballot the
Tennessee delegation should swing
directly into the Taft column-or
If it went on the first ballot to
Dewey-the charge in all probability
would be made that the national
chairman was using his influence
for one of the other of these leading
candidates.
Whether Senator Brewster OF
Maine will have pledged delegation
Is very much observation-disclosures
in recent months his name has been