Evening star., 1947-11-29
Vandenberg Crossing
The Ice With Europe
Aid Plans in His Arms
Army Of Compliments
Not All Republicans,
Seen in Hot Pursuit
Bp Doris Fleeson


The Capitol is watching almost
with awe as Senator Arthur VAN
denberg crosses the ice with the
Truman aid-to-Europe plans in his
arms and a rising army of COM
plainants, chiefly but not entirely
Republicans, in pursuit.
Nobody cares to predict when he
will reach the far shore or in what
shape: everybody agrees that he is
making a great fight and one that
he alone is in a position to make.
Mr.. Vandenberg is not only lead
ing for the President of another
party. He is trying to keep the lid
on what are very real, very deep
and increasingly vocal differences of
opinion within his party on how
much aid to Europe and what kind
It is not enough for him to be a
world statesman and an exponent OF
nonpartisan foreign policy. In day
to day work on the Senate floor he
must be the skillful politician, care
full not to wound the precarious
amity in which the tremendous
issues of Americas world role are
being debated.
It is particularly important to
avoid head-on collision with Sena-
tor Taft. Mr. TAFT, majestlcally en-
throned in the domestic field, has
been left quite alone there by Sena-
tor Vandenberg. But apparently Mr.
Taft cannot bring himself to return
the compliment in foreign pollcy
matters tacitly assigned to Mr.. Van
denberg.
Undercurrents Aid Taft.
And the fact is, as both are quite
aware. that while MI. Vandenberg S
prestige is immense and his popu-
larity with his colleagues almost
equal to it, the Senate undercur-
rents regarding aid to Europe are
swinging steadily in the Taft direc-
tion, which is one Of avoWed Iimlta-
ton, AS Mrs. Taft once said rather
bitterly: so many Senators talk
liberal but you'll notice they vote
with Bob
The forces which Senator Vanden-
neTg must soothe ana Snolhef, II
possible, decry the description OF
lsoIationlst nor do they have their
own word for it yet. They are for
all the aid to Europe we can spare
and the clear picture OF Wnat tnat Is,
in their view, has not emerged. Its
roPtpf tqff
makes it the harder to combat, espe-
cially as the aid principle is accepted.
Mr.. Vandenberg' S load is the heaV-
ier for several reasons. The Demo-
Gratis with suspicious cheertulness
have acclaimed him leader and they
are letting him lead, and how. After
listening politely to his opening
speech, they applauded and have
since virtually vanished. Only Sen
ator Pepper, for example, ventured
to interfere against Mr.. Taft Friday
when the Ohloan aired his sharp,
premonitory views on interim AID.
The Foreign Relations Committee
is likewise a broken reed. The two
ranking COP members are the
elderly Messrs. Capper and White
who seldom LABOR in the vineyard
these days. MI. Wiley of Wlscon-
sin, inexperienced and limited, Is
next. The others, Messers. H1cken-
looper and Lodge. are keen and In
formed but have other chores to do.
Among the Democrats, Senator
Wagner is i'll and never here. Con-
nally speaks forcefully but seems to
have lost his taste for the in-flght-
ing at which he once excelled. Sen
ator George of Georgia concentrates
on finances, where he is ranking
member, and Barkley has his duties
as floor leader. Messrs. Thomas
and Hatch are not powerhouses OF
oratory.
Daniel Webster His Hero.
If MIR. Vandenberg is perturbed
he gives no sign. A historian him
self. he has always Dcen extremely
concious of the great role a Sena-
tor can, and too rarely does play
in large affairs. Daniel Web
ster is his hero and he has often
seemed to model himself on him.
On the floor he is giving polished
performance. With courteous hu-
NOR, he allows his colleagues free
rein and rises only when and as he
feels that his own thunderbolts
alone will do the trick, His only
sign of tension is that he does not
seem to enjoy the by-play quite as
much as he did, he watches 1t too
keenly.
The old hands are paying him
tribute, the more handsome because
they know that he is putting aside
personal worries to make the fight
here. Mrs. Vandenberg, everybody 5
favorite, is on the road to recovery
from two operations but is not yet
able to be here under her husbands
eve,