Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-08-01

mating conventions of 1913, q year
sive, and belligerent when not try
ing to force over their own favorite
ideas. The new Progressives have
complained about the hostile"
press. They have only themselves
to blame.
Unlike the wallace Progressives,
the Democratic States rightists"
are not planning beyond ls4s. Their
objective is to punish President
Truman for his civil rights message
of last February and the urban and
liberal delegates of the Democratic
National Convention for adopting
an amendment to the Democratic
platform calling for congressional
action on specific anti-discrimina-
ton proposals made by Mr.. Truman.
South Has Splinter Party
The Birmingham trump" conven-
ton was a classical example Of the
formation of a splinter party on
single issue-white supremacy.
There is no possibility that such an
issue could secure a national follow
ing. In fact, the very secession OF
the rabid Southerns is likely to
solidify the Northern Democrats for
positive action on the Presidents
and the conventions civil rights
proposals.
News dispatches by political writ
ers in the South report that the
secessionists are not getting wide
spread support in the South itself.
Resentment Is strong against Presi-
ent Truman but party regularity
appears to be stronger. To preserve
the form Of party regularity. many
Southerners may go fishing" on
election day to avoid voting for Mr..
Truman or Mr.. Thurmond. A vote
for Mr.. Thurmond or failure to
vote for Mr.. Truman will help Gov.
Dewey and Mr.. Warren. That Is
why the Republicans, for the first
time since 1928, are boasting they
will break into the Solid South.
In 1928, the Hoover-Curtis ticket
carried Florida by q plurality OF
42,4O4, North Carolina by 61,9l4,
Tennessee 28,o45, Texas 26,004 and
Virginia by 24,463.
South May Accept G. o. P.
The aggressive States rightists are
likely to return to their traditional
party before 1852. The split this
year could make the Republican
Party respectable" in the South
and eventually lead to q much
needed two-party division south OF
the Mason Dixon line.
The Progressives, now nominally
under Wallace but after November
under the Communists, will try to
take the place of the Democratic
Party as the British Labor Party
took over the LIBERAL Party after
World War I. A lot can happen
politically, economically and socially
in 4, 8 or II years and few political
writer's have the temerity to fore
cast what may happen that far
away. Mr.. Wallace. however, had
historical precedent to back him up
when he told a National Citizens
PAC audience in San Francisco In
August, 1946:
THE two-party system Is the only
system that has worked, and can
work, in the United States"
To make an impressive showing
in November the pro-Communist
Progressives would have to get
many millions of votes. Mr.. La
Toilette, backed by the trade unions
and railroad brotherhoods and many
former Democrats and Republicans,
got 1856 per cent Of the popular
vote, and carried his own State.
Yet the Wisconsin Progressive
movement died out with the Sena-
tor. Theodore Roosevelt received
274 per cent Of the popular vote in
1912, yet the Bull Moosers went out
of the political picture when he
returned to the Republican Party.
In 1892 James B. Weaver, a. candi-
date for the presidency on the Pop
ulist ticket, received SO per cent Of
the popular vote and this agrarian,
antimonopoly, free-silver party lost
its significance in 1896 when VIII
liam Jennings Bryan was nominated
on the Democratic ticket.
November Will Tell
Even II Wallace received 10 per
cent Of the 1s4S popular vote, there
Is no historical assurance that the
Progressive Party would last four
years more. Unofficial polls Of pub
lie opinion have given him o ma
tional average of about 8 per cent,
including lafge-city average of o
per cent. Mr.. Wallace told his press
conference that people would be as
founded by the size. Of his popular
vote.
The November totals win tell the
real story. Now that the Democrats
and Republicans have nominated
their candidates and written their
platforms, the voters have Q chance
of comparing the personalities and
principles presented by each party.
Mr.. Wallace and the pro- Commit
nists have offered their Soviet APP
peasement platform for competition
with the older parties.
The Wallace movement probably
had its greatest popular support
when the former Vice President was
calling on all the aggrieved and re-
sentful to join forces with him. He
attracted no nationally known figure
other than Rexford @. Tugwell. He
has had the open opposition Of most
of the old New Dealers, - repre-