Evening star., 1949-11-28
Truman's Personality
Seen Unchanged by
Ghost-Writer Shift
CIifford's Resignation
Held Not Affecting
, Fair Deal Policies
By Daufd Laurence


Fair Deal Policies
By Dauid Laurence
Is there such a President as
Harry s. Truman, or Is the pres
idency today a sort Of synthetic
personality which is revealed to
the public in the form of ghost
written speeches and statements?
This question is asked only be-
cause Of the impression created
by some Of the comments being
made on the announcement that
Clark Clifford, ghost-writer-in-
chief at the White House. is re-
signing to return to the practice
of law. It is being suggested in
some quarters that the Fair
Deal" is now in danger Of being
upset by conservatives in the in
ner circle and that different
Truman would emerge If the
President engaged a different
sort Of ghost-writer.
This correspondent, as has
been indicated occasionally in
these dispatches, does not think
most Of the Truman policies in
domestic affairs have been soundly
conceived, though agreeing In
large part with the international
policies. To say, however, that
whether national or international,
the policies of the American
Government are entirely those of
an anonymous group Of advisers
is to underestimate Harry s. Tru-
man.
It tseems to have become a habit
with people who do not agree
with the President to attribute his
policies to persons other than
himself. It seems to have become
a habit, also, to underestimate
Mr.. Truman as did most all po-
liticaI observers in the campaign
of 1948.
Adroit Politician.
One doesn't have to agree with
the policies of the President at all
to recognize that he is an adroit
politician with an innate judg-
ment which differs entirely from
FDR's intuitive process and yet
yields political policies that in
some cases are as good if not bet
ter than those of his illustrious
predecessor.
The Pendergast school Of po-
litical behaviorism is distasteful
to the moralists in political
thinking but Kansas City is a
place where politician can learn
the facts of political life. Mr..
Truman learned ward politics in
his home precincts. AS the song
in "Oklahoma!" goes: Every
thing is up-to-date in Kansas
City-they've gone about as far
as they can CO."
Many years ago this correspond
ent, as a boy waiting to carry
election returns, watched the dol
lar bills being handed out as hum
dreds of voters approached the
polls in a ward where machine
politics hourished. But there is
another side to ward politics. It
has to do with the benevolence OF
the ward politician and his under
standing of the hundred and one
problems of the ward family.
Many a ward politician has
learned that simple paternalism
pays off where direct purchase OF
votes would involve too stupendous
a cost.
The Fundamental Lesson.
The fundamental lesson Of ward
politics is that the maximum eco
nomic good Of the maximum num-
ber cannot be overlooked between
elections and that 1t is not enough
to buttonhole the voters on elec-
ton day on their way to the voting
booths.
Harry Truman learned some
thing of the psychology Of voter
groups at the ward level. He
learned party loyalty and personal
loyalty there. He first began to
apply his schooling to national
affairs when he became a United
States Senator. Anybody who
wants to find out what kind OF a
progressive or liberal or radical
Mr.. Truman is needs only to ex-
anime his speeches and statements
when he was In the Senate-long
before anyone dreamed he would
be In the White House
It is true that much OF what
Mr.. Truman has issued has been
ghost written. This in itself is not
important. All Presidents have had
their ghost All Presidents
receive gratuitous advice in the
form of countless letters and
memoranda on every subject OF
Importance as it arises. The vital
point is not that a President ac-
cepts bodily the phrases and para
graphs and whole statements sub
mitted to him by others. It is
that, using his own judgment, he
is able to decide first of all what
strategy he wants to pursue and
then select from all the words be-
fore him those that reflect what
he most wants to say.
Clark Clifford has done an esti-
mable service for Mr.. Truman but
It is doubtful whether we shall
have a different presidential per-
sonality just because ghost-writers
are being changed at the White
+ House. It isn't that simple.
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