Evening star., 1951-09-18
The Political Mill
Fair Dealers Only See
Mud Coming Their Way
Democrats Forget How Long
They Have 'Defomed' Foes
The Political Mill
By Gould Lincoln

By Gould Lincoln
Who defames who or-if you prefer
who defames whom? The Fair Deal
ers, from President Truman on down the
line. are screaming from the housetops
that their Republican opponents are
using defamatory tactics-literature and
speeches. They don't like it. They
don't like the experience they had with
the Republican "defamers" in 1850, and
they don't want any more of it in 1852.
These screams come with i'll grace
from the Fair Dealers-the successors of
the New Dealers-who have been hurl-
ing mud for so many years they seem
to think it their exclusive right. Re-
member what they said about Herbert
Hoover, who happened to be President
OF the United States? Remember the
accusation that he was in reality a
British protagonist, with no thought of
the welfare of the United States? And
the Roosevelt attacks on businessmen
who had the temerity to be Republicans
and oppose some of his pet schemes?
According to Mr.. Roosevelt-and later
to Mr.. Truman-every thought of these
men was for their own selfish prosperity
and against the safety of their country
and the happiness of the American
people.
When They Recognize Mud.
Maybe the Trumanites recognize mud
only when 1t is coming their way. Chair
man Guy George Gabrielson of the Re
publican National Committee, in his
appearance before the Senate Rules
subcommittee, known as the Gillette
subcommittee, which is seeking some
way to bring about cleaner" elections,
asked if it was defamatory to publish.
flat statements that the Republican
Party is the war party, that the Repub-
hcan Party is the party of imitation.
And he asked if it was defamatory for
President Truman in his 1948 campaign
to tell Minnesota audience that Re-
publican leaders in Congress are the er-
rand boys OF big business and special
privilege"
What gets under the hide of Mr..
truman and his followers particularly
Is Cne cnarge made by Republican OPP
ponents that the Reds were coddled and
treated softly by the Roosevelt and
Truman administrations. It hurts now
that the American people-and the
Admlnlstration-have finally come TO
to do to us. 1t hurts, too, because there
is no possible escape from the fact that
step after step was taken by these
administrations up until 1916, and even
thereafter, which boosted the Reds in
Russia and more lately in China. They
don't like it, either, when charges are
made that individuals in the Govern
ment have been disloyal-yet they have
RI oh
tests to safeguard the country because
individuals have been shown to be dis
loyal. and some of them are now in jail,
some are dead and some are out of the
Government.
Truman Already in Stride.
The President already is getting into
his stride for the 1852 campaign. His
recent speech to a group of Western
political leaders in San Francisco. where
he had gone to open the japanese Peace
Treaty Conference, was vituperative.
Further it is the boast of some of his
followers Mr.. Truman is getting ready
another "give 'em hell'' campaign. The
charges of defamation, therefore.
against Republicans. considering the
source, are enough to break the soft
hearts OF the American people-if they
didn't make them laugh.
The Trumanites protest, too, against
the Republican charges of graft, politi-
cal influence, mink coat gifts, deep
freezers, waste of the peoples money,
etc. OF course they do. They defend
themselves in every way they can. This
howl about defamation is the latest
wrinkle
Every one is or should be for clean
elections" The tempo of election cam
paigns. however, is set by the men at
the top. In 1948, the Republican cam
paign was pleasant and good tempered,
when Gov. Dewey, as a tough prose-
cutting attorney, might have torn the
Truman administration to shreds. Not
so the Truman campaign. when the
President set out to give 'em hell"
Nor are the Republicans next year
going to pull their punches-nor should
they.