Evening star., 1952-09-17
Wanted: A Whippinq Boy


There may be more than meetssthe casual
glance in Governor Stevenson's "brutally clear"
discovery that Senator Taft has taken over the
Republican Party.
In five presidential elections Democratic
orators pounced on Herbert Hoover as q whip
ping boy. The chances are that no American,
living or dead, has been blamed for as many
things as the former President When a Demo-
cratic political speaker could think of nothing
else to say admittedly relatively infrequent
situation, he would merely utter the words,
Herbert Hoover" and feel that he had done
good days work for the party.
But 20 years is long time. A generation
Of voters who were in swaddling clothes when
Herbert Hoover was in the White House will be
going to the polls this year, and it will be hard
to frighten them with the Hoover bogeyman.
Perhaps that is one reason why Governor Steven
son-to his credit-has not been campaigning
against Herbert Hoover. And since he has
introduced a certain originality into politicking
it may also be that the Governor Is a little fed
up himself with the scare-'em- with Hoover line
Still, political candidate with no one to
campaign against is somewhat in the position
of the man who was all dressed up with no place
to go. Those verbal political arrows which
Governor Stevenson so skillfully fashions were
not meant to be shot into empty space. They
should be shot at some one and, on the whole,
the Governor has not seemed overly anxious to
take pot shots at General Eisenhower. He has
nicked him few times, but in the main he has
adopted handle -with-care approach After all,
no one can be quite sure how the voters would
react to an all-out attack on man who was one
of the Nations shining military fguress just
few years ago.
None of this applies to Senator Taft His
visible scars are not numerous, but he must rank
at least second to MIR. Hoover as favorite Demo-
cratic target. So perhaps Governor Stevenson,
far from being really upset. thought that he
was finding an answer to prayer when he dis
covered that Senator Taft had taken over" the
q. o. Pa discovery which, in the Governors
words, puts an entirely new aspect on the
campaign and on the election"
In this connection, it is not necessary to
establish as fact that Senator Taft has taken
over the Republican Party. It is only necessary
that it be "brutally clear" to Governor Stevenson
that Senator Taft has shouldered General Eisen-
hover aside. Then he can open up on the
Senator with all Of the quips at his command.
If Governor Stevenson really has decided
that Mr.. Taft is his most promising whipping
boy, and If he changes his own electioneering
tactics accordingly, something new will be added
to this campaign. The Senator cannot match
the Governor in the fine art of the ironic thrust
The Taft campaign technique is reminiscent,
more than anything else, of punch in the nose.
But he can take care of himself and Governor
Stevenson if he hasn't already done so, might
read the text of Senator Taft's press conference
the other day. He should be interested in the
exchange in which reporter, pointing out that
General Eisenhower had said he did not want
to deal in personalities, asked Mr.. Taft how he
felt about it. The Senator in that ominously
candid way of his, replied: II have no hesitation
about dealing in personalities"