Evening star., 1954-10-17
Distortion Is Charged
To Democratic Leader
Writer Says Stevenson
Misrepresented President
n. E.~.L D K.~A
By Frank R. Kent

Misrepresented President
By Frank R. Kent
Adlai Stevenson has beaten his breast
and told about the purity Of his heart
so often In the last two years that his
admiring friends, particularly those
New Deal journalists who supported
him so vigorously in the 1852 campaign.
have been able to create quite legend
about his nobility.
In this effort, Mr.. Stevenson himself
has co-operated. Unfortunately for
him. however, the recent speeches Of
the good Adlai have not only been far
from noble but have been on so low
level as to make 1t impossible to regard
him other than as just another ONCE
seeking politician ready to 60 any
length to promote his own prospects.
For example, in his most recent speech
in Los Angeles on October 9-he not
only personally assailed President Eisen-
hover, but seemed deliberately to dis
tort and twist the meaning Of his words.
One expects this sort Of thing from
Walter Reuther but Mr.. Stevenson was
supposed to be on q level far above.
Now 1t seems q major part Of Demo-
cratic strategy.
For example, the President in his
broadcast to the Nation on October 8.
in speaking of the situation as 1t was
during the 1852 campaign, used these
words: Americans then were deter
mined to eliminate penetration Of the
Communist conspiracy in our Govern
ment and in our whole society. They
did not consider it a red herring" Ir
his reply to the President, Mr.. Steven
son first assailed Vice President Nixon,
whom he called the "heir apparent"
as having pitched the Republican
campaign on the level Of corruption,
communism, controls and Korea" Then
he added, that "since Hurricane Maine
struck (his way of referring to the
election of a Democrat for Governor
there) even President Eisenhower has
begun to talk about Communists In
Government and red herrings."
Now, Mr.. Stevenson, who Is sup
posed to be very bright indeed, GER
tainly is smart enough to know that
General Ike did not use the words
"red herring" and Communist con-
Spiracy" in the sense he suggested
when he took them out Of context and
presented them in his carefully pre-
pared speech. He also knew at the
time he spoke that since General Ike
took Office some 20 months ago more
than 1,700 Government employees had
been eliminated because of subversive
evidence against them and that neither
the Government nor any one else in
high administrative position now dis
misses information about Communist
inf1ltration of the Government as
"red herring" Mr. Stevenson's sneer-
ing remark about the Presidents ref
erence to Communist infiltration and
his use of the phrase "red herring"
did not make them remotely resemble
the way they were used in the last
administration. Nevertheless, there
were plenty Of people listening to and
reading Mr.. Stevenson who must have
thought exactly that.
Deliberate distortion of what a pub
lie man says comes pretty close to be-
ing cardinal political sin. Imagine,
for example, what would have hap
pened if Vice President Nixon or some
member of the Presidents cabinet had
distorted perfectly clear and frank
statement of this kind by Mr.. Steven
son. The affronted yellS would have
rung from coast to coast. There would
have come from the Democratic COM
mittee panied cries Of dirty ball" and
loud demands for a retraction or
apology. And the noble Adlai would
have used this distortion for some of
his best wisecracking. But so far no
one has paid more than passing atten-
ton to this distortion. ,.
Perhaps, the Republicans Just did
not think it worth while. Perhaps,
General Ike, who does not let little
things irritate him, has not even seen
it and wants his advisers to concen-
trate on the "real issues" of the cam
paign instead of being diverted by
help contrasting it with the uncon-
trollable delirium into which the we'll
meaning Secretary Charles E. Wilson
threw that great name caller. Mr..
Reuther. when he expressed his prefer
ence for bird dogs who went out to
find food themselves over the kennel
fed dogs who just sat on their launches
and yelped for somebody to feed them.
1t must have come as shock to Mr..
Wilson to find himself accused Of hav-
ing insulted every workingman in the
country and driven the angry Mr..
Reuther to send a f1ve-page telegram
of protest to the President. Being in
nocent of the charge. it may comfort
Mr.. Wilson to recall that so far as Mr.,
Reuther could influence the working
men they were all alienated in 1882
And that then Mr.. Reuther had the
hearty cooperation of George Meany