Evening star., 1955-11-27
By JOSEPH F. McCAFFREY

BY JOSEPH F. McCAFFREY
The Republican Party Is in much
the same situation today that 1t
was 81 years ago. in 1883. At
that time @. o. p. leaders were
aware that the party commanded
only minority Of the popular
vote. To continue in power they
needed a candidate for President
whose popular appeal was beyond
party. They found the candidate
in a man who had last voted as a
Democrat and who had never cast
a ballot for the Republicans: Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant.
Today the Republican managers
can go over the voting charts Of
1858, 1854 and 1855 and find evi-
dence in those figures that prove
that the strongest party is the
Democratic Party. Despite the fact
that only three years ago the Re-
publicans swept into the White
House, the United States Senate
and the House Of Representatives.
1t is obvious now. even to the most
partisan, that the 1852 victories
were attributed to Dwight d. Eisen-
hover and not the Republican
Party.
Seek Tieup With Popularity
This is the urgency that viii
propel Republican leaders from all
parts Of the Nation to visit Gettys-
burg during the next six weeks.
It is the urgency that may, some
time in March. allow healthier
President Eisenhower to hint
broadly ne could be persuaded to
seek reelection.
And II that happens, as every
Republican candidate for office
next year hopes, the Republican
party may have found the way to
do what 1t couldn't do in the 1854
Congressional elections: link to-
gether the candidates for Senate
and House with the personal popu-
larity and esteem Of Mr.. Eisen-
hover.
They'll have to vote for Re-
publican Senate and House." one
shrewd Senator said because the
issue in the Congressional races will
be simple one. 1t viii be Give
Ike his own Congress to make his
next four years easier Actually,
when this issue is developed. q man
or woman won't be able honestly to
vote for Ike without going all the
way and voting for the Republican
Senate and House candidates"
"The Congressional ISSUE Re-
publican Congressman said. would
simply be one of "If Ike Is brave
enough to offer himself for another
four years, then give him all the
help you can A Republican Con-
gress Is the only answer"
With such an argument, the Re-
publicans might conceivably have a
better chance of winning Congress
than II hale and hearty Eisen-
hover were to head the ticket. A
healthy Eisenhower far outstripped
his Republican Congressional can
didates in 1852. II the party had
been as popular as Ike, 1t would
have won an extra 10 seats in 1852.
Eisenhower carried that many more
House districts than the Republic
can nominees for Congress. As 1t
was, although Eisenhower carried
80 of the 48 States, the Republic
cans won the Senate by only one
vote and the 435-member House by
only IL votes.
The 1854 congressional elections
were further proof Of how Eisen-
hover overshadows his party as
an election winner. Never before
in modern history, until 1854, had
the party Of flrst-term President
lost both houses of Congress in the
first off-year test. The nearest
this ever happened was in 1910
when, two years after Republican
william Howard Taft had swept
to victory. divided Republican
Party lost the House to the Demo-
Gratis while holding control Of the
Senate.
House and Senote Outlook
The need for developing a "help-
Ike-by giving him Republican
Congress" theme becomes more ap-
parent when the pending Senate
and House contests are surveyed.
Going into both elections Demo-
Gratis hold q percentage advantage.
There are 80 Senate seats up
for election. Seventeen Of these
are considered .'sure" seats, nine
Democratic and eight Republican.
Thus, the fate Of the next Senate
hinges on is doubtful" seats,
which gives the Democrats an auto
matte advantage because only six
Of these doubtfuls are now Demo-
cratic while nine are now Repub-
Mcan. 81,
The nine Republicans are Bender,
Ohio; Bennett. Utah; Bush, Con-
necticut: Butler, Maryland; Dirk
sen, Illinois; Kuchel. California;
Milliken, Colorado. and Welker,
Idaho. OF these Bush. Butler and
Welker are regarded by Democrats
as the weakest.
The six shaky Democrats are
Bible, Nevada: Clements, Ken
tucky: Hennings. Missouri; Leh-
man, New York: Magnuson, WASH
inston, and Morse, Oregon. Repub-
80