Evening star., 1961-04-06
By MARY McGRORY
Star Staff Writer


Behind the gay informality
of the "Ev and Charlie" weekly
television show, there is re-
search and rehearsal worthy
of an Ed Sullivan production.
When the two stars, Senate
Minority Leader Dirksen and
House Minority Leader Hal
leck go before the cameras
every Thursday morning in the
old Supreme Court Chamber to
deplore the Kennedy program
and to implore the President
to act more like his Republi-
can predecessor, the top con-
gressional leadership of their
party has already reviewed
their act.
Their choice of subject has
been previously approved by
the eight other members Of the
Joint Senate-House Republican
lea d ership meeting; their
scripts have been cleared by
the assembled group.
The leadership meetings, if
not the subsequent televised
press conferences, were spanked
by President Eisenhower. At
the last legislative meeting of
the old order at the White
House, he suggested the Repub-
licans out of office should speak
with one voice.
The Republicans did not
wish to emulate the Democrats
in their years in the desert.
when National Chairman Paul
Butler and the Democratic Ad-
viSory Council spoke with one
voice, and the congressional
leadership spoke with another.
The joint leadership meeting
therefore was formed. 1t
consists of Senators Bridges
of New Hampshire, chairman
of the policy committee; Ku-
chel of California, whip; Sal
tonstall of Massachusetts,
chairman of the conference;
and their counterparts in the
House: Representatives ByrneS
of Wisconsin; Arends of I'LL
nois; Hoeven of Iowa. Repre-
sentative Brown of Ohio, rank
ing COP. member of the Rules.
Committee, also is included.
Republican National Chairman
Morton of Kentucky is the
presiding officer.
Agenda First Step
The agenda for the weekly
meetings, which take place in
alternate months in the offices
of Senator Dirksen and Repre-
sentative Halleck, is prepared
by Robert Humphrey, former
campaign director of the Re-
publican National Committee.
Mr.. Humphrey was lured away
from the Cultural Center to act
as staff consultant to the min
ority leadership at a reported
salary of 900 a year.
Every Monday, Mr.. Hum
phrey begins canvassing the
members for their views on the
leadership session agenda and
the subjects for the press con-
ference. When the agenda is
whitfield down to two or three
topics, Mr.. Humphrey, fire.
quently working with other ex-
perts, prepares a staff paper,
never more than one page in
length, on each of the subjects.
He also makes a first draft for
Senator Dirksen and Mr.. Hal
leck for their television per-
formance.
Dirksen Offers Slogans
The staff papers are dis
cussed at the meeting and the
two stars read their scripts
aloud. Any changes are PEN
cilled in, and the finished prod
uct is duplicated for the watt
ing press. The program is car
ried by the television network
as a news event.
Senator Dirksen, one of Cap
itol Hills leading rhetoricians,
frequently writes his own re-
marks. For today's conclave, he
submitted a suggestion that
the Republicans coin slogans to
go with a recent Democratic
National Committee plea that
the faithful urge their Con-
gressmen to support the Ken
nedy program in Congress.
| The Senator facetiously sug-
gested these slogans: apply
the lash for more cash.; or
"All the way for JFK-write