Evening Star Newspaper, March 29, 1931, Page 33

Senator Nye Finds Voters Gain Most Through System of Direct Primary (Continued From Fifth Page.) the direct primary. It is an evil that like the poor, is with us always. It has been with us since democracy substi- tuted itself for the divine right of kings. It is the destructive parasite of re- publican form of government. Men do not despair when science is only able to curb the boll weevil in the cotton flelds, the black rust germ in the Wheatstem, or the borer in the corn. ogists give over their efforis bes they have been unable to exterminate these pests and that we return to the old non-resistant methods. Rather they are happy that these evils are held in check. But your politician in the pay and employ of any powerful interest, can be seen publicly wailing in the market- place because the direct primary has not exterminated the ecorruption that shocks the stainless soul. At its very lowest estimate and power the direct primary makes his control less easy and secure. It makes the boss' job more difficult, for he must make public where he got the money and what he @id with it. His life becomes filled ‘with embarrassing moments. Leaders in Struggle. ‘The most active figures in the fight !:a abo{léh the convention lty":fi. ..ES opt the primary were naturally g:ct progressive ‘leaders of both the mocratic and Republican _parties. Theodore Roosevelt, Willlam Jennings Bryan, Robert M. La ‘Woodrow Wilson all used their influence and their oratorical powers to secure its adoption. Not only in their own States, but throughout the Nation they campaigned to destroy the convention system and to secure enactment of ef- fective primary laws which would give the people a direct voice in the nom- | ination of candidates for public office. The primary em has, however, had as its spokesmen and advocates men who are today regarded as among the leaders of the conservatives. The practical value of the primary to | be greater than would be the case under the rank and file of the voters was never more strongly stated than by | DO Question that its corrupting influ- Charles Evans Hughes, now Chief Justice of the Uni States. He sald: “It places a weapon in the hands of the party which they can use with effect in case of need. They are no longer helpless. This fact puts party leaders on their best behavior. It is a safeguard to the astute and unselfish leader, who is endeavoring to maintain good standards in line with sound pub- lic sentiment. It favors a disposition not to create situations which they are likely to challenge and test. “The fact of this control gives to the voters a consciousness of power and responsibility. If things do not go right, they know the trouble lies with them. ‘The importance of this should not be overlooked in any disclosures of the apathy of the electorate.” Many authorities could be quoted in support of the primary system. But in the face of them all in any age of n there are men to take up the cause which would send us back to the easily boss-controlled convention system in which the people are de- prived of a fair chance to have their wishes respected. From time to time men who have been regarded as popu- lar leaders have been induced to attack the primary system. The most recent of these attacks is that delivered by Gov. Alfred E. Smith in connection with the meeting of the Democratic Na- tional Committee called by National Chairman John J. Raskob to consider the proposals for repealing the anti- trust laws and incidentally giving the power trust, for example, unrestrained opportunity’ to complete its monopoly. ‘Without questioning the motive which led former Gov. Smith to attack this instrument of democratic government | of which he was once so strong an advocate, it is only fair to note the trend of the times. In any event, Mr.| Smith's attack upon the direct primary | is perhaps best answered by quoting | from the message of Gov. Alfred E.‘ Smith to the New York Legislature m‘ 1925 in which he strongly urged the restoration of the State-wide primary and said: Asks Smith Question. “It i5 a fundamental policy that no one can question, unless he is prepared to make the charge that the people Who | by the voters as long as they are satis- elect are incapable of nominating.” Under the circumstances one is forced to inquire of Mr. Smith, people become incapable since 19252 Since a principal criticism of the pri- | i mary is based upon the disclosures of the great amounts of money expended | sential factor in preservation of gov- to secure primary nomination, I want to return to that phase. As chairman of the Committee on Senatorial Cam- paign Expenditures I have had an op- portunity to observe at close range the enormous amounts of money that have been expended in certain of our States in securing or attempting to secure senatorial nominations. I have seen individual candidates pouring out more than half a million dollars of their money to secure the primary nomination for an office which pays only $10.000 a year, and 1 have seen great political organizations expending more than a million dollars in secu.- ing the nomination and election of a Senator whom they regarded as satis- factory to them. I do not believe that the Am!x&cun‘ people can ignore or be indifferent to these huge political expenditures. They constitute, in my judgment, one of the most serious problems with which we are confronted today and one 'with which *4e next session of Congress must deal by the enactment of a corrupt practices act that will have real teeth and provide proper restraints upon ex- cessive campaign ccntributions and ex- penditures. Nevertheless, I am con- | vinced that the evils growing out of such political expenditures are much less today under the primary system than they would be if we still had the old convention system. With the primary the money must be spent more or less in the open and in a more or less legitimate way. Under the old convention system, on the other hend, the same amounts of money would be expended either in electing or bribing delegates and it would be dif- ficult, if not impossible, to trace this corruption to its source. Many Voters Concerned. Under the primary system the money t be expended to ir ce the votes Nature Provides a Safety Margin HEARE ~—If you are sufferi aches, or blurred stepped the “safety margin.” - | berry, Frank | upheld exc:pt upon the theory that the “Have the| tyranny. of perhaps a million people. You can- not deal with a million voters in secret. ‘You must go out in the open and spend your money where all men can see it. Under the convention system a few shrewd agents would find no difficulty in convincing a few hundred profes- slonal delegates that they would vote for a certain candidate without leaving any tracks by which the money could be traced. I venture to say that under the convention systen Truman H. New- L. Smith and William S. | Vare would all e been elected to the | United States Senate and that their | right to & seat would not have been | questioned, or, if any question had been | raised, it would have been impossible to secure the evidence upon which they might be unseated. It is important also for the voters to remember that the question is not whether more money is expended under the primary system than under the con- vention system, but whether the powers of wealth control one system more easily than another and with less possibility of detection. As Prof. Merriam has well | sald: “There is little evidence to indicate, and none to demonstrate, that the use of wealth v t primaries than in the election of dele- gates in the control of the convention. It cannot be forgotten that conyentions have often been controlled by small groups of men, representing wealth and privilege, in times past. The old-time convention was by no means an assem- bly of high-minded and idealistic gen- tlemen, calmly considering what were the soundest policies of State, and who were the wisest and most capable men to formulate and execute them. Not merely was bribery and corruption ram- pant in many cases, but the representa- tives of corrupting interests were on the floor of the convention d sometimes presiding over the affairs. Sees Corruption Less. It is possible that the amount of money expend:d in the primarics may the convention system but there can be ences are much less marked. ‘The direct primary is not perfect. It is capable of being controled by the excessive use of money; it does not always elect the best qualified candi- dates and it is sometimes as completely controled by bosses and machines as was the old-time caucus or convention. This is true of the primary in the same sense that it is true that all human institutions are imperfect. So far as it is true, however, it is primarily the fault of the people thems:lves. With the direct primary the people in ths | long run get the kind of government | they deserve. If they are indifferent they g:t inefficient or corrupt govern- | ment, If they are alert and intelligent | they will get reasonably good govern- | ment. That is all that can be ex- pected of any political machinery. The lat> Chief Justice Edward D. White of the Supreme Court in his opin- ion in the Newberry case, holding that Congress had the right to regulate dnd control expenditures in primary elec- tions, said: “The large number of States which at this day have by law established senatorial primaries shows the develop- ment of the movement which originated so long ago under th: circumstances Jjust stated/They serve to indicate the tenacity of the conviction that the rela- tion of the primary to the election is so infimate that the influrnce of the former is largely determanative of the latter. * * * Under thess conditions I pfind it impossible to say that the admitted power of Congress to control and regulate election of Senators does not embrace, as appropriate to the power, the authority to regulate the primary held under State authority. * * * Can any other conclusion be phantoms of attenuated and unfounded doubts concerning the meaning of the Constitution, which have long perished, may now be revived for the purpose of depriving Congress of ths right to exert @ power essential to its existence.” Power Against Bosses. Most important of all, the direct pri- mary gives the people the power at any time to break control of a corrupt boss or party machine. It may be ignored fled, but it is always at hand when it is needed to check corruption or The direct primary, imperfect though may be, is in fact one of the great cornersfones of democracy and an es- ernment of, by and for the people. Besides, the primary election laws lend themselves to improvement. Chances to correct many of the harm- ful practices found accompanying pri- maries present themselves, whereas the convention, a law unto itself, could not readily be reached by law. We ought to devote ourselves whole-heartedly to the cause of lessening the influence of money in the conduct of primary elections. Where States show no in- clination to let the primary reflect a | true voice of the people, then it be- comes the duty of the Federal govern- | ment to write such a law as will hold in | primary elections involving the candi. dacies of men for places in the Fed- eral Government. Though it is often | maintained that the Federal Govern- | ment has no right to interfere with pri- mary elections in the States, there is amble authority for the strong belief that the courts would hold that such a right did exist. But if there were no hope, no chance, for any remedying of such ills as ac- company the primary, I would still maintain that as l-tween the primary and convention system, the primary deserves the favor over the old, long- | tried, and corrupt-proven convention | system. 1 am ready to admit that in several States the will to win elections prompts | huge expenditures of money which in} turn invites wholesale corruption. Let it be admitied that money buys the votes of men in primaries; that it causes duty of citizenship to be sub- merged by prices available for a vote; that it causes men to abandon genuine interest in candidates and issues and to direct their efforts to causes dia- metrically opposed to their own honest | convictions. Let's concede that lavish | expendi‘ures make possible the deter- | ng from eyestrain, head- vision, you have over- Don't trifle with your eyes, but— Have Your Eyes Examined! Street Floor —A prettily en- graved super white gold filled frame— guaranteed never to tarnish and priced at only— D Street Entrance THE SUNDAY who know nothing and care less about real issues; that money causes men to feel an indebtedness they do not owe and to bow down before the wishes of those who furnish the campaign money. Does this make the old con- vention system desirable? Makes Certain Admissions. Let it be admitted that money in pri- mary campaigns influences men to fol- low lines of least resistance; that it pledges men to most untoward things; that it causes men to ignore law and to lead others to disregard for law; that it makes cheaters of men intrusted with the conduct of elections and the count- ing of votes; that it provides the circu- latioh of scurrilous literature and pro- tects those responsible for it from ex- posure; that it provides for men to vote more than once in a same election; that it causes otherwise honest men to con- ceal facts, destroy evidence, to avoid disclosure of corruption. Admitting all this, does that give a clean face to the discredited convention system which lent itself 5o much more readily to these same corrupting influences? For the sake of the argument let us agree that the use of money in primary elections makes llars of men, defames political foes, buys support and legisla- tion and builds political machines; that it tends to destroy independent thought and action and brings first allegiance to great wealth; that it drives politics | into the gutter and cheapens the science of government in the eyes of many who would help keep it clean: that it pro- vokes bribery in many forms; that it goes into colleges and corrupts faculty and students; that it creates partisan slaves, encourages perjury; and that it stiffies honest elections. Let us admit all this and, if need be, more. Does that make the convention system any the more desirable in view of the fact that the same influences existed under the conventlon system? No, this has no tendency, at least ought not have, to dictate a return to | the convention. Instead, it invites such corrections as National and State Legis- latures and the people themselves ca afford. With full knowledge of the pri- mary abuses will someone explain just how the convention system would offer an improved situation? Some one an- swers, with the same old stock in trade argument, “Well, there would not be so much money spent in the convention as in the primary. But tell STAR. WASHINGTO. me whose money would be saved? Why, of course, the money of those who foot the bill of expense, whether it be a con- vention or a primary election calling for expenditures, the money of those ready to pay, whatever the cost, for the privi- lege of determining who shall and who shall not be candidates. If less money were spent under the convention than under the primary it would be only be- cause not so much money was consider- ed needed to accomplish the same end. As much would be spent to control a convention, if it was needed, as is spent to control primary choices. To say that less money would be spent un- der the convention system than under the primary is to say that it is cheaper and e T to corrupt a convention of a comparatively few men than to cor- Tupt an entire electorate. Which is quite true. Then why should we become par- ties to a proposal to make the control of nominations more easily purchasable by those who have the will to purchase elections? Have we come to that stage where we want to make the cost to such corrupting influences as low as possible? So I come back to where T began by repeating my statement that the pri- mary, when stood up alongside its only alternative, the convention, calls for no defense. Let us be done with looking back with any degree of favor upon the long since condemned machinery of the boss and the corruptionist. Let us in- stead devote our energies to the strengthening of the primary machinery against these corrupting influences, to the end that honest elections, with the people afforded an honest chance to nominate as well as elect their public officials, may be made to prevail and in- fluence government that will be most di- rectly responsible to the people instead of the will of self-seekers and predatory interests. The primary is certainly not perfec- tion. But it is a vast improvement over | the convention system which it suc- ceeded. The primary serves s a torch, It illuminates dark places. It discloses | rather than creates evils and corru tion. It was fashioned to curb co ruption. This it has done. It has made public offices more representative of the people by opening doors long closed to men without the favor of party basses, without fortunes to prosecute campaigns, and without the favor of | those willing to finance the campaigns | of their kind of men. 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