Background of news –
Lend-Lease
By Bertram Benedict
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Poll: Elders favor Dewey; youths for Roosevelt
All recent elections show age cleavage
By George Gallup, Director, American Institute of Public Opinion
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Gallup faces ‘iron test’ in election this year
Pollsters have much to gain or much to lose in making presidential predictions
This year’s presidential election, which gives promise of being the closest since the Wilson-Hughes race of 1916, will be an iron test of the accuracy of public opinion polls as conducted by Dr. George Gallup and other political pollsters.
So says Amy Porter, staff writer of Collier’s, in an article in the current issue. Miss Porter reported:
If they hit it right on who’ll be the next President, their stock will go up. If they guess wrong, they stand to lose much of the prestige they’ve built up in the last decade.
Miss Porter points to the fact that Dr. Gallup, “out of 114 predictions on local state and national elections, has had an average error of only four percent.” And none of the pollsters missed the popular vote by more than three percent in the last presidential election, all of them picking President Roosevelt.
Miss Porter declares:
Through the polls the people have spoken good sense on many issues. Often, they have been ahead of their political leaders. They were correct on the value of airpower before the experts; they urged military conscription long before it became law. Four years before Pearl Harbor, they were opposed to the shipment of American oil and scrap to Japan, and they favored controls on inflation before such controls were put into effect.
Miss Porter states:
The pollsters claim their technique is so precise that they can discover what any or all of us think about anything at any time. In response to your protest that they’ve never interviewed you and don’t know what you think, the pollsters contend that they did interview your proxy – a person of the same age, sex, race, religion, income, education, political affiliation, living in the same type of setting (farm, town, city) and the same section of the country as you.
GOP protests Georgia action
Chicago, Illinois (UP) –
Herbert Brownell Jr., chairman of the Republican National Committee, today appealed to Governor Ellis Arnall of Georgia to “correct the disgraceful situation” created by the refusal of Democratic Secretary of State John B. Wilson to recognize presidential electors certified by the Republican National Convention.
Mr. Brownell, in a telegram to Mr. Arnall, described Mr. Wilson’s action as “a dictatorial flaunting of the rights of Negroes.”
“Mr. Wilson rejected the names of these electors and accepted instead a fusion ticket of electors which includes so-called ‘lily white’ Republicans not recognized by the national Republican organization,” Mr. Brownell charged.
Senate asked to probe ‘interference’ by Britain
Ambassador and Congressman deny charges envoy has been declared persona non grata
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Stokes: NAM active politically, but doesn’t go out on limb
It has little love for New Deal, but learned hard way not to endorse anyone
By Thomas L. Stokes, Scripps-Howard stand writer
Washington –
Much on the controversy about group or class activity in politics, now agitated over CIO’s Political Action Committee, resolves itself down to definitions, primarily of “political activity,” and there are interesting distinctions without much difference in some cases.
This is illustrated in the parallels that can be drawn between PAC, representing one big segment of labor, and NAM – National Association of Manufacturers – representing some substantial business interests. Officials of each have been examined by the House Campaign Investigating Committee.
How ‘voluntary’
Sidney Hillman’s PAC is seeking “voluntary contributions” from union members. The question has been raised about how “voluntary” these might be in some cases, union discipline being what it is.
The money goes into a fund which is to be used for what Mr. Hillman calls “educational purposes,” to pay for publications stating issues and instructing voters how to register and how to be effective politically. And to employ men and women to work along the same general lines.
Balance frozen
Up to Aug. 15, PAC had spent some $408,000, of which $371,000 came from a fund of $670,200 contributed by unions, and the rest from contributions by individual union members on the voluntary basis since July 23. On that date, the balance of the $670,200 was frozen until after the election because of the legal ban on union contributions for political activity.
PAC hopes to raise $1,500,000 by voluntary contributions for the campaign. And the National Citizens Political Action Committee. recently created, of which Mr. Hillman is also chairman, is to raise $1,500,000 in contributions from the public. This would make a total of $3 million – if they can get it.
NAM has an annual budget of about $3 million which is raised about half and half by dues and by voluntary contributions, according to president Robert M. Gaylord, in testimony before the House Committee. About $1,385,000 of this amount will be spent this year by the “National Industrial Information Committee” for “educational purposes,” as Mr. Gaylord described it.
Sends out voting record
The Information Committee, which is described as “charged with the responsibility of promoting a better public understanding of industry and the way it operates,” sponsors meetings with business groups, church groups, women’s groups to present issues affecting business. It has been created since President Roosevelt took office.
Mr. Gaylord conceded that national legislation might be discussed at these meetings, but he did not think individual members of Congress were. He said NAM’s Washington office occasionally sends out the voting record of Congressmen on bills affecting business. NAM also maintains a lobby here, he said, to present the viewpoint of business. Labor has similar lobbies.
A difference, Mr. Gaylord pointed out, is that NAM has not pledged itself to a candidate for President, as has PAC, nor has NAM engaged in activity in primary campaigns or election campaigns, as has PAC.
Keeps head down politically
Although Mr. Gaylord said that both Democrats and Republicans belong to his organization and it could not take sides, it is only realistic to point out that no one who knows anything about the organization expects anything very favorable to the New Deal to come from it, judging from past performance, nor many of its prominent members to be on the Roosevelt side in the election.
The inference from Mr. Gaylord’s testimony was that NAM has learned, from experience and hard knocks, to keep its head down politically. He said NAM would not contribute as an organization to a political candidate, even if the legal ban did not exist, as this would only defeat its purpose.
“You can’t tell Americans how to vote,” he declared.
He thought it was all right for members of one family to contribute large amounts to a political campaign “if within the law.” This is where NAM influence is effective politically, individually as members, as has been demonstrated in the past, aside from such activities as those of its Information Committee in the propaganda way.
Bricker to speak here Sept. 19
Governor John W. Bricker of Ohio, Republican candidate for Vice President, will speak in Syria Mosque here Sept. 19, Republican County Chairman James F. Malone announced today.
The Bricker rally will be the first major campaign event on the Republican program here. In October, Governor Thomas E. Dewey, presidential nominee, will probably address a rally at Forbes Field.
Mr. Bricker will come here after a noonday appearance in Erie and the following day, Sept. 20, will speak in Harrisburg.
Need of new markets for goods cited
Industry told to expand outlets
By Edward A. Evans, Scripps-Howard staff writer
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Surplus goods controversy hits Congress
Administrator is in center of fight
By Marshall McNeil, Scripps-Howard staff writer
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District veterans send wire –
Roosevelt asked to sign Pulaski Day resolution
Telegram backs bill proclaiming Oct. 11, 1944, his day of observance for Polish general
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Simms: ‘Secret weapon’
By William Philip Simms
Washington –
Five years ago today, at dawn, Nazi land and air forces attacked Poland without a declaration of war as Hitler started out to conquer the world.
Today, competent opinion on both sides of the Atlantic regards Hitler as having reached the end of his rope. Only the coup de grace is yet to come. Lloyd’s, a hardboiled insurance concern, is offering 8 to 5 the war in Europe will be over by Oct. 31.
Reports that the Nazis expect to save themselves by using some sort of horrific “secret weapon” are discounted here. The Allies have now reached Amiens, well along the so-called rocket coast of France. Unless Hitler soon fires away with whatever he’s got, it will be too late.
There is also considerable doubt that even Hitler would dare resort to poison gas. Not that he would hesitate to murder the rest of Europe if it would have him. The point is, we have command of the air. If the Nazis use gas, Germany will be given a close of her own medicine which she would not forget in a thousand years.
Purposes of German threats
When the robots first fell on London, a section of opinion demanded retaliation, it was suggested that for every robot attack on Britin, some town in Germany be selected for a return plastering such as only the Allied Bomber command can administer. The government, however, was against the idea and so was the bulk of the people. But if poison or some other monstrous weapon were turned against the Allies, all hell would break loose against Germany.
History continues to repeat – even down to these German threats. In 1918, the British Army in France was deluged with bloodcurdling tales circulated by the enemy. They had two purposes – then as now – first, to buck up their own waning morale and, second, to frighten the Allies.
Propaganda had on effect
Like the present V-2 threat, one report was that Germany had a new “secret” poison gas. Gas masks offered no protection against it, the rumor was. The tale was almost entirely buncombe. The only truth in it was that the Germans did have a mixture to cause sneezing, nausea and finally death by chlorine or mustard gas poisoning but that was hardly new. It had been tried out at Cambrai in 1917 and the British had evolved a defense. Nevertheless, the propaganda had an effect. For a time, it even had the general staff worried and, of course, the soldiers.
That there is really a V-2 is known. It is said to be true rocket bomb which, of course, the V-1 isn’t. Reports say it weighs up to 10 or 20 tons. Until recent dare, however, it was certainly not ready for use. It may be that the unprecedented explosions heard on the “rocket coast” of France recently were V-2s blowing up at the wrong end of the line. Even the V-1, which weighs only a ton, is difficult to launch. Many launching crews are said to have been snuffed out by them when things went wrong.
All isn’t quiet on the Western Front –
Yanks follow footsteps of dads over World War I battlefields
Americans hold total superiority
By Thomas M. Johnson
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Monahan: Janie, at the Penn, a merry offering
Again it’s the battle of the ‘teenagers’ vs. parents
By Kaspar Monahan
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