The Pittsburgh Press (August 23, 1940)
GOP Nominee Also Planning Effort to Gain Aid Of Solid South
By William H. Lawrence, United Press Staff Writer
New York, Aug. 23 –
Republican Presidential nominee Wendell L. Willkie announced today he would open his campaign Sept. 16 at Coffeyville, Kansas, and then swing South and West through 18 states for seven major speeches and 20 or 25 informal talks.
He planned major speeches at Coffeyville, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, somewhere in Iowa and at Detroit.
His 3,800-mile trip will carry him through Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Michigan.
The trip will begin Sept. 14 from Rushville in a special train and will wind up in Detroit Sept. 30 when Mr. Willkie addresses the National Federation of Republican Women’s Clubs.
Mr. Willkie and his political advisers made plans today for a vigorous campaign in the Democratic Solis South after receiving reports that Mr. Willkie has a good chance of carrying Texas, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee.
Conferences between the Republican nominee and Republican and anti-third term Democratic leaders produced these developments:
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A prediction by Republican Gov. Arthur H. James of Pennsylvania that Mr. Willkie will carry Pennsylvania by more than 300,000 votes in November. Gov. James and Mr. Willkie discussed a possible Pennsylvania speech in October or November.
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Republican National Chairman Joseph W. Martin Jr. of Massachusetts announced that the Providence, R.I., local of the AFL’s Building Service Employees’ International Union had voted 194 for Mr. Willkie and seven for Mr. Roosevelt in a poll.
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Representative Marcellus Evans, anti-New Deal New York Democrat, announced support of Mr. Willkie as he accepted the GOP designation in the Fifth New York District and denounced the New Deal program as “wholly un-American.”
Quiet Day Today
Mr. Willkie, himself, talked about his prospects in the Democratic South. He already has spoken of his Coffeyville, Kansas, campaign opener as a “strike” at the Southwest, and it appears now that he may visit Virginia and North Carolina as well as making a rear platform appearance in Amarillo, Tex., on his first stumping tour.
A reporter told Mr. Willkie that Democratic National Chairman Edward J. Flynn had said Mr. Willkie had no chance of carrying Texas and Mr. Willkie retorted that he was “very gratified that Ed Flynn is worried about Texas and realizes the November result is a disputatious question.”
Mr. Willkie planned a quiet day today, with a conference scheduled with Ed Jaeckle, chairman of the New York State Republican Central Committee. The Republican nominee plans to remain here until Monday or Tuesday.
Won’t Misinterpret Speeches
The Republican nominee said that President Roosevelt’s itinerary for his park dedication trip and defense inspection tour in North Carolina and Tennessee “sounded like my campaign itinerary.”
I just know that all his speeches will be non-political. Mine will be political and will be announced as such.
Details of Mr. Willkie’s rear platform appearances have not been decided definitely yet.