The Pittsburgh Press (July 31, 1944)
Mrs. Luce hints she may not run
Connecticut quarrel in GOP is cited
Hartford, Connecticut (UP) –
Rep. Clare Boothe Luce (R-CT), glamor Congresswoman, is unwilling to seek reelection unless a rift between Kenneth Bradley, her political adviser, and Governor Raymond Baldwin is patched up, her friends reported today.
Mr. Bradley resigned over the weekend as chairman of the Republican State Central Committee, saying he did so at the insistence of Governor Baldwin. He was to step down from the chairmanship Aug. 8.
Republicans, perturbed by the warfare in the state party leadership, appealed to Samuel F. Pryor Jr., Connecticut’s ranking Republican, to bring Mr. Bradley and the Governor together in the interest of the Dewey-Bricker ticket.
CIO endorsement of attorney Margaret Connor of Bridgeport, for the Democratic Congressional nomination, was viewed by political observers as giving Mrs. Luce no better than a 50-50 chance of reelection since Bridgeport, an industrial city, has the largest vote in the district.
Appeal for labor support
Mrs. Luce appealed for labor support on the basis of her labor vote in Congress, but was snubbed because of her outspoken criticism of President Roosevelt.
Friends quoted Mrs. Luce that Mr. Bradley’s resignation might be the signal for her retirement from Congress, adding that if she retired, she would make a nationwide speaking tour on behalf of the Dewey-Bricker campaign.
Bradley praised
She said Mr. Bradley, who induced her to run for Congress two years ago, was “a wise and experience campaigner whose leadership has helped put six Congressmen and a governor [Baldwin] into office.”
She said:
Judging from the comment which has reached me, it seems unlikely that the organization will accept his resignation on the eve of the crucial national election. The acceptance of it would be a sign of disunity and factionalism in the Republican organization, and to that extent it would make the task of everyone running for office in this state much more difficult.