The Pittsburgh Press (July 31, 1944)
Stokes: Governor Dewey isn’t on a barnstorming trip; he’s out to line up those 26 GOP states
He’s out to learn views of voters
By Thomas L. Stokes, Scripps-Howard staff writer
26 Republican governors control the states in black in this map. These states represent 345 electoral votes, many more than the 226 votes necessary to win. Republican governors control the political machinery in these states and that is what Governor Dewey is going after in his first political tour.
Governor Thomas E. Dewey is on a unique mission in this quest for the Presidency in this tour which takes him to St. Louis for a conference with 25 other Republican governors.
Though he is showing himself to the people here and there, as in Pittsburgh today, this is no barnstorming, speech-making campaign swing. It is strictly a business affair. It comprises, first, political organization, and second, consultation with politicians and spokesmen of various economic groups to learn what issues most concern the voters this year.
Governor Dewey and his managers are trying to profit from the mistakes of the 1940 Republican presidential campaign. Wendell L. Willkie paid but meager attention to politicians and political organizations.
Governor Dewey has proved himself adept at political organization. On this trip, he is seeing the political managers on their home ground. Meanwhile, he is holding his fire on campaign issues pending further survey and study.
Some of the latter he is doing on this trip, beginning in Pittsburgh today in conferences with representatives of labor, farm and business groups, as well as with local political leaders. This he will continue at Springfield, Illinois, tomorrow and at St. Louis.
The climax of this first campaign venture is, of course, his two-day conference with the other Republican governors. Utilization of the Republican governors in this campaign is generally recognized as the smartest political coup so far of this year’s campaign in either party.
It may pay substantial dividends. The 26 states represent 345 electoral votes, many more than the 226 votes necessary to win. Republicans control the political machinery in these states, which is an initial advantage, particularly if there is a light presidential vote this November. Governor Dewey’s endeavor is to steam up the governors to get their machinery in smooth working order.
He also has another objective, aside from purely political organization mechanics.
This is to utilized the governors in pushing what Mr. Dewey seemingly expects to develop into a major issue, that is, recovery for the states of some of the powers yielded up, or appropriated, in recent years to the federal government. This offers an introduction to the issue of federal bureaucracy, for the big federal mechanism has been built up to administer functions formerly reserved to the states.
The governors are in a position to present this story in a practical fashion that would have more meaning than mere shouts about the bureaucracy arising from so many campaign stumps in recent years.
Most of the Republican governors have recognized that the big social and economic problems of today require federal supervision, coordination, and in many cases financial help, particularly post-war readjustments, but they also hold that local, decentralized administration is most healthful, effective and economical.