Jasper County Democrat, Volume 8, Number 29, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 October 1905 — WASHINGTON LETTER. [ARTICLE]

WASHINGTON LETTER.

Political and General Gossip of the National Capital. Special Correspondence to The Democrat: The dignity of the Republican leaders of the United States senate has been rudely disturbed by the interest President Roosevelt is taking in the selection of the committees for the next session of that august body. The Presidenthasindicated to several of the senators who have visited him at the White House that he will appreciate it if his friends in the Senate be given important committee assignments. It is claimed that he has gone farther in this direction than any of his predecessors, and thereby evinced a disposition to attempt to shape the policy of the senate. The President is said to be particularly interested in the formation of the committee on interstate commerce. It is this committee that will have to do with the railway rate bill and he is, therefore; anxious to secure as friendly an organization of it as possible. It is known that a majority of this committee is now the opposed to administration’s rate policy and, whilethe President does not expect to secure a sufficient number of republicans to carry out his policy, he hopes with Democratic aid to secure a favorable report from the committee on a bill that will be in harmony with his ideas. But such a movement on the part of President Roosevelt has created considerable ill feeling among the older members of the senate. The lower house has sometimes accepted dictation from the White House, but the senate never. If the President should persist in his dictatorial attitude toward the senate, some of the more influential leaders do not hesitate in saying that an open rupture will be the result. t t t That there is not now any harmony between the reorganized state leaders and the administra* tion is evinced by the refusal of

president Roosevelt to go to the rescue of the party in this falls’ state elections. No other republican president has ever refused to aid his party in a state election. Especially has this been true when the party was in danger of meeting with defeat, as is the republican party of New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio. These states are recognized as being republican states, and in former years the administration regarded fi loss to the party as a rebuke to the republican president in power. But President Roosevelt does not appear to take this view of the situation. He assumes the attitude of being wiser than his party and refuses to support the state machines. Especially is this true of Pennsylvania, where the Philadelphia machine is attempting to intrench itself against the assaults of the independent republicans and the democrats. Previous to re-entering the cabinet Secretary of State Root who is regarded as the closest friend and advisor of the President, made an open attack upon the Philadelphia organization. He referred to the Republican leaders in Philadelphia as boodlers and thugs who were masquerading as republicans. This attack is looked upon as coming virtually from the president, and a real expression of the attitude of the republican administration. While the appeals for help coming from New York and Ohio were not met with such disfavor at the White House, it is stated that Senator Dick, who is chairman of the Ohio state committee, and Governor Odell of New York received very little encouragement from the president. t t t Revision of the tariff appears to have been sidetracked for another session. All of the forces of the administration will be, entered upon an effort to secure railway rate legislation. Although President Roosevelt still believes that the Dingley tariff is a disguised evil, he has reached the conclusion that there is a more pressing need for rail-

way rate legislation than the tariff reform. On this aooount he has at least temporarily abandoned his tariff reform policy Und will give his attention entirely to the railroads. Without the power of the ad* ministration behind it, there will be little prospect of the enactment of any tariff reform measure. The “stand patters” have absolute control of the organizations in the Senate and house, and will be able to resist all efforts of the western and Massachusetts members who will come to Congress this winter demanding a revision of the tariff.

t t t Despite the pretensions of President Roosevelt that he is “president of all the people,” those who have watched affairs at the White House Ijave noted that he has a weakness for men of aristocratic birth. Aside from Postmaster General Cortelyou and Secretary Shaw, who is about to retire from the Treasury portfolio, all the members of his offiicial household come from distinguished families. The President does not only carry out this in the selection of his cabinet, but in his minor appointments. All of his West Point and Annapolis appointments have either been from so called aristocratic families or sons of great men. His latest appointments of this character was the selection of a grandson of the late President Grant and the son of the late General Fitzhugh Lee as social aids at the White House. As such they will assist at all the social functions and will to a degree give tone to all state occasions.