SPENT TOO MUCH MONEY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20901, 16 December 1929, Page 11

SPENT TOO MUCH MONEY

SENATOR DEPRIVED OF SEAT. SUCCESSOR SPENT MORE. (United Press Association.) • (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) WASHINGTON, December 13. (Received Dec, 15, at 5.5 p.m.) A most curious combination of circumstances reached a climax when Joseph Grundy was sworn in as a Senator from Pennsylvania. In recent weeks a senatorial investigation into national lobbying for tariff rates has been in progress. Grundy is the arch-lobbyist of the United States, and he appeared before the committee and proudly, without reservation, admitted this. During the same time the Senate had the Vare case before it. Grundy was one of the principal characters in the Vare drama. The hearing produced evidence that Vare had spent £150,000 in 1026 to obtain primary nomination as Senator for Pennsylvania, and his opponents, of whom Grundy was financial backer, spent £360,000 to get the nomination for one of their men. Tlte Senate refused to give the seat to Vare on the ground that he had spent too much money. The law provides that the Governor of the State has the right to appoint a senator to fill a vacancy such as was created by the rejection of Vare, and Governor Fisher appointed Grundy, who raided or contributed £BO,OOO to his campaign fund. This appointment is perfectly legal, and the best constitutional lawyers are compelled to say that Grundy’s appointment could not be attacked. Thus the Senate had thrown out a man for spending £150,000 and was forced to accept in his place a man who represented an expenditure of £360,000.