May Force Fight on Roosevelt

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXXI, Issue 12319, 13 November 1907, Page 2

May Force Fight on Roosevelt

NEW YORK, September 16. A despatch from Washington to the Heiald says: — Theie is only one possible contingency under which President Roosevelt would become a candidate for re-election. That is a continuance of the assaults that ar* being made on him by financial influences ci&pleas?d with his policies. Some of these men and the newspapers that speak for them, are hinting that the President is adhering to his declaration not to be a candidate for the Presidency only because he realises that he cannot be re-nominated, and that if he were re-nom-inated he could not be re-elected. This sort of talk, if persisted in long i enough, will, in the opinion of some of the most intimate friends of the President, force him into the fi»ht. Th»» constant repetition of stories that the President has lost his influence, that the country is turning from his policies, and that he is getting out of office because of his loss of popularity, is said by friends of the administration to be the surest way of gettin? Mr Roosevelt into the contest of 1908. \s matters stand the number of Rcpubr'a^i wVo 'pfuse to consider anybody but Mr Roosevelt for the standard bearer next year { a constantly increasing. The President and all his friends believed the demand for him would die out. They expressed th© opinion lnte in June, that this would occur within four months. Nearly throp months have passed and the demand for the renoraination of the President continues just as strong as ever. WEST FOR ROOSEVELT. Reports received here from the Far West are that Republicans. and Democrats as well, refuse to consider anyone else in the running but Roosevelt. Republican members of Congress without regard to section want the President to reconsider his refusal to run, because they say Le will aid them in their districts more tkan any other possible nominee. With the exception of Senator Curtis, of Kansas, who is manager of the Taft boom in that State, all Republican representatives who have been' in Washington this month say the Republican convention will re-nominate Mr Roosevelt and try to force h)m to run aerain. These men say they fear the effort to nominate Secretary Taft will end in failure and that the Ohio situation is such that Mr Taft will not appeal to the convention. They say the expected failure of Die President .to nominate Mr Taft will render it almost impossible for him to transfer his support to any other candidate. If he will not take it, they add. Mr Husrhes is likely to be the choice and that would be a risky experiment because then the New York Governor would be Tunning as an anti-administration nominee. New York continues to be the most iml.ortant factor in the Presidential problem of both political parties. Although the balance of power is generally declared to have gone to the Middle West, since the increase of representation brought about under the census of 1900 there are few political leaders who will assent to the proposition that it is safe to enter on any political campaign on the assumption that New York, with its thirty-nine electoral votes, is not a pivot.-.! SJjte. ' , A republican situation is rapidly coming about in New York, *£@ordsn'g to politicians who have carefully inquired into narty matters, which might moke the Stato doubtful for Booaevert. Taft. or Hughfs. Friends of the President and of the Governor are rapidly manoeuvring the party into a situation where the outcome of the next State Convention will be . re-p-ardod either as a Roosevelt or as a Hughes defeat-.

Thus far there is no open war between the President and the Governor. Mr Roosevelt would no doubt like to see the New York delegates for Taft. On th<> other hand. State pride, is at work, and many would liVe to see ' Governor Hughes get the delegit:a.