Kup's Chicago - Irv Kupcinet [62]
Arvey was greatly impressed. This was the first time, to his knowledge, that the scientific community had felt so deeply concerned about a political problem that it was willing to send a committee of its most prominent men to deal directly with a party boss.
But where in the country to find a national leader who was not in politics? The one man that all the scientists felt had the necessary qualifications was General Dwight David Eisenhower, who was then president of Columbia University.
Arvey was convinced – and perhaps a bit more readily because relations between the President and himself were strained. He was completely out of contact with the White House, where the “Palace Guard” had rebuffed his every attempt to communicate with Mr. Truman. In addition to this, he knew that Truman’s chances of winning in 1948 were considered very remote. The political experts were predicting that any Republican candidate could defeat him.
With these factors in mind, Arvey went to work. He flew to Washington to relay the scientists’ message to a few leading Democrats, and to sound out their opinion. He also contacted William O’Dwyer, Mayor of New York, and Jimmy Roosevelt, then Democratic National Committeeman from California. Both men heartily endorsed the idea of offering the Democratic Presidential nomination to Eisenhower. Jersey City Boss Frank Hague got wind of the plan and phoned Arvey to say that he, too, was in favor of it.
With all the groundwork laid, a prominent Democrat who was close to Eisenhower was selected to open the actual negotiations. After the first meeting, the spokesman reported that Ike had listened with considerable interest. “His first reaction,” this spokesman told Arvey, “was favorable.”
Meanwhile, word of what Arvey and his supporters were hoping to accomplish had spread in the inner circles of the party. Marshall Field III invited Arvey to his office and asked for the complete details. Mr. Field grew more and more enthusiastic as Arvey spoke. At the end of their meeting, he offered as much moral and financial assistance as might be needed.
With Eisenhower’s interest in the nomination assured, Arvey, O’Dwyer, and James Roosevelt started to map their plan of operation. It was agreed that Ike was, under no circumstances, to be asked to campaign for the nomination. It would have to be offered to him as a draft by the delegates to the National Convention.
The next problem was how the story should be “leaked” to the public.
One of the Democrats said that he could arrange for Arthur Krock of The New York Times to interview Eisenhower and, in the course of the interview, establish Ike’s intention to accept a draft. Krock could then reveal the news to the public in his column.
Remember that this was 1947. The Democratic Party was splitting into a number of hostile factions. In the next few months, the “Wallaceites” and the “Dixiecrats” were to abandon the party completely.
While Arvey and his friends were planning their Eisenhower draft, another powerful group of party leaders – the “ultraliberals” – was working to swing the nomination to Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas. Arvey and most of his supporters sent word that under no circumstances would they endorse Justice Douglas. It was their feeling that, if they could not get Eisenhower, the nomination traditionally and rightfully belonged to the incumbent President.
Arvey’s hopes collapsed at 8:15 one morning late in 1947. He received a phone call from the spokesman who had first talked to Ike. “It’s all off,” the spokesman said. “He won’t accept under any conditions.”
As Arvey now recalls the story, Eisenhower had been visited by a prominent Republican, Thomas Watson, who had learned