About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

283 Annals Am. Acad. Pol. & Soc. Sci. 1 (1952)

handle is hein.cow/anamacp0283 and id is 1 raw text is: Identification of the Principal Issues By CLAUDIUS O. JOHNSON T HE issues in every Presidential cam- paign call forth millions of words, spoken and written, yet there are usu- ally public questions of significance that are discussed but little, and some that may be considered not at all. An issue may be stressed, played down, or ig- nored, candidly met, obliquely handled, or distorted, depending upon the con- victions, moods, attitudes, and tech- niques of candidates and upon the over- all plans of the party strategists. Yet, on the whole, questions of governmental policy do play an essential part in po- litical campaigns, and the campaign of 1952 will probably be no exception. From what source do issues arise? How are they developed? What are the main issues for 1952? Will the cam- paign and election bring a decision on them, or on any of them? ORIGIN OF THE ISSUES Whence come the issues? It is ele- mentary to say that few of them origi- nate with the party in national conven- tion assembled. The party in conven- tion is a sort of clearing house for the issues, a broker of plans, projects, ideas, and policies. Issues are commonly in- troduced by economic and social groups -organizations which may have no strong affiliation with any political party. Such organizations often carry on a program of public education simul- taneously with their approach to party leaders and party organizations, their purpose being to win the support of the party by demonstrating their strength among the voters.' 1 Of course not every group desiring recog- nition of its interests by a political party would carry on a campaign of propaganda The time that may elapse before a movement is strong enough to win the endorsement of a political party may be long or short, depending upon the popu- lar strength of the proposal and the inclination of party leaders toward the policy advocated. It is probably doing no violence to the facts to say that the temperance and prohibition movements for many years made relatively slow progress with political conventions, not so much because they failed to win sub- stantial popular support but rather be- cause they ran counter to the personal inclinations, interests, and convictions of so many party organization men. The same may be said of the move- ments for the direct election of United States senators and the national income tax. On the other hand, policies that are more palatable to party leaders-poli- cies like restrictions on immigration and aliens, the assertion of the rights of the United States abroad, and the care of veterans-find easy acceptance with party organizations. Indeed, on such matters politicians may actually run ahead of those groups who would ask for consideration of their programs. Only a few citizens will speak for the aliens, and fewer still will stand against the sovereignty of their country or the interests of the veteran. Issues are presented or may present themselves at any time. Pressure groups watch for opportunities to influence the for public support. For example, an associa- tion seeking an opportunity to exploit a valu- able natural resource might well decide that an effort to win the public to its side would have an effect adverse to its interests, would serve to remind the public of the issue of con- servation. 1

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most