Newspapers / Jones County Journal (Trenton, … / Dec. 19, 1963, edition 1 / Page 3
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ing a P issues. “Our candidates for the Presidency re lies on luck and chance. “America has been lucky, general ly speaking, in her selection of Presidents, but the sad truth is that several Presidents have not been able to do in their first term as good a job as in their second term. “This is because the first term is' often taken up largely with learn ing procedures and the background of national mid international prob lems. . . “Some of our Presidents, of, course, have had legislative ek* perience in Congress, bnt it is un fortunately true that no man who has been leader of his party in either House or the Senate has been nom inated for the Presidency In the last •half-century . . . "Wouldn’t It be much better if we bad a modified form of the par liamentary system, wherein a Prime Minister must earn his spurs in years of. legislative combat ? In most countries, like England and Canada, this means a day-by-day interrogation and response on every kind of problem of executive ad ministration . “The two men in America who to Iday are qualified for the Presidency by experience comparable to that of ■parliamentary leaders abroad are Vice President Richard Nixon, Re publican and Senator* Lyndon John son of Texas, Democrat Mr. Nixon bad served two terms in the House of Representatives and two years as a Senator when he was elected Vice President. He has been an un official spokesman of his party in Congress during the last seven years, identifying the role of the Vice Presidency more with party leadership than ever before. In ad dition, Mr. Nixon not only has had frequent opportunities .to sit with the President and his Cabinet and executive organizations like the Na tional Security Council, but he has served effectively as liaison between the White House and Congress. "Senator Johnson has shown the kind of skill and masterful knowl | edge to handling controversial legis lation that is exhibited by the par liamentary leaders to other coun tries. No one else being prominent ly mentioned today for the Demo cratic nomination has had similar training. Mr. Johnson, to be sure, lacks administrative experience, but, if America had adopted some form of parliamentary government, ft Sen ate leader like Mr. Johnson would have had plenty of opportunity to become familiar with executive problems.” This country is lucky again, Presi dent Johnson today brings to the White House many years of leader ship experience in Congress. But who would succeed him to an emergency? There is no Vice Presi dent now. Nobody is giving his full time to the Cabinet meetings and conferences such as those which Mr. Johnson attended. A constitutional amendment is needed to require that Congress in joint session shall immediately elect A Vice President when a vacancy oc curs in .that office. He should be chosen not from the Cabinet but from the membership of Congress itself. He should be a man trained in a leadership position. Sooner or later, as Woodrow Wil son wrote in his letter to Congress a few days before he was inaugu rated as President in 1913, the A merican people must consider some change in their system whereby a President is “made answerable to opinion in a somewhat more in formal and .intimate fashion—an swerable, it may be, to the houses whom he seeks to lead, either per sonally or through a Cabinet, as well as to the people for whom they speak.” Mr. Wilson added: “But that is a matter to be work ed out—as it inevitably will be—in some natural American way which we cannot yet even predict.” The time is ripe for a fundamen tal change. While Congress is elect ed by the people, Cabinet officers are not. We have, moreover, in re cent years suffered from a divided government. There are four blocs in Congress rather than two parties. It is necessary to establish party responsibility. This can be done by eliminating the fixed dates of elec tions and giving the people an op portunity to vote into power a new President or a new Congress when ever a two-thirds majority in Con gress declares that an impasse be tween the executive and legislative branch has occurred. It is then that ... . SN1NG RE( Sitting in Wallingford, Circuit Coart judge George Wise decided this week to send a 16-year-old boy to jail . . . not to stay, but to visit the alcoholic ward. “I want you to observe what you are headed for,” the judge told the youth . . . Judge Wise also imposed a $15 line after finding the defendant an election by the people should be held. The people shouldn’t be asked t6 wait two or three years to record their decision on a major issue. This, is a rapidly moving age, and the people should always have in stant control over the public offi cials who are chosen to govern them. guilty of intoxication, but he indi cated he'expected what the boy will see at New Haven to have a much greater impact. ? ' The judge made clear that he will be harsh on anyone convicted of providing liquor to minors. While he didn’t say so, perhaps he in tends to send thitse people to jail ---unj-: ■■ .. f . . . not to visit the alcoholic ward, but as guests to the state. With so many youths now ap pearing in courts because of drink ing, Judge Wise’s decision is of par ticular interest as it concerns both the youths asjd those who supply them with*?liqjior. ET TU, CAEjSAR? Last week Kin^ton police charged a Camp Lejeune Marine with driv ing without a license and driving an improperly licensed vehicle. His name was Julius Caesar Jr. FUNERAL HOME 24 Hour Ambulance Service Air Conditioned JA 3-5143 KINSTON, N. C zz: WARSAW OFFICE 108 North Pin* Street Phone 293-7188 SNOW HILL OFFICE 207 North Greene Street Phone 747-3313
Jones County Journal (Trenton, N.C.)
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Dec. 19, 1963, edition 1
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