Republican Party May Fall Apart After Next Election, Clark Asserts

The Republican Party, as it stands today, may be enjoying its last year as an effective political party, Mayor Joseph S. Clark, Jr. '23 (D) of Philadelphia asserted last night.

Comparing the G.O.P. to the Whig Party of the late 1840's, Clark said, "In 1848 the Whigs ran without a platform, with only General Zachary Taylor, a military hero. They won that election, but never won again." The Republican Party may well follow the pattern of dissolution that the Whigs experienced, he added.

Before a Harvard Liberal Union audience of 150 persons, Clark spoke encouragingly about liberal prospects in the 1956 elections. "The Democratic Party is ready, willing, and able to take control of the government unless it fumbles on the Republican goal line," he declared.

Party Must Remain Liberal

He stated, however, that the Democratic Party must continue to place its leadership in the hands of liberals of integrity, such as Adlai Stevenson. He listed the following four factors for the party to concentrate on: 1) to develop an enlightened liberal leadership in the South, 2) to make its urban machines free from scandal, 3) to raise money without selling out to "big cats," and 4) to keep the support of the racial minorities and labor groups.

Clark, defining a liberal as "one who believes that the full force of government in a democratic society should be brought to bear for social justice," said that liberal advances in the 1954 elections and similar improvements in the components of a strong liberal party combine to make liberal prospects for the future bright.