Volume 18 , Issue 10

1948 GOP Smashes 90-Year Tradition In Dewey Choice

1948 was one the "Brokered conventions" by the Republican party. The Kingsport Times, Kingsport, Tennessee, dated 25 June 1948, Friday, page 1, mentioned these headlines: "GOP Smashes 90-Year Tradition In Dewey Choice; Nominates Gov. Warren As Vice President," "Reece Fails In Attempt To Swing State Delegation Behind Taft,"Convention Ends On Victory Note," and "Inside Story Of Dewey Blitz Told."

Found on Newspapers.com

Philadelphia -- AP - The Tom Dewey blitz left the hopes of half a dozen would be presidents in tatters on this date and gave his beaten rivals a time worn motto to paste in their trampled hats: It is more fun to ride on a bandwagon than to get run over by a steamroller.

The Monday morning quarterbacks - the key men of the Republican National Convention - sized it up this way in telling the inside story of the week's high pressure events:

Dewey's rivals couldn't all win. If they had got together on some man to oppose Dewey, they probably could have stopped the New York Governor just short of the victory line.

But they didn't. Senator Robert A Taft wouldn't drop out. Neither would Harold E, Stassen or Gov. Earl Warren. They formed a "stop-Dewey" alliance but it had no focus - nothing but an "anti" force behind it. All it did was commit each of them to stay in the race until something turned up. And Dewey's campaign had a focus - Dewey.

That convinced a lot of people that the other candidates were licked unless they pooled their strength behind just one of their number. But they didn't do that ever. They keep hoping until the last night.

Warren put it very frankly:
"We expected that Connecticut would make the first break in our direction ... but it didn't happen that way. We thought that sEnator Vandenberg would make a better showing that he did and that the (Dewey) opposition would start to crack if we could get half of Michigan's vote and half of Connecticut's."

Well, Michigan's "dark horse" Vandenberg made hardly any showing at all. An awful lot of people took him at his word that he didn't want to be president.

On page 10, of that 1948 newspaper, we found these headlines: "Convention Movie Rushed To Theater."

Scenes from the Republican National Convention had been rushed to Kingsport, and would be shown on the screen of the sTrand Theater that night (25 June 1948, Friday) through Wednesday, it was announced Friday by the theater management.

Included in a five minute newsreel of the opening session in Philadelphia were shots of various headquarters set up by the candidates, activities in Convention Hall, arrival of delegates and many other typical scenes from he "greatest show on earth."
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