Word: hallecks
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...Halleck was the only man with a chance to oust Martin. He had the argument of experience (majority leader while Martin was Speaker in the 80th and 83rd Congresses). And his voting record oscillated enough to please both conservatives and liberals (isolationist until Pearl Harbor, strong backing for the war effort afterwards; firm opposition to Administration-backed social welfare measures until 1953, warm support of very similar measures afterwards...
...most of all, Halleck is a fighter--a shrewd parliamentary tactician with little love of compromise. In his efforts to bring party members into line, he is more apt to use cold steamroller techniques than the genial coddling with which Martin was successful. This has already earned him the dislike of some Republicans, it is reported; and now that he is top man this feeling may become more widespread...
...great a minority, the only tactics that will earn the Party any sort of national respect are those of compromise, which Martin had so perfected. As Martin said Tuesday, "You don't give the other fellow a crack on the jaw... when he has more votes." Halleck was elected as the jaw-cracking type...
Another factor that may hamper Halleck's effectiveness is his innate conservatism, which will probably get more chance for expression now that the White House is plugging the economy line. Young G.O.P. liberals may find themselves more and more at odds with the leadership, especially when represented by Halleck's aggressive personality...
...other Republicans may soon regret the haste with which they deposed Joe Martin. He might well have been willing to work closely with a younger man for a year and then step down in his favor, had not such a course seemed to involve an ignominious surrender to Halleck, who has been bucking uppishly for Martin's job for the last two terms. This would have avoided Tuesday's outbreak of intra-party bitterness, which will be remembered if only by the pathos of Joe Martin's defeated smile...