Word: ikemen
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Rout & Rump. The convention was the climax of a struggle between enthusiastic Eisenhower supporters and the pro-Taft Old Guard. The Ikemen, rallied by Houston Oilman Jack Porter, had turned out in record-breaking numbers for the precinct caucuses and county conventions. They had routed the Taftmen and carried the day for Ike. But the Old Guard, behind National Committeeman Harry Zweifel, had bolted, held its own rump sessions, and named slates of pro-Taft delegates in the 31 counties. Zweifel & Co. desperately wanted to keep their grip on their "private-club" Republican organization, which they had controlled for years...
...Right & Just Thing." Now, both sides were to tell their stories to the Republican State Executive Committee in the sunlit ballroom atop Mineral Wells' Baker Hotel. The Ikemen had their guard up, for the committee was known to be strongly pro-Taft...
Malcolm McCorquodale, an earnest lawyer from Houston, set the pattern of the Ikemen's plea. Said he: "For 20 years we Republicans have extended a welcome to all Democrats to join the Republican Party and make Texas a two-party state. On May 6, history was made. We had more people attending our conventions than the Democrats had, and you all know that we should be glad to get them. The struggle to exclude these newcomers is led by a few leaders who don't want them . . . The issue is simple honesty...
They barrelhoused 'em through. Of the 519 contested delegates, the committee seated only 30 Ikemen, gave the rest to Taft. That afternoon, the pro-Taft Credentials Committee went further, giving 21 more seats to Taft. Then the convention voted 762-222 to confirm the Credentials Committee's seating. Mrs. Stearns and the other 509 contested Taft delegates were permitted to vote to seat themselves; an equal number of contested Ike delegates were not allowed to vote...
Many politicians and pundits thought this would be a signal for the Ikemen in Washington to set up write-in campaigns against Stassen in Nebraska April 1 (where a Taft write-in movement is under way), against Taft and Stassen in Illinois April 8, and in West Virginia on May 13. But Eisenhower headquarters seemed way behind their candidate's popular strength. This week Eisenhower supporters in Nebraska started a write-in campaign, but complained that they had not received authorization or money from national headquarters...