Newspaper Articles


Charleston Gazette
April 7, 1960

Kennedy Goal Just Victory

Brother Speaks Here

By John G. Morgan

Staff Writer

Robert F. Kennedy, the famous brother of a well-known U. S. senator riding high in the wake of the Wisconsin experience, said here Wednesday that a majority of the Democratic votes will be enough for a major victory in West Virginia.

The youthful Kennedy said his brother, Sen. John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts, simply wants to win in this state.

He made that reply when asked what percentage of the vote would be enough for a significant political victory.

Sen. Kennedy is running for the Democratic nomination for President in the West Virginia May 10 primary election against Sen. Hubert Humphrey (D-Minn), loser in the Wisconsin contest Tuesday.

The West Virginia election, already in the national spotlight, will be a rugged test of strength for the two candidates. The results, however, won't bind the state's delegates at the Democratic National Convention.

Robert Kennedy, who distinguished himself as chief counsel for the Senate's McClellan Committee and later as the author of "The Enemy Within," was here to spark a bit of organizational work on behalf of his brother.

At a meeting in the Kanawha Hotel he talked to about 70 party workers from 28 counties, with State Sen. War Wylie (D-Wyoming) presiding. Kennedy was scheduled to leave for Clarksburg Wednesday night.

Also present for the Wednesday meeting was another booster for the Massachusetts senator - Ted Kennedy, 27, a lawyer. Robert F. is 34 and the presidential candidate is 42.

Robert termed the Wisconsin results a "tremendous victory" that will make a "major difference here." He said it's his belief that the huge majority there will have a favorable psychological effect on West Virginia voters.

He said he believed that the religious issue was a "minor factor" in the election. (His brother is a Catholic and Humphrey is a Congregationalist.)

He noted that newspapers emphasized the importance of the issue in the closing days of the campaign and probably caused it to be uppermost in many people's minds.

However, he said, Kennedy ran strong in some non-Catholic areas, and Humphrey ran well in some Catholic sections.

He said some anti-Catholic letters sent to one district on the morning of the Wisconsin election apparently were ineffective.

Robert Kennedy said his brother's experience in working on legislation for relief of depressed areas will be a definite advantage in the West Virginia race.

He recalled that the Massachusetts senator was the author of the depressed area bill that President Eisenhower vetoed.

It was explained that regional economic problems in Massachusetts are similar to those in West Virginia.

The famous young lawyer talked briefly of his book, "The Enemy Within," which reviewers have called a revealing picture of organized crime in the nation.

He said there is a possibility that the nation may someday have a National Crime Commission as proposed in his book.

The commission would serve as an intelligence bureau and provide background information for law enforcement agencies. It would have a wider range of activity than the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

In the book he said he believed the days of James R. Hoffa as head of the national Teamsters Union are "numbered."

Wednesday he expressed hope that Hoffa will be ousted after a trial in a federal court in Washington, D. C., at the end of this month.

Sen. Kennedy will spend a full day in West Virginia next Monday, and campaign for a total of 12 days in the state.

His Monday visit here will include an appearance at Morris Harvey College at 10:05 a. m., a street tour and a press conference on the steps of the State Capitol. He also will visit points in Parkersburg, Huntington and Beckley.

Humphrey will campaign with a swing through southern counties Friday.


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