THE CONGRESS: Senate Sweep

The Senate race, which the expert consensus had expected to be nip & tuck, was not even close. Democrats won complete control. With four states still in the doubtful column, Democrats held a solid 51-to-41 majority.

Nowhere did the Republicans spring any surprises. By contrast, the Democrats had smooth sailing in every state where they expected to run into heavy weather. In the once-Republican stronghold of Iowa, the Democrats’ ex-Senator Guy Gillette upset all G.O.P. dopesheets by knocking off ailing George Wilson. Incumbents Ed Johnson in Colorado and Jim Murray in Montana held on to their seats with ease.

The net result of the Democratic victory was to clear out large patches of deadwood and bring some decided changes for the better:

ILLINOIS’ PAUL DOUGLAS, 56-year-old University of Chicago professor and wounded Marine veteran of World War II, pulled the most outstanding (and popular) upset of the Senate race by ousting the Chicago Tribune’s personal mouthpiece, C. Wayland Brooks, the Senate’s most reactionary isolationist.

WEST VIRGINIA’S MATT NEELY, 74-year-old veteran of the House, Senate and the governor’s chair, promising full support of civil-rights legislation and repeal of the Taft-Hartley law, rode in on the vote of the Mine Workers over the Republican incumbent, Chapman Revercomb.

MINNESOTA’S HUBERT HUMPHREY, smart, fast-talking mayor of Minneapolis, vice chairman of the leftwing, non-Communist Americans for Democratic Action, was an easy winner over the Republicans’ gloomy Senator Joe Ball, a leader of the Senate’s get-tough-with-labor wing.

TENNESSEE’S ESTES KEFAUVER, able, liberal veteran of five terms in the House of Representatives, who had successfully defied Memphis’ Boss Ed Crump to win the Democratic primary, was a clear gain over the Republicans’ ex-National Committee Chairman Carroll Reece.

OKLAHOMA’S BOB KERR, popular, hefty ex-governor and self-made millionaire, was an easy winner over Republican Representative Ross Rizley. Backed by labor and Oklahoma’s Democratic tradition, he denounced Rizley’s standpat record in

Congress, shouted out his own down-the-line support of Franklin Roosevelt’s poli cies.

WYOMING’S LESTER HUNT, an affable, 56-year-old ex-dentist and ex-baseball player, who started running for the Senate almost as soon as he reached the gover nor’s chair, defeated Republican incumbent Edward V. Robertson in an out & out popularity contest. A good rider, good shot and terrific campaigner, he favors repeal of the Taft-Hartley law, more reclamation projects for Wyoming’s stock men.

The House Cleaning

Harry Truman called it the worst Con gress in history — and the people apparently took his word for it. They set about their house cleaning (a vastly different kind from the one that Tom Dewey had promised) like a housewife grimly wielding a new broom. And by the time the dust settled, the House was as cleanly Democratic as the President could ask.

Nobody — not even the man who made a campaign issue out of Congress — had really expected the House to change hands.

The Both Congress, which took office 22 months ago, contained 244 Republicans to 187 Democrats (with one American Laborite). That margin looked perfectly safe. As late as 9 o’clock on election night, the G.O.P. appeared to have a 40-seat advantage. But in the small hours, as the Truman tide came in, their lead washed away. By Wednesday noon the tide was at flood: many seats were still in doubt, but the Democrats were safely in, by at least 237 seats to 141.

Twoscore Republicans had been un seated, but not a single Democratic Congressman had yet lost his place. For the most part, the big-name Republicans survived. Speaker Joe Martin, Floor Leader Charlie Halleck , Appropriations Chair man John Taber, Foreign Affairs Chair man Charlie Eaton, and rednecked, Red-probing J. Parnell Thomas all held their seats — but would have to hand over their gavels to Democrats. Pennsylvania’s John McDowell, Thomas’ right-hand man, lost out.

In state after state, the amazing Democrats moved in on Republican delegations.

In New York they captured 23 out of 45 seats, snatching eight new ones in Buffalo and New York City alone. In Harry Tru man’s Missouri, where they had been out numbered 9 to 3, they got eleven seats for sure (only ranting, panting Dewey Short seemed to be a G.O.P. survivor). In Connecticut they stole three of the Republicans’ six seats. In Pennsylvania they were within a whisker of wresting the G.O.P. ‘s 28-to-5 control.

Harry Truman had got the house cleaning he asked for. The 81st Congress might or might not be any better than the 80th.

But if its Democrats stuck together, it might be a Congress President Truman could work with.