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Mary LaskerMary Lasker
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Paul Butler was taken care of at that time. I'm sure the people who were at the meeting told Butler I had said this because Butler was always rather cool to me after that for several years. I'm not for letting people stay in power if they're trying to undercut you, and Stevenson had earned the right, by running twice, to have somebody as the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee who was for him. Don't you agree?

Q:

Of course. And it's not good for the party either.

Lasker:

Yes.

But McCloskey and I seemed to be the only ones who saw this, and he tried to get Paul Butler out, but among the tremendous number of committeemen and committee women, something like 98, he never was able to get the votes, because whoever has the office spends so much more time dealing with the states and state committeemen and women that they can always kind of control them.

Q:

That's reasonable, if he's diligent in his contacts...

Lasker:

Yes. But there was a moment when Stevenson and McCloskey could have gotten him out, but that moment was lost.

Now, Stevenson was exhausted and discouraged, and I saw no reason why he shouldn't have political power whether he wanted to run himself or not; that was another matter. But I felt that he should have the mechanics of power in his hands. Finletter didn't agree with me and he persuaded Stevenson to make a statement about three weeks later that he would not seek another





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