Politics: Toward Nov. 3

The preliminaries were almost over. At Hershey, Pa., the Republican Party, after months of internecine strife, went a long way toward binding up its wounds. The Democrats are about to launch their campaign with next week's national convention in Atlantic City. The machinery of the great quadrennial U.S. exercise in politics was oiled up and ready to move toward Election Day, Nov. 3 (see following stories).

In their Hershey meeting, the Republicans merely papered over some of their internal fissures, but enough were fully healed to permit Dwight Eisenhower to dismiss "any uncertainties I may have felt as to the fitness, adequacy and quality" of Barry Goldwater as a candidate for President. Said Ike: "I am right on his team." As the Democrats prepared to nominate Lyndon Johnson by acclamation, the only question for them was the choice of a candidate for Vice President, and it was still a question. As of last week, the President had not yet made up his mind, although on public form Minnesota's Senator Hubert Humphrey still seemed to have a slight edge.

The issues are beginning to emerge. For the Democrats, the theme will be peace, prosperity, preparedness—and prudence. They are also carpentering strong platform planks on civil rights, extremism and nuclear-weapons control as challenges to the G.O.P. platform positions. To Barry Goldwater, one key issue is the military strength and stance of the U.S. The fairness or unfairness of the press promises to become an issue (see THE PRESS). And an important factor will be the so-far-uncharted effect of the "backlash" against the civil rights revolution.

As the U.S. plunges into the critical process of choosing a President, it can look forward to the satisfying prospect of a heated and significant debate on the direction of the American society.