Following a translation by American journalist Thomas Franklin Fairfax Millard, Japanese political advisor Saionji Kinmochi wrote a rebuttal in his journal, Millard's Review.
However, despite holding a majority of the seats in the Diet of Japan, Suzuki was not selected to become Prime Minister, largely due to a long-standing enmity with the last genrō, Saionji Kinmochi, who favored Admiral Saitō Makoto for the post.
When Prime Minister Saionji Kinmochi, who was appointed Prime Minister by Emperor Meiji and continued in that post after his death, attempted to cut defense spending, Army Minister Uehara Yusaku resigned in protest.