OCR Text |
Show HMRD, arcuind trie national CAPITAL- Carter Field y Washington. In connection with President Roosevelt's proposed government gov-ernment reorganization and Supreme Su-preme court changes, several senators sen-ators have shrewdly recalled the origin of the "filibuster." Every one knows that when one or A Smith, his colleague, was coming up for re election very shortly. Ash-urst. Ash-urst. seeing the approaching storm so clearly, and having a personal fondness for Mark Smith, went to that gentleman and advised him to come out strongly for all sorts of changes in the pact of Versailies, despite the fact that this meant opposing op-posing his President and the head of his party. Ashurst was not, at that time, coming ur for election for several years. But he made a big aoise about a few reservations to the treaty himself, Just to be on the safe side. Ashurst'a Record Let's look at his record. Elected unanimously to the United States senate by the first legislature of the then new state of Arizona in 1912, more senators begin talking against time, normally against the passage of some measure to which they object, ob-ject, it is called a filibuster. But very few realize, these senators are pointing out, the origin of the use of the word in this connection. Originally the word meant precisely pre-cisely what it means in connection with a revolution eun-runninc. Un- and then re-elected in 1910, 1922, 1928 and 1934. Never in real danger a single time, either in primaries or general election! The present significance is that Senator Ashurst has Just announced he will introduce a bill providing the Judicial changes recommended by the Pre-ldent Despite the fact that within ten der cover of night, or darkness, or b, creating a commotion in one place and then rushing the guns, ammunition and supplies ashore somewhere else, things were gotten through to the insurgents needing them. That's filibustering in the original, Richard Harding Davis sense. And precisely that sort of thing was called filibustering when the word was first applied to the practice prac-tice of lengthy speaking against time when it grew up in the senate. For the object of the original senate sen-ate filibustered was to get something some-thing through not to kill it. A senator sen-ator would learn that the leaders had decided not to permit passage of his bill appropriating $500,000 for a new federal building in his home town of Squeedunk. So he would take the floor, towards the close of the session, pile up his desk with ponderous tomes, and get word secretly sec-retly to the leaders that he intended in-tended to talk and talk and talk, thus stopping all sorts of bills that they wanted passed. They Gave In Generally they capitulated. In several sev-eral instances, back in the days days of the President's surprise message mes-sage oi. the judicial situation Senator Sen-ator Ashurst had said, on the floor of the senate: "In all tyrannical governments, no monarch, no tyrant, makes any progress whatever unless and until he seizes in his hands the legislative, legisla-tive, the executive and the judicial powers. The first thing a wise, prudent, pru-dent, scheming, subtle monarch in Europe does, if he wants complete control, is to seize legislative, executive execu-tive and judicial powers." The point of all this is that Senator Sen-ator Ashurst has proved beyond per-adventvre per-adventvre that he knows his way around politically that he does not bat his head against brick walls on political issues, and that he does not permit himself to be put in a position posi-tion where he would be easy picking for some younger political opponent Trade Treaties No rule has been adopted to this effect but American manufacturers and producers interested in tariff duties can very generally rely on one point in connection with thi reciprocal trade treaties to come. This is hat most rates of duty will be held at the level fixed in the when the control of the house and senate was more frequently vested in a few leaders in each house than at the other end of Pennsylvania avenue, word was sent by the senate sen-ate leaders to the house leaders that the program had been changed that senator B's bill must pass the house. They knew if they could not get this co-operation from the house that bills in which both senate and house leaders were vitally interested would be talked to death by Senator Sen-ator A. vvucii iiic jjiaiiiue exjjauucu 10 include in-clude talking primarily to kill a measure, instead of primarily to smuggle another bill through, the word was not changed, though violence vio-lence had been done to its original meaning. In the present session of congress there are a lot of measures that President Roosevelt wants passed. There are also a lot of others he does not want passed, but against which he does not care to come out openly. He has provided, in the proposed Supreme court changes and government govern-ment reorganization, plenty of diversion. diver-sion. The spotlight will be centered on these two debates. No matter what question is officially before the senate, any speech on either one of these, especially the Supreme iva iarin aci ine d oraney-MCTJum-ber law. There will be exceptions to this, but by and large exceptions will be made only in what are palpably flagrant cases of too high duties. Any manufacturer can calculate the danger spots without inside information, informa-tion, for the obvious reason that no matter what he says publicly he knows privately whether the duty imposed on any commodity in the Fordney-McCumber act is considerably consid-erably in excess of the difference in cost of production at home and in the foreign countries producing it Actually this rough rule that no duties will -3 reduced below the 1922 level except in exceptional circumstances cir-cumstances has never been formulated, formu-lated, much less approved. It is absolutely ab-solutely unofficial Its existence was wondered about by some interested parties, who just happened to note how accurately it was working, and queried the State department to discover dis-cover if they could rely on it in trade treaties yet to be made. What has developed is a state of mind on the part of the men negotiating negoti-ating these treaties. Always, it is insisted by the State department before any duty is reduced in a reciprocal trade treaty, a very careful care-ful study of possible consequences is made especially consequences to American producers. It has gradually developed that lots of business men engaged in various productive lines after the passage of the Fordney-McCumber act Little Criticism There is a strong presumption that many of them had in their minds the tariff duties fixed in the then law as a permanent protection. There is the fact also that while this measure was bitterly fought it seemed to have the support of a very large majority, and there was comparatively little criticism after the passage of the act as compared court will get the newspaper headlines. head-lines. Which provides, the senators recalling re-calling the history of the word "fili-buster" "fili-buster" point out, an admirable situation sit-uation from the White House viewpoint. view-point. For bills can be rushed through and others can be rushed into pigeonholes without attracting nearly the attention that would otherwise oth-erwise be the case. Supreme Court Senator Henry F. Ashurst of Ari-zona, Ari-zona, chairman of the senate judiciary judi-ciary committee, is one of the explanations ex-planations why the number of Supreme Su-preme court justices may be in- creasea to mteen, as President Roosevelt Roos-evelt wishes, despite the very strong opposition to such a move. It is far too early to predict what will really happen at the moment there is no accurate gauge of public opinion. opin-ion. The old habit of judging the public pub-lic reaction by reading newspaper editorials passed into history with the 1938 campaign. The nuhlie wa iur instance wiw me criticism of the 1930 (Smoot-Hawley) law, passed under President Hoover's administration. admin-istration. The situation that has crystalized In the State department will be very interesting to any future historian seeking tariff data, for in effect the Democratic party, after bombarding bom-barding the Smoot-Hawley law as few tariff acts ha heavily against the President and for Governor Alfred M. Landon, if that test meant anything. Hence the present cross section of newspaper editorial opinion, as reported here, does not frighten the White House. More important, it does not deter senators and representatives from willingness to follow the President. But when Henry F. Ashurst indicates in-dicates a right-about-face it is news f the page one variety, for the shrewd Arizonan knows what it is all about, politically. In fact he is one of the shrewdest and most accurate ac-curate gaugers of public opinion extant ex-tant in American political life. Maybe he should be ranked next to J. Hamilton Lewis, and maybe on a par with Lewis. It is difficult to say. But to go back just a few years. Senator Ashurst saw the handwriting handwrit-ing on the wall when Woodrow Wilson Wil-son began his fight with the senate over the League of Nations. Marcus tacked, is virtually seeking to bring about the precise tariff situation that existed prior to the passage of that act. The really striking feature of the method, however, is that instead of a blanket repeal which so many persons expected after President Roosevelt's inauguration, the repeal is being made very slowly, bit by bit, in return for concessions from countries with which we wish to increase in-crease trade. " Secretary of State Cordell Hull, all his life regarded previously as almost al-most a fanatic for free trade, has been working to eliminate not only our own but foreign trade barriers. Cut the amusing angle is that for the time being at least the rock bottom of our concessions is the general gen-eral line of the Republican Fordney-McCumber Fordney-McCumber tariff act, which at the time of its passage Hull regarded as little short of a crime! . BeU Syndicate. WNU Service.' |