Show NATIONAL NA AFFAIRS Reviewed by fey byC CARTER C FIELD U Mr Field gives a vivid VU picture of 0 how the ic various issues iSS between congress s and aTHI the Ill While House appear to him huh Electric industry on tile the spot to prove prOLe or disprove the charge carge that its delayed spending has been important tant tartt factor in holding back bach prosperity WASHINGTON W Sentiment on a 1 number of Issues between the White WhiteHouse WhiteHouse WhiteHouse House and congress Is crystallizing The lines ore are not based on the relief appropriation battle Some of the Presidents President's supporters on that will desert him on other fights and vice versa Sometimes he will have a n majority Sometimes a minority The big point of ot the relief fight tIght was not the amount of money It was loss of o face and prestige by the President It ended the six alx years of utter confidence In his direction and faith In his administration so far as DI spending Is concerned Here Is the way the Issues look I now Devaluation The Devaluation The President will win Congress will continue his pres pres- present ent power to cut the gold value of or orthe the dollar dolla r down to 50 per cent of Its pre Roosevelt status Silver Sliver state senators swing the balance here In combination with the loyal bloc The price of ot their votes will be extension if f f subsidy for domestic sliver silver Neutrality Congress Neutrality Congress will not In Interfere In In- with the sale of planes to France It Is impressed with ne necessity of strengthening France and Britain as surest means of prevent preventing ing war But sentiment Is also strong against Increasing amount of or discretion to the President In en en- enforcing enforcIng forcing the neutrality law The be belief lid lief is vigorous that changes of rules after war starts shirts means overt acts hence bence endangers dragging U U. S. S in Congressional sentiment Is not quite peace at any price but almost Wagner Vagner Act Congress Act Congress Is set on modifying act along lines Jines of A. A F. F of 01 L L. amendments introduced by Senator Walsh President would like to dictate changes but will probably accept Inevitable to avoid ovoId further loss of prestige Is Opposed to Presidents President's Tax Ideas Taxes Taxes Congressional sentiment Is so 10 strong against Roosevelt's wish to restore rei tore original tax on undistributed corporation earnings and cap capital ital gains taxes that he may aban abandon don fight light The President must ask 0 for more revenue Congress Is def definitely set on boosting rates on In Incomes comes from to Just Justas as lIS definitely against boosting higher levies levies because because of 01 law of ot diminish diminish- diminishIng Ing returns returns and ond doubtful about re reo reducing reducing exemptions The President will have plenty of chance to study the situation before making any rec Social Security Congress Security Congress will not go as on In old age payments os lIS campaign pledges of successful candidates might Indicate It will boost them advance date dote on which they go BO Into effect dYed It will not re se- reduce reduce seduce duce payroll taxes but may force the treasury to contribute to the kit ty The President will oppose the thelast thelast last vigorously sly Government Reorganization The The President will not get the power he really reany wants to revamp government agencies and departments Congress will not consent to turning I. I C. C C. C civil service commission etc Into mere administration underlings Senator Byrd will continue to annoy the administration considerably by insisting on real economy Relief Senate Relief Senate votes cutting poll poli politics tics out of federal payrolls though partially nullified by the house point the way to more trouble for the New Deal In irs reorganization of the set up and control of the appropriation tion for relief in the fiscal year be beginning ginning July 1 I next Electric Industry on Spot As to 10 Delaying Delans Prosperity The electric Industry will shortly give a demonstration of ot the truth or falsity of 01 o the Ule often made charge that its delayed spending has been one of the th most Important factors In holding bolding back prosperity Actually of course investors in the electric industry may walt wait a little to see if the logical steps which might be expected to follow the purchase of the Tennessee Electric properties by TVA TV A are arc followed up For example to see if there will be some assur assurance ance that the government will not its competition to new areas and to see if 11 the government will treat trea t fairly fa Irly other units it buys to avoid duplication and to avoid corn com competition petition between be public and private operation But no such problem confronts the public It can take It for granted that peace is coming and will spread The Investor might wait walt waitto to be sure sure that the Tennessee deal dealis is not just a trap for him But to the outsider It is unthinkable that the administration would have gone I so 0 far tar as it did In the Tennessee Electric deal with Wendell L. L Will Will- kle kie if It It did not intend to go further fur further ther and do whatever was iy to encourage utility spending I The point paint p is that th t If It one assumes t r that the hate which has character the administrations administration's treatment of ot the Ule electric Industry previously Is still in ln effect there would have hav been no earthly reason for paying the Commonwealth and Southern si so ao much For the tho plain fact tact Is that tha TVA did not have to pay anything like so much It II could have ac acquired acquired the tho properties eventually a at second hand hond junk value the course so consistently advocated by TVA D chief backer In the house of John Hankin of sippi The Supreme court had Just Jus thrown out the tho main legal hope of the tho privately owned utilities True the high court has ha never held the TVA's venture into the electric busl bul ness to be constitutional But It Is also true that the tho utilities would have been at their wits' wits end nd to find some other method of getting the court to pass on this question When a ma majority of the tho high court DOurt held that thai the tho privately owned utilities could couk not claim damages damage because none nOn ol of their franchises guaranteed them against competition the Ule door was WOl rather effectually closed I Sudden Change of Policy Ordered From White House TVA EV A could have pressed press d on with Its strangling competition with rates which did not return a yield even on the part of Its cost which was not allocated to flood control or navigation and tree free PW A grants on the local systems The answer Is that there was a sudden change of policy ordered from the White House There was a right about face tace of the th course which David K I l. l had rind been pur suing There was an utter rejection lion tion of or the policies of or George Norris and John so for far as treat treatment ment merit of the electric Industry Is con con- corned The only rational explanation Is II that the administration wants some some- something something thing more Important and that something Is not to see ace As s a matter of tact fact W W. E. E Douglas chairman of the S. S K E. I C. C has been telling Idling the President for tor a long time more than a o year now that now that the utilities have been lagging laR at the rate of about a billion dollars dolla ra a year In their new spending It would seem apparent that the President has decided to see sec If utility spend spending ing dammed up for tor four tour years now according to Douglas Douglas' calculations will not break the business log jam and revive prosperity in irs this coun coun- try If it works aa as some friends of the President seo see the future business will boom from now until November 1040 1940 the New Deal will go march march- marchIng marching Ing on for the four years to follow tallow If It business continues bad for the next 18 months a reactionary gov gov- government government may sit in Washington Congress Confirm Goes Along With President on Preparedness In actual appropriations for ships and guns munitions and planes and training for tor preparedness generally President Roosevelt will get all he wants from congress Capitol Hill Hillis HillIs is much Impressed with the notion that the tho surest way to preserve peace Is to be so strong that it would be folly for any foreign coon coun country try to drag us into war But Dut congress does not see eye to eye with the Ule President on some of the purposes of Increased national defense spending It will not go along with him toward possible sanctions against aggressor nations There is tremendous sentiment for minding our own business and not giving even too much tongue lashing to the nations that are doing things of which we cordially disapprove There is a strong minority head headed ed cd by Key Pittman chairman of the senate foreign relations committee which is for strong economic action against Japan Senator Pittman is convinced that this country could punish Japan for tor Its action in clos cbs closing ing lag the door of Chinese trade to tills this country and could do so without risk of provoking a war var between Japan Ja Jo- pan and the United d States There is another strong minority which favors boycotting of Ger Germany many partly because of or Germanys Germany's treatment of the Ule Jews and partly because of her aggressions on Aus Austria tria tria Czechoslovakia and her keep- keep keepIng keepIng Ing lag Europe constantly In a war scare A much smaller minority feels the same way toward Italy Japan Jalan Cuts Purchases of 0 Cotton From front United States In the cotton growing states there is still deadly fear that If the United States should boycott bocott Japans Japan's silk the price of cotton would drop out of 01 sight As a matter of fact Japan has been cutting her purchases of cotton from the United States and Increasing her purchases of this staple sta pie tram from fr m Brazil and China But the fear is still there The great majority in congress still has the Ule slogan Keep out of En En- Entangling Entangling Entangling tangling Alliances and Is also vig vig- vigorously vigorously against any overt word or act which might force Germany Ja Japan pan or any other nation to pick up Uncle Sams Sam's gauntlet Part of this is honest reasoning on the part of the senators and representatives themselves Part of It perhaps most of it is from emphatic protests from the folks back home Instead of the reaction the White WhiteHouse Whitehouse House expected from the emphasis on the necessity of ot protecting de de- so that religion would be safe sare there is a tremendous fear tear judging by the mail mall pouring in on Capitol Hill that the President may by taking such a militant attitude involve this country in some Euro European penn quarrel Ii Bell Bel n Syndicate VuU Service e |