Show L Prevailing Opinions I I Comment of the American Press Congress Is Challenged Under our federal constitution congress has the sole power to lay taxes against the people and to spend the peoples people's money to pay the debts of or the government and to borrow against the tho governments governments government's governments government's govern govern- ments ment's credit These duties and responsibilities together with such others as the power to coin money and regulate its value to declare war and raise and support armies to regulate foreign and interstate commerce and otherwise to provide for the tho common defense and general welfare wel wel- I fare were were vested in congress on the tho theory that such vital government government govern govern- ment ment authority over the affairs o of the people can be safely entrusted only with the elected representatives tives of the people In times of oC war and other emergencies emergencies emer emer- emergencies it lt has been the practice of oC congress S to grant wide discretionary discretionary discretionary power to the president so that the executive branch might deal swiftly and decisively with pressing problems But always as tho the emergency passes congress gradually resumes its powers and responsibilities depression lingers the tho panic and emergency have passed And over the last 18 months congress has been gradually gradually ally gathering back into its own hands bands those emergency legislative powers some powers some of ot which the supreme su supreme su su- preme court in the interim has ruled congress delegated all too freely But congress has been slower in reasserting authority over taxation taxation taxa taxa- tion and s spending Tho The current congressional revolts revolts against against the administration tax bill and for earmarking next years year's relief relic ap ap- ap indicate Indicate a strong sentiment sen zen in congress for full tull reclamation reclamation mation matlon o of these functions This we believe Is a healthy trend The constitution Is not how such matters should bohan dIed It sa says s the pr president shall hall recommend measures but that congress shall make a all laws and that then the president shall shaU take care that the laws be De faithfully executed San San Francisco Francisco Fran Fran- Francisco cisco News War to the Knife Only a few years ago the attrItion attrition tion lion pf tho the French center under pressure from right and left would have been regarded by Americans as a aery very ery good thing It would b be a move away from the atomic parliamentary group system and toward the two-party two system which seems normal to the tho Eng Eng- speaking lish-speaking democracies Right and left are just as proper names for tor ins and outs as Republican and Democrat or conservative and liberal But there is one vital difference Under the modera democratic scheme it is the object of the two rival rhal parties to outvote and outmaneuver each other In Inthe Inthe Inthe the new setup it is the ultimate aim of rj right ht and left to shoot down and exterminate each other when the chance offers But this fad in the western countries may lose its grip when soviet Russia comes out for moderation moderation moderation mod mod- and democracy r r NewYork NewYork New NewYork York Times Minimum Wage Confusion An eminent lawyer of Boston now 85 years of ot age has written for tor his grandson who he hopes will likewise become a lawyer a brief testament of instructions instruction In that document summing up essential essential essential essen essen- observations o of a long and Unusually unusually unusually Un- Un un un- usually successful practice at the bar he says Remember this al al- al ways Fundamentally what judges most desire is that their decisions shall appeal to the common sense of the community Can it be said that such appeal is made by tho the majority decision of five of OC tho the justices of the su supreme supreme su- su supreme preme court invalidating the NewYork New NewYork NewYork York minimum wage law and with it imperiling the like statutes enacted by Massachusetts Connecticut Connecticut Connecticut Con Con- New Hampshire Rhode Island New Jersey Ohio and Il Illinois Il- Il In these state-adopted state laws there was no hint of the national national national na na- na- na centralization of bureaucratic bureaucratic bureau bureau- cratic power over Industry the high pressure the extremism that marked the federal N R A Aso so 10 gloriously glor glen put flown by the supreme Boston Boston court Transcript |