| Show I 1 N. N N S SI I D E F S STU STUFF T U F F The By News PAUL B Behind hind MALLON the News Q WASHINGTON WASHINGTON April Treas 7 Treas 7 Treas Treasury ur ury Se Secretary re remarkable remarkable remarkable re- re case of grippe improved progressively as the house tax hearings neared an end The timeliness of oC the attack which dispatches him to sunny Georgia just before beCore tho the hearings started likewise restored him to ta health and Washington the da day the they were scheduled to close The absence of the general durIng during during dur dur- ing th the form fonn lalive stage of the battle has caused considerable comment among among- camp followers The They are making the natural mistake mistake mistake mis mis- take of ot suspecting that it is a personal matter whereas it In Involves involves involves in- in the whole strategy of ot tho the administration fight Therein lies the explanation of oC what has happened so far and the promise of what is to come Cagey Cage More than one general has considered considered considered con con- it wise vise to find out where the army is going before beCore attempting attempting attempting attempt attempt- ing to lead it there This technique technique technique tech tech- is Is especially advisable with armies as as unruly as as congress congress congress- in ina ina a a. t tax x fight during a a. campaign year What happened was was this Generals Generals Gen Geri- Roosevelt and u submitted tho the vague outlines of at a a. corporation tax reform with as astounding astounding astounding as- as possibilities for soaking the rich and sharing the wealth They then sent a couple of oC cavalry troopers Colonels Oliphant and Helvering and Captain McLeod up to argue it o out t with the army while they went fishing or curing curing curins cur cur- ing ins the grippe as the case may beIn beIn be In the Interim the details atthe of at the tax issue have been fought out The The vagaries of the original scheme have been snipped off oft It Itis Itis Itis is possible to see just what can be done A vigorous leadership for that can now be undertaken Results A general understanding has been reached among tho the insiders that the final form torm of ot the bill blU will not carry any broad soaking rich-soaking or wealth-sharing wealth implications The rue corporation tax they sa say will strike only the few corporations corporations corpora corpora- which have more surpluses now naw than the they will ever be able to ta use and the personal corporations corporations corpora corpora- which have been used for tax evasion Sufficient exemptions will be provided to enable corporations generally big and little to retire their debts and accumulate reasonable reasonable rea rca surpluses without an Increase Increase in increase In- In crease in existing taxation If that is not sufficiently guaranteed guaranteed guaranteed guar guar- in the bill now being composed composed com corn posed b by the house committee it it- will be provided in the senate At least this is Is' the promise now beIng being being be be- ing made so generally on the InsIde Inside in inside In- In side that it has become a general expectation Some skeptics will want to wait until they see it It may mean moan a fairly g good ad bill although it will not raise anything like the of additional revenue evenue which the president de do- do Confession n Tho The increase proposed In the corporate tax reform has been concealed by the fact that the tax taxis taxis taxis is being transferred from the corporation corporation cor cor- cor- cor to the individual That makes comparisons difficult Internal Revenue Commissioner Commission CommissIon- er or Helvering let the cat out aut one day when he testified that the new proposed tax would be equivalent equivalent equiv equiv- alent alent- to alent-to to a flat fiat tax of 25 E per cent centon on corporations The average corporation income tax taC no now including including in in- eluding the capital stock tax is per cent Thus corporation taxation under the proposed plan would have been boosted to a level higher than in Great Britain supposedly the highest taxed nation in the world In Great Britain the corporation tax is 22 per cent a reduction 6 from the high point of ot 25 per cent Shadow Boxing No tax bill ever was considered under circumstances more pe peculiar peculiar pe pe- culiar than this one Not only the generals ran out on an it Even on one of the colonels Oliphant the author author author au au- au- au thor of the original scheme let Innocent Colonel Helvering carry the load in appearing be before Core the house committee Lik Likewise no specific plan was submitted The hearings were held before beCore the bill was written ten so the witnesses could not really know what they were talking about Notes Old guardsmen who know say that if Senator Borah had not gone Into New York state in quest of delegates ho he would have hav obtained obtained ob ob- ob- ob tamed at least half a dozen Now he will not get any The reason Is that his quest became a campaign campaign campaign cam cam- against against- the organization and the organization rallied 1 I Tho The Black committee has plenty o of personal enemies I in ir the house e because it has put a of house mem members er needlessly sly t ton n t the e spot The rule giving gi ing t th tho c Black committee for tor special counsel got out aut of the house rules committee only bec because use two D Democrats Democrats Dem Dem- m- m refused to vote Even then approbation was only by a 5 to toi 4 i 4 margin Father Coughlin has at least one congressional candidate Inthe Inthe in inthe the field R Representative Moritz of Pittsburgh His platform is the 16 points of the National Union for tor Social Justice JusticeS and the Townsend Townsend Town Town- send plan without the name Townsend Republican b bigwigs gw gs nearly broke their necks trying to find out who planted that story about Governor ex-Governor Lowden being made the keynoter for tor tho the convention They do not want him Copyright 1936 for The Telegram |
