Show I I I i POLITICS S AND TARIFFS I. I ITHE THE presidents president's request for authority to DeI neA ne- ne I A I trade agreements agreement rather sho shows s up upI the he professors who 10 insisted that the decline of I tho The foreign exchange value of the dollar should have hn e manifestly stimulated our ext ex- ex t ports The United States Cham Chamber er Q of Com Com- l merco in it its summary of American exp rt I trade shows however th that t facts and theories I may on occasion be wholly unrelated So 1 instead ad of our business with the outside mar mar- growing it has hns declined precipitately Our foreign trade trends for more ore than than a year ear offer the sharpest rebuke possible to those who America self contained have launched tho the idea This brings us face to fa face e with the Roosevelt Roose velt idea of reciprocal trade agreements by negotiation and to ge get the background for forthe forthe the the proposal it is necessary to go back fifty years in American tariff history when a presidential presidential pres pres- candidate projected the notion that the tar tariff f is a local issue The rhe years of wrangling since it was uttered have gone gone far farto farto to o prove that it was largely correct A tariff bill in theory ought to be framed on broad lines lines' of interest In actual practice ice it never is t Whether it be a bill to raise the tariff pr or one one to lower it it inevitably degenerates into a great trading game in congress con- con press gress with a welter of local interests ultimately ul ul- deciding the issues The individual ual 1 congressman is put under put under terrific pressure and andis I is actuated by a laudable desire to do what lie he liec c can can n for his own constituents The result is r usually a a. tariff bill th that t seldom is either logical logical log log- ical jeal or national but that represents the blending of innumerable forces a composite te of pf a vast number of local issues The new proposal would remove this very largely from the hands of congress The president pres pres- ident would be empowered to negotiate tariff agreements with individual nations and to raise or lower tariff rates by as much as 50 50 per cent in the course of such negotiations He lie could not take an article off the free list or or put one on it and his power would be limited to a year three-year term This clearly is of reaching far proportions proportion It would alter completely our traditional ni method thod tho of setting tariff rates taking this important im im- im p function from congress s and yes ng it itin 1 in one manThe man The The question to decide is whether the thc advantages advantages advantages ad ad- vantages would outweigh the defects It w would uld give us a chance to get something reE resembling re re- re- re E a scientific tariff and it would end endo o one e of Washington's greatest rolling log-rolling games ames On the other hand hanel it would give the i president enormous new powers and take fro frol from l h representatives of the tho people one of their most flOSt n st important functions |