OCR Text |
Show Merry-Co-Round By DREW PEARSON and ROBERT 8. ALLEN WASHINGTON The president's reaction to his stinging defeat on the wages and hours bill has been to start work very quietly on three messages which he will deliver early in January. Jan-uary. The purpose of these messages is to force a showdown with congress, especially the southern bloc, which defeated the wage-hour bill. No. 1 blast will be the regular message to congress on January 3. In this he will accuse congress of deserting the American people, of completely flouting the wishes of those who sent them to Washington. No. 2 blast will take place at the Jackson day dinner January 8. In this he will reply to the antinew deal groups within his own Democratic ranks which are attempting to euchre control of congress and the party awav from him. If Roosevelt goes through with his present plans this speech will be a sizzler. No. 3 blast will be a fireside chat aimed at the country at large. In this Roosevelt will announce an-nounce his determination to throw all his weight to old new deal lines on labor, business and social questions. He has become convinced, that these were the policies that reelected him in 1936. and that he has nothing to gain and everything to lose by surrender to business. Democrats vs. Democrats Oscar Chapman, forthright young assistant secretary of the interior, was dinm. with the president the other day and Roosevelt queried him regarding the political situation in Colorado. Chapman, with Josephine Roche, former assistant as-sistant secretary of the treasury, has been active among the progressive Democrats in Colorado. Miss Roche heads the Rocky Mountain Fuel company, com-pany, haa made a record for winning the good will of labor and is an important figure in the state. Miss Roche and Chapman are leaders of the Roosevelt wing of the Democratic party, while leader of the conservative wing is Senator Adims, who voted against the supreme court bill and other important new deal measures. So in reply to the president's query. Chapman Chap-man said: "Oh, things are in a state of flux politically out our way. We'd run Josephine Roche against Alva Adams in the primaries for the senate," he continued, "but at the last minute Jim Farley would probably come out and make a speech for Alva." The president laughed, but said nothing. The subject was too tender. Party Purgative The wage-hour defeat was a much bitterer pill for the administration to swallow than anyone any-one publicly admitted. But whether that pill is a purgative remains to be seen. Progressive Democrats long have been urging Roosevelt to do some vigorous house-cleaning with the conservative wing of his party. Oscar Chapman, assistant secretary of interior, is only one among scores who complain that instead of invoking party discipline against Democratic rebels, Jim Farley goes out and makes speeches for them. When in Omaha last summer, home of Senator Sen-ator Burke. Farley gave that vituperative Roosevelt Roose-velt foe only a slight tap on the wrist During the Virginia primary last summer. Farley would not aid new dealers who were trying to break the hold of Senator Bvrd's machine. Again Senator Sen-ator O'Mahoney of Wyoming lambasted Roosevelt Roose-velt last summer, and now is getting patronage rewards. All of which, according to progressive Democrats, Dem-ocrats, puts a premium on rebellion. In the old days, Jim Farley kept a card index of how Democratic congressmen voted, and jobs were awarded accordingly. Now, more job-holders are fired than hired, and a new policy is being proposed of firing the appointees of those who voted against the wage-hour bill. This, they think, would help as much or more than the president's January speeches. Jspaneae Deliberately Bombed Here is the private explanation of both the state and navy departments regarding the Jap-anese Jap-anese bombing of the U. S. S. Panay: The chief factor which prevents the Chinese from totally surrendering to Japan's plan for a dummy government is their hope of British and American support. Therefore. Japanese army and navy officers figured they had to make the British and Americana Ameri-cana lose "face," or prestige, which is all-important in the Orient The Chinese would be impressed by the rubbing out of American gunboats, gun-boats, would know little about -subsequent apologies. Therefore, the Japanese military first fired on several British vessels, later on the Panay. American officials do not believe that Tokio knew of the plan, but that higher-up commanders in China definitely did. (Copyright,. 193T, for The Telegram) |