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Show numE Toaun sw. h IN WASHINGTON 5aJyi3 Civil Rights Boomerang TRONICALLY enough, senator! from 12 southern states, when the professional politicians havi broken with President Truman and the Democratic party over civi rights, had this issue thrown slap-bang slap-bang at them in senate debat over the legislation for congres' sional approval of the southern states' compact on regional education. educa-tion. And the boomerang hit hardesJ over the segregation issue which incensed southerners most in toe President's civil rights message. II seems southern states want to build regional schools of higher learning under an agreement between the 12 southern states which signed the compact. Education under the federal constitution con-stitution is purely a state function so these states have a right to provide for segregated schools within their several states but when they go beyond the boundaries boundar-ies of their individual states to include 12 states, a federal question ques-tion is raised. One of the outstanding constitutional consti-tutional lawyers in the senate is Sen. Wayne Morse of Oregon, former for-mer dean of the Oregon law school. Senator Morse contended federal approval of the contract was unnecessary. un-necessary. If it is necessary, as the southern senators contend, then it is in the realm of federal constitutionality con-stitutionality and "we would violate the constitution by not laying down a requirement of no discrimination on the basis of race, color or creed." "I appreciate the fact," Senator Morse said, "that the civil rights issue is a burning issue within the Democratic party, but I am not at all desirous of having the Republican Repub-lican party solve the problem for the Democratic party except on the basis of a solution which is right." "I believe that the Republicans in the United States senate cannot can-not take a 'walk-out powder' on this issue. We either stand against segregation on a regional basis or we are for segregation. If the Republican party approves this compact then the people of the United States will be justified in believing that we are really against the objective of eliminating, elimin-ating, segregation." Mississippi Parley What effect the recent Mississippi convention will have on the fortunes for-tunes of the Democratic party is difficult to determine. If the southerners south-erners don't get their way at Philadelphia, they voted to hold a rump convention over the civil rights issue. The national Democratic Demo-cratic party platform adopted by the 1944 Democratic national convention, con-vention, on civil rights reads as follows: "We believe that racial and religious minorities have the right to live, develop and vote equally with all citizens and share the rights that are guaranteed by our constitution. Congress should exert its full constitutional powers pow-ers to protect those rights." A person needs only to be an American citizen to subscribe fully to that declaration of constitutional principles. Elected to the senate in 1944 and supposedly subscribing to the national na-tional platform were the following senators: Hill of Alabama, Ful-bright Ful-bright of Arkansas, Pepper of Florida, Flor-ida, George of Georgia, Overton of Louisiana, Tydings of Maryland, Hoey of North Carolina, Johnston of South Carolina, and Robertson of Virginia and Connally of Texas, both elected in 1946. If there is any comfort in the fact for these southerners, the GOP 1944 platform contained planks against racial or religious prejudice, prej-udice, against the poll tax, an antl-lynching antl-lynching plank and for a permanent per-manent fair employment practices commission. 1948 Outlook President Truman's demand for a long-range farm program likely will fall on deaf ears, since the GOP steering committee has been unable thus far to agree on a program pro-gram in the party's own behalf. On the labor front, the nation can look forward to a round of strikes in many important industries including in-cluding steel, autos and electrical. Many small industries have granted wage increases but big industries are standing pat against any wage boosts now. A person has only to go to the grocery for the week's supplies to understand the worker's work-er's desire for more money. More Planes Alerted and toolcd-up, the nation's na-tion's aircraft industry is prepared to tackle at once the production of I 4,200 new air force and navy planes, funds for which the President al- j most certainly will approve. Time ; is the motivating factor. I The 3.19 billion-dollar aircraft appropriations bill, which is an outlay of 822 millions more than Mr. Truman requested, will provide pro-vide 2,727 new war planes and about 1,500 navy planes of all types. I |
