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Show New House Seats Promise Merry Christmas for GOP WI Under Guidance of Republican Leader ft Joe Martin, Democrats Vill Face 1 Increasing House Opposition. By BAUKHAGE V u j Ciuy.il and Commentator. WXV wrvl.T, 1X13 II Street, N.W., Washington, M. C. The COI' fl'i. luuit is looting forward for-ward to his rii'Tri'st Christmas in a long tine, lii trunk will be filled with lots of pretty presc-tits 'his year those nice, rev, comfortable scats in the house of representatives and the senate. As the last session of the 77th congress moves to a close there is a contented smile on more than one Republican visage. Not the least genial is former Republican national nation-al chairman and continuing leader of the house, Joe Martin of Massachusettsthe Massa-chusettsthe "a" In Martin pronounced pro-nounced as the "a" in "yard" at Harvard. (That doesn't mean, bow-ever, bow-ever, that Joe talks Harvardese he's' a small town boy and makes the most of It.) Beginning January 4, 1943, when the new congress meets, Joe will be out in front ready and able to snap a long raw-hide over hit political herd. He doesn't use that method, but he knows what everybody else has known since No vember 3 that his political power has risen like the mercury in August Au-gust Silently Behind the Scene Like most of the effective workers In congress, inter or intra-party, Joe does his stuff quietly behind the scenes. And the impression I got when I talked with him recently in the gloomy, high cellinged office of the minority leader in the Capitol was that he is more comfortable now that he has slipped out of the chairmanship robes. He can get his coat off, roll up his sleeves and start on his big under-cover campaign. cam-paign. The slogan for the new venture la "12 to 13 or flght" That means, at most people In Washington know already, al-ready, 12 Republicans for every 13 Democrats on the congressional committees. (Most committees have 23 members.) That will mean a bare majority of one for the Democrats and more than corresponding Increase In-crease In Republican Influence In ' the drafting of legislation. Reduce Expenditures There are certain Democrats in both houses, such as Sen. Harry Byrd of Virginia, upon whom house leader Martin can count to Join in . the chorus of one of the theme songs which is going to be heard raised with vehemence from the Republican side of the house reduction re-duction of expenditures for non-war projects. Taxes, the Republicans say, are going to make the middle class more class conscious than they have been for a long time. The white collar, salary man, realises that he Is carrying car-rying a financial load which Is not being shared by the great army of workers whose Incomes have skyrocketed. sky-rocketed. Many of the middle class are on fixed salaries that didn't go np. It is this class which has bought the most bonds. The Republicans are going to take advantage of this situation and do their utmost to become be-come the champions of the middle class. One Republican congressman said to me recently: "We can't outbid the U. S. treasury treas-ury for the support of the people who are getting various kinds of subsidies or benefits from the administration. ad-ministration. We have got to appeal ap-peal to the salary man, the man with a small business, the fireman, the bus-driver, the people who are paying for homes and buying insurance. in-surance. That's why it will be a bad mistake if we get ourselves tied up with any of the wealthy eastern politicians. They can give us some money, but that's all. We won in the last elections with very little financial help." As this is being written, the choice of a Republican national chairman has not been made, but if It goes to an easterner whose backers are associated as-sociated in the public mind with jreat wealth, it will be a bitter disappointment dis-appointment to a group of practical minded Republicans in congress who are looking forward seriously and hopefully to the presidential campaign cam-paign in 1914. However, at this point it might be said that the national committee chairman in neither iarty has the power or the importance that he once held. There was a time when he could get on the long distance phone and tell a state chariman Just whom he wanted nominated for the presidency and If he was a fairly powerful popular figure, "the boys" could and would frequently deliver. Those days are over and press and radio gets much of the credit. Candidates have become real personalities to the voters and the voters don't lot the bosses make up their minds for them any more. Increase of Federal A gent $ The Republicans realize this. They also realize that there are other powerful influences which exist now which did not exist the last time they won a presidential election-one election-one is the increased influence of the party in power which has grown with the increased number of federal fed-eral agents who are In contact with the people. The Republicans, therefore, there-fore, will do all In their power In the next session of congress to cut down the organizations such as the Triple A and the OPA. Another federal agency which undoubtedly un-doubtedly will be greatly increased If the man-power problem Is to be solved, is the United States Employment Employ-ment Service. However, if the employment em-ployment service has to stand out in front in the enforcement of a compulsory com-pulsory labor law, it may become a political boomerang to whomever the public considers is responsible for it and the Republicans hope to manipulate that situation to their benefit. Leading the Republican party next year will require political skill because the party of the opposition in wartime is in a difficult position. posi-tion. It must get its share of the credit for winning the war, but it must avoid the blame for the mistakes mis-takes which are bound to be made and side-step the brickbats which any measure attracts which hits any particular group of voters. The Republicans have plenty of problems ahead, but If House Leader Lead-er Martin Is typical, they have plenty plen-ty of confidence and more energy and enthusiasm than they have been able to display for a decade. Here are excerpts from three days of Secretary of Agriculture Wick-ard's Wick-ard's diary (if he kept a diary, which he doesn't, but the words are the secretary's). Monday: Went to Peoria, 111., and addressed a meeting of the National Catholic Rural Life conference. This organization was founded over 20 years ago and has as its objective the betterment of rural living. At noon attended a luncheon meeting meet-ing given by the Chamber of Commerce. Com-merce. Many farmers were present pres-ent In the evening I addressed a meeting of the American Meat institute insti-tute in Chicago. The Institute had a number of farm leaders as their guests. At all of those places the question I heard most often was: "How are we going to get enough farm labor to keep up the production produc-tion which you say must be maintained?" main-tained?" After the meeting Monday evening eve-ning I went down to my farm in Indiana. In-diana. The fall pigs had to be vaccinated vac-cinated and given shelter. There were the usual amount of repairs and odd Jobs to be done and I began be-gan to see the need for more help. The labor shortage which I had heard about during the last few days was painfully evident on my own farm. Tuesday: Sold the last of our spring pigs. I obtained use of a couple of trucks in addition to my own and we had them all In the stock yards by noon. My daughter, Ann, came up to the farm from Purdue Pur-due university after morning classes and we drove the Inst truckload of hogs to market ourselves. While at the bank, the editor of the local paper came in and greeted me and remarked It was too bad about Joe Todd. I asked him what had happened. He told me Joe's relatives had Just received word that he had been killed in action in the Pacific. Joe and Ann had gone to the same country school. They had been In the same Sunday school class in our country church. He had enlisted early in the air corps and had advanced to the rank of a first lieutenant. Wednesday: Back In Washington ... I wish that it were possible tor me to see and talk to farm people more often because of the inspiration inspira-tion I receive from them. |