| Show Bruc karts washington digest congress takes bit in teeth to restore national confidence vast resources of nation to be made available again for all people old line linc democrats responsible for sudden determination to assume congressional leadership washington the dictionary defines the word confidence as meaning trust in or reliance upon another a belief in a person or a thing the dictionary might well have added that confidence is something quite intangible but yet it is a condition of national or state thought about its governmental poll poli cies as well as a condition of indi vidual thought it might have add ed further that confidence can be destroyed more easily than it can be maintained or recreated when it once has been destroyed in any event the thing about which we have heard most in wash ington lately is the necessity for es a feeling of confidence throughout the country the feces sity exists it is explained freely because the depression continues and millions of persons who would like to work are not working in some places where political face saving is important the movement is called business appeasement but that is a difference between dee and dum it re mains mams as an effort to recreate na dional confidence so that all of the vast resources of the nation can be made available again for all of the people all of this is only a prelude to the declaration that congress has taken the bit in its teeth with a determination that in dicatos rather a unified effort to re store the country s confidence it apparently is going to guide the pol iciek and work out solutions for the various problems that are viewed as destructive of a feeling of assurance among the bulk of the people in other words congress seems to have assumed a leadership in national life that it has not had in recent years and is moving sincerely to bring back prosperity president hoovers plans wrecked by stock market the course of events that has led up to the latest development a de that has both political and economic significance has been rather a wandering trail it had its headwaters back in 1930 and 1931 when herbert hoover then dent sought to stem the tide of rushing waters of depression by in dozens of business leaders to washington for consultation he was seeking to restore confidence to encourage the country to feel safe those were days it will be recalled when prosperity was just around the corner mr hoover wanted to bring it out where it could be of some use well mr hoover failed because the stock market crash had so de strayed the confidence of the country in him and in his policies of govern ment that there was no possibility of recreating it the folks simply would not believe in him nor in any of his works at that time along came the elections of 1932 and mr roosevelt took over the job ob in 1933 those days need not be reviewed except to point out that no man ever had the complete con of a people as the new dent held it congress did as it was told thereafter of course there were ups and downs but the scene was dominated by the personality of mr roosevelt a condition that con linued through about six years that brings us to the mistakes in politics which mr roosevelt made in 1938 reorganization of the gov proposed expanding of the supreme court by appointment of six justices of his own choosing charges that business leaders were attempting to submarine the new deal policies and destroy the roose velt administration this was wes the beginning in quick succession there came important gams gains for the republicans in the 1938 1933 elections fear among many old line demo brats that their seats in congress were being jeopardized by mistakes of various new deal agencies and laws and in general a doubt that their party should be allowed to re main under new deal leadership old line democrats decide to assume leadership and I 1 believe it is the latter con of belief among the old line democrats that is chiefly response res ble for the sudden blossoming of congressional determination to take leadership some observers hold the conviction that many members of the house and senate feel they should protect their own hides and that to accomplish this they must as sume national leadership instead of leaving the policies to be theorized and blue printed by such as jerome frank thurmond arnold tommy corcoran secretary ickes and oth ers of that type that is only say ing numerous house and senate members believe the country has lost confidence in that sort of leader ship only recently it may be recalled mr roosevelt voiced an assurance that business would have no new taxes to burden it he spoke bonfi dently about the future others re fleeting ting the president presidents s position in eluding secretary hopkins and sec detary ickes spoke pieces of an as suring nature this is the same mr hopkins who used to be head of the relief spending what happened 7 the stock mar ket that ruined mr hoover s ad ministration showed its confidence in the new statements of 1939 with only a little less feeling than it did in the years when prosperity was just around the corner the market dipped down only a few days but if the stock market can be regarded as an answer for any question the stock market must have said anyway there arose immediately the new and very potent movelen move meni men in congress for a program of busi ness appeasement one of the first things to happen was a declaration by senator harrison mississippi democrat and one of the really pow erful men in the senate for a cessa tion of spending or specifically senator harrison demanded a cur bailment tail ment of spending a start toward a balancing of the national budget in the belief that the whole country is fearful of the gigantic national debt 6 shows days dayd of rubber stamp congress are gone the foreign policies of the admin were dragged out onto the floor of the senate for examination under a magnifying glass of course the senate did not force any real change in the international relations which mr roosevelt has dished from long observation in washington I 1 doubt that the sen ate s criticism of these policies was any too sound but it had to engage in debate on the subject to let the country know it was watching every thing that was being done it obviously had the effect of demonstrate demon strat ing to the country that the days of the rubber stamp congress are gone and it constitutes another bit of evi dence of the new washington leader ship the real demonstration of congles dional vitality however came the other day when senator harrison as chairman of the senate finance committee and representative doughton of north carolina as chairman of the house committee on ways and means joined in a letter to secretary request ing a treasury statement on a tax program the two congressional leaders urged a new and sound tax program and an administration reassurance against further heckling of business to the end that business would try to go ahead what mat they were asking therefore were some signs which could give business great or small a feeling of bonfi dence that the government at wash ington would quit pulling hair it was a natural request of the treasury the treasury always has provided the fundamentals of every tax program capitol hill had read mr roosevelt s pronouncement con cerling no new taxes as mean ing there would be no changes change in the tax structure however and there were a good many legislators who felt revision of some and aboh tion of other taxes were advisable congress will go slow on increasing national debt there are numerous signs that congress is not going to be in any hurry at all to pass a law that will allow an increase in the total na dional debt present law provides that the treasury may issue notes and bonds up to 45 the current total is not so far below that figure and secretary has asked congress to boost the limit to 50 congress alpar antly is not so sure that there should be an increase in the debt limit it is a type of confidence rather a lack of confidence that is plainly visible I 1 believe the debt total will have to be increased because there is no provision made for enough taxes to offset the vast spending pro gram for relief and national defense upon which mr roosevelt has launched there is no place to get that money therefore except by borrowing so about the only good that can come from congressional barking on this score is to awaken the country as to the dangers of its great national debt from all of these things one is pretty likely to get the one can hardly help wondering where we are headed but it seems to me that there probably is need for a confidence that thus far has not been mentioned in this discus sion this is a confidence in funda mental americanism the voters of the country can compel sound gov on the part of those who make the policies and on the sur face it appears now that the voters are telling congress what to do C western newspaper 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