Show national topics interpreted by william bruckart national press washington D a C I 1 washington out ot of president ident Roosevel ts el eight li dollar budget Is developing a very budget sf starts art s real controversy controversy which runs to the heart of the new deal true this controversy like nearly all of the others will not result in changing the presidents plans but it seems to me to be a matter which justifies consideration even though the roosevelt will in the end must pr prevail evall included in the budget was provision for an appropriation of four billion dollars and as stated by the president dentI to be supplied in one sum subject to allocation by the executive principally for giving work to those unemployed on the relief rolls beyond that there was no exposition of its intended use nor has there been any detailed statement of the plan As a result there Is a considerable body of opinion in the halls of congress which is saying in effect that mr roosevelt ought to define his work relief program he has not done so and the best information I 1 can obtain Is that no explanation may be expected in the near dear future he intends to proceed as lie has in the past by developing a program piecemeal piece meal and using the funds as the occasion requires in the critical days of 1933 when mr roosevelt took office I 1 believe it was generally conceded that the emergency was so serious as to warrant delegation by congress of almost any power even remotely desired by the president lie he used that power during 1933 1033 and 1934 1034 now many members of the house and senate believe that the time has arrived for congress to become more inquisitive about the expenditure of taxpayers money and to avoid following in blind trust however the president may direct while it Is probable that congress will not be told how bow the president intends to use the money and while it Is also probable that the requested appropriation of four billion dollars will be rubber stamped the fact remains that at no time during the new deal has there been such a buzz of discontent in the presidents own list of wheel horses senator byrnes the south carolina democrat who has been looked upon consistently as sir mr Roosevel ts spokesman on financial affairs in the senate has informed that body that it is impossible to be more specific at this time on the work vork relief program senator byrnes will go 90 no DO further lie ile has given no interviews respecting his own thoughts on the matter and apparently has elected to wait at bat until the president tosses him the ball nevertheless there are some senators who think they detect just a trace of concern in the attitude of tills this administration spokesman and they ere wondering how long be will continue to repress his known energies 0 presentation of the budget was expected in many quarters to disclose the means by which critics chide the president hoped president to get employment going again in private industry it showed nothing tangible in this direction consequently critics of the administration who have had opportunity to speak in the house and senate have begun to climde the administration on its third experiment in three years representative snell of new york republican leader in the house has called attention to the situation something in this manner the president tried out one plan in 1933 1033 he tried out a second plan in 1934 1034 and now he Is trying a third experiment the first two were found to be all wet and the republicans it seems are convinced that the current effort has two strikes on it before it gets started they are predicting failure for it in every way except the success that is assured in getting rid ot of money which the treasury la borrowing their con Y all have the same theme song namely that the country is seeing activity but they are not predicting how bow long this action can continue until the nation goes broke whether the business leaders who met at white sulphur springs W Vs va a month ago were right or wrong in proposing the use of a dole instead of the more exren expensive sive work relief plan or whether they were correct in any of the other recommendations they made the truth Is the administration has rejected without comment every single one of the recommendations ions made by that group mr roosevelt made no mention in his budget message or in hla his annual message to congress of plans for balancing the budget and this fact at lost last has sunk in the result Is additional fear on the part of many business leaders who can see in the future only inflation and chaos tor for the country privately I 1 have heard beard many expressions indicating that men of wealth are putting their money into inta tangible property something that will not dry up tip and blow away that Is always the refuge of individuals who tear fear that the currency which their government controls Is losing its worth these men will be criticized for that course naturally enough by blind followers of inflation Hatlon In plans prom from all of the signs new visible and from the undercurrent of mumbling that I 1 hear it certainly Is made to appear that mr air roosevelt Is con fronted with a necessity tor for some definite outline of his plans and an assurance that he will adhere to those plans without such the situation as an Is that mat lie he will not have the confidence of the business structure it seems illogical even to suppose that he be can gain the operation cooperation co of business in expanding its activities thereby re employing workers unless he ha takes a different tack than his pronouncements noun cements thus far indicate at least such Is the conclusion of a vast number of thinking people I 1 heard a visitor to washington say the other day that be would like to ride airplanes but night the confounded things flying ny fly most of their schedules at night 11 the individual Is a man of great wealth and his time ls Is of great value lie ile insisted he was sincere in his statement that he would mj much h rather save time by flying it if the planes were on daylight day light schedule the statement aroused my curiosity to the extent that I 1 conducted some inquiry into the situation I 1 found the tha night schedules of the ar lines to be ba due to the fact that they are fixed by the post office department it if a line desires to carry mall mail it has to subject itself to the dictates of big jim farley the postmaster general his EUs office can and does say to an air line that it will fly a ship leaving new york at 9 p m or else eise it does not get the mall mail contract the result Is that the plane leaves new york at 9 p m or it leaves chicago or washington or any other city on a time stated by the post office department many persons feel that such a policy Is taking undue advantage of private industry it Is true that the post office department Is paying for carrying the malls mails at a rate probably well above the rate it receives in postage on that mall mail it Is therefore a subsidy but this government has for years maintained a policy of subsidizing new nev industries and that course is responsible for the success attained by the development of the transportation systems of tills this country the presidents special commission named to study the airplane problems of this country and to make recommendations ions heard beard much testimony and received much data showing that the airplane industry in the united states had placed this country in the number one position in the air among all nations of the world individual members of that commission have stated they regard this as highly beneficial some of them at least maintain that development of an air industry was one of the greatest steps taken in national defense preparation they appeared to consider this one end as justifying the course without even considering si the maintenance of a great industry within the borders of our nation as a commercial unit but while this has been going on and while many authorities on economic matters continue to urge development of the air industry we find another agency within the government placing handicaps on that same segment of f the economic structure the least that can be said sa d Is that the courses cannot be reconciled 0 the administration is determined to control oll oil production if it cannot do so by executive order the oil and aind th the supreme case court of the united states has decreed it cannot do so in that manner there will be laws predicated upon the interstate ter state commerce clauses of the constitution ution which will permit the executive branch of the government to keep its hand band on the valve of oil wells president roosevelt apparently was not much concerned over the supreme court decision which invalidated that part of the recovery at giving the chief executive authority to allow or prohibit interstate movement of oil as it decided best the president appeared to feel in responding to questions by news correspondents that the th rebuff was only temporary he an bounced at that time a determination to control oil production in one way or another to avoid what he describes as a criminal waste of a grent great natural resource the oil case the supreme court da du elded had its origin in regulations ana an executive orders issued under what the administration believed to be authority accorded by the recovery act those regulations and orders prescribed quotas allowed to be shipped from each of the several oil producing states the motivating spirit was a desire to avoid accumulation of a vast surplus of crude oil with the consequent depressing of prices until crude oil was worth little or nothing but like many other prohibitory laws and rules of conduct individuals resented being told they could not do a certain thing and immediately began to devise ways by which it could be done a characteristic that was developed to its fullest fullest during the bootleg days of national prohibition the oil that was moved came to be known as hot oil and the controversy over the validity of the regulations and executive orders consequently was called the hot bot oil case j a western newspaper union |