Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-05-13

tut legislative control of tn. nation
ely il should recognize more thoroughly
us obligation as municipal legislature To
take INTO consideration in leSiSlat'nS the
views and wishes of the other half Of
IN" taxpayers for whom IL assumes to
act. II should devise ways oc ascertain
ing accurately the views and wishes of
me Districts submerged and negligible
and impotent half. and ;hen give heed to
the expressed wishes. opinions. sugges-
tons and advice OF this other half Of the
contributors to the capital maintenance
fund
With full pc er in its hands. retaining
its veto and the final word. it could dele
gate to Distric: Commissioners or To any
other local government agencies which
Il chose to create any Of its legislative
functions in respect to the District of
which it wished to ne relieved. provided
tnc powers thus delegated Mere not Of
the Kind OF which the delegation has
been forbidden hN The decisions OF IN.
courts Roach $. Van Eiswick If Con
gross is. as Senator John Sharp Williams
suggests. weary d. lc.isiatinc III respect
to Dnnportant capital concerns il could
in this way shift large part of this
burden upon the shoulders of the loo al
.ComInunity.
The local political status and condi-
tons peculiarly adapt the District To the
application of the referendum and the
recall. RN the referendum Congress
could secure the benefit OF accurate .x-
preSSionS of local opinion and advice
, concerning important legislative propos-
ais of local concern, and by giving the
District the privilege of recall. say in re-
spect to District Commissioners. the
local assent to or dissent from the Presi-
dents selections could be secured in
cases sufficiently fragrant to warrant an
appeal TO the recall privilege The Dis
trio; would thus participate by indirec-
/, ton in the selection OF these most i'm
portant municipal officials
The initiative. referendum and recall
1 have perhaps their most valuable apPlica-
ton as supplements or in lieu of repre-
I, sentative government in special cases
where public opinion should be taken
| into account i'll legislation and admins
| tration. and where the securing of that
| expression of public sentiment through
| the ordinary forms of representative gov
! eminent is dened-for example. in the
| District of Columbia. where Congress in
acting for the people under the consti-
/ tuition should heed and give effect in To-
| cal concerns to local sentiment and vet
/ is deprived Of power to learn this public
sentiment in any conclusive way by an
sence from the District of ali representa-
| tive elections and all elections of any
kind. These devices would thus serve at
the pital very useful purpose in Sc
curing expressions of local public senti-
ment. TO which Congress. as exclusive
! Legislature, might respond.
! Congress has on occasion in the past
adopted the referendum for the District
/ to the extent of permitting its people Ia
vote upon some question vitality affecting
| their interests. as in Buchanans admin
| istration. in 1853 when the people of the
| capital voted on proposed code OF laws.
! Congress has not always needed these
| expressions of local public sentiment
! after they have been rendered. especially
!, in cases where it had not authorized the
| election and where the corporate author
| tiles had attempted to exercise the ini-
| tiative. For instance. in Johnson's adj
ministration the President vetoed an act
/ of Congress affecting the District which
| in its terms disregarded and reversed the
almost unanimous voice of the commun-
| ity expressed in an unauthorized referen-
dum vote. and Congress passed the law
over the Presidents veto. The act in
question established negro suffrage in the
District and in the local referendum vote
which preceded the Houses action it was
| favored by only thirty-five votes in Wash
ington and one i'll Georgetown. Presi-
dent Johnson's message vetoinE this act
1SG6I is clear and interesting discus
sion of the relation of Congress to the
| ca pital and of the obligation of the Dis
trict's constitutional legislature on Amer
lean principles to heed and give effect to
reasonable local sentiment and wishes
! Local Referendum and Recall.
| As long as the nation is the District s
northumberland citizen, by far the larg-
est property owner and quasi taxpayer
in the capital. it is not likely to surrender
control of the tax-raising and taX-spend-
| ing function in the District. and the ex-
elusive legislative power of Congress vii
| be maintained and probably also the APP
pointing power vested i'll the President
1t is possible however, for the progress
sives of all parties in Congress to expert
ment upon the District with the initia-
| tive referendum and recall in a man.
ner which will recognize some Amer
lean attributes i'll the Americans at
Washington and which will promise
! benefit rather than injury to the local
community. For instance. all three Com
! misSioners might be required to be APP
! pointed from the District tas is now the
/ requirement in respect to the two civil
/ ians), and power Of recall might then be
given To the District in respect to these
! Commissioners. or any of them. such re-
! call not being operative in itself but ad-
| dressed with a powerful persuasive force
to the President. the appointing power.
who would fill the vacancy caused by the
| recall With the Commissioners thus Sc
lerted from the community and indirectly
responsible to ii. the power of initiating
| ioca' legislation and requiring vote by
Congress on such propositions and of
referendum to the limited extent of adj
visinG inf1uentially upon local bills COM
pulsorilv referred to Them might be vest
ed in the Commissioners. The Commas
! sioners now have under the law power
priation bill. and in practice other local
bills have been perfunctorily referred to
| them by District committees for their
opinion: but the Commissioners are not
now responsible in any way TO the local
! community which they represent and
! the power of recall in respect to them.
even though exercised indirectly through
| the President and subject to his veto.
could hard Y fail to lie beneficial in its
! effect. The President now has practical
| iy absolute and unlimited power of recall
| in respect to the Commissioners, which he
would not lose if the community had in
addition the suggested limited power of
recall which might on occasion require
him to name a successor to some incum-
bent who had incurred the community q
| strong displcaSure
D. c. Representation in Congress.
the half-and- half principle of capital
| maintenance and to retain full leg
| islative control of the nations city it
| should at once place the Americans
/ Of the District Of Columbia on the same
| plane as other Americans in rela ton
| to the United States courts and with
| and electoral college. In population.
| in Intelligence and in resources the
| District is at least on a level with the
average congressional district. and in
intelligent progressive population it eX-
/ ceeds six of the states. The people of this
/ community are loyal Americans. paying
| national taxes and fighting the ma
| lions battles as soldiers in time of war.
| Congress should insist upon promptly
| placing them upon the same plane as
i other Americans. SO far as is consistent
with full control of the capital by
| r renrpSenfintr the