Evening star., 1915-03-29
POLITICAL SQUARE DEAL FOR WASHINGTON

alton. reafnrms the half-and-half princi-
/ pie OF capital maintenance and retains
city. It should recognize more thoroughly
Its obligation as municipal leg stature to
| take into consideration in legislat.ng the
| views and wishes of the other half Of
act. 1t should devise ways OF Ascertain
| ing accurately the views and wishes of
| the Districts submerged and negligible
| and impotent half. and .hen give heed to
the expressed wishes, opinions, sugges-
| tions and advice of this other half Of the
! contributors to the capital maintenance
fund.
| with full po- er in its hands, retaining
its veto and the final word Il could dele
gate to District Commissioners or to any
other local government agencies which
| It chose to create any of its legislative
| functions in respect to the District of
the powers thus delegated were not of
the kind OF which the delegation has
been forbidden by the decisions of the
\ courts. (Roach vs. Van Riswick.) II Con-
gress is, as Senator John Sharp Williams
suggests. weary of legislating In respect
to unimportant capital concerns. It could
In this way shift a large part OF this
burden upon the shoulders Of the local
community.
| The local political status and condI-
tons peculiarly adapt the District to the
application OF the referendum and the
recall BY the referendum Congress
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-
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
thYy0
ton In the selection OF these most i'm.
portant municipal officials.
The Initiative. referendum and recall
nave perhaps their most valuable applica,
sentative government In special case.
| where public opinion should be taker
into account in legislation and admins
tration. and where the securing OF thai
the ordinary forms Of representative gov
ernment is denied-for example, In tn,
District Of Columbia, where Congress II
acting for the people under the Consti
cal concerns to local sentiment and ye
| is deprived Of power to learn this publ,
sentiment in any conclusive way by alb
sence from the District Of all representa-
tive elections and all elections Of any
kind. These devices would thus serve al
the capital q very useful purpose In Sc
curing expressions Of local public sent-
ment. to which Congress. as exclusive
legislature might respond.
Congress has on occasion IN the pas,
adopted the referendum for the Distric,
to the extent Of permitting its people te
vote upon some question vitality affecting
their interests, as In Buchanan's admin
istration. In 1883 when the people Of the
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
tiles had attempted to exercise the ini-
tiative. For instance. In Johnson's ad.
ministration the President vetoed an act
Of Congress affecting the District which
in its terms diaregarded and reversed the
almost unanimous voice Of the commun-
dunn 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 II was
favored by only thirty-nve votes In Wash.
ington and one In Georgetown. Presi-
dent Johnson's message vetoins this ACT
(1868 ID Q clear and Interesting discus
capital and Of the obligation Of the Dis
trict's constitutional legislature on Amer
lean principles to heed and give effect tc
reasonable local sentiment and wishes
Local Referendum and Recall.
A long az the nation u the DISTRICTS
multimillionaire citizen. BY far the iarg.
est property owner and quad taxpayer
in the capital. Il d not likely 20 surrender
/ control Of the tax-raising and tax-spend-
ing function In the District, and the ex-
elusive legislative power Of Congress wi
be maintained and probably also the ap-
II b 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 q man.
ner which win recognise some Amer
lean attributes In tho Americans at
benefit rather than injury to the local
community. For instance. all three Com
missioners might be required to be ap-
pointed from the District (as Is now the
requirement In respect to tho 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 &C.
lected from the community and indirectly
responsible to 1t, the power OF initiating
| local legislation and requiring vote by
Congress on such propositions, and Of
referendum to the limited extent Of ad-
pulsorily referred to them. might be vest
ed in the Commissioners The Commits
sioners now have under the law power
Of initiative In respect to the local appro-
priation bill, and In practice other local
bills have been perfunctorily referred to
them by District committees for their
opinion: but the Commissioners arc 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 fail to be beneficial in its
effect The President now has practical
ly absolute and unlimited power Of recall
In respect to the Commissioners, which he
would not lose II the community had In
addition the suggested limited power Of
recall, which might on occasion require
him to name q successor to some incum-
bent who had incurred the community q
strong displeasure
D. 9. Representation in Congress.
Though Congress decides to reafirm
the half-and- half principle Of capital
maintenance and to retain fun leg
! tslative control Of the nations city 1t
should at once place the Americans
, of the District of Columbia on the same
plane as other Americans in relation
to the United States courts and with
the same representation in Congress
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 1t 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.