Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1915-12-01
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER /. 1915.
AN INDEPENDENT BILL FOR EVERY
Project.
Galveston New u

kbaIkt-lOn NtM-.j
The suggestion has been made IN Wash
Ington that every river and harbor project
be authorized and provided for III an in
dependent bill instead Ut being treated ~
an item in IN omnibu, measure which au-
thorizes and ~appropriateS for hundreds Of
measures. The virtue claimed for tli. idea
is that its adoption would abolish the
'pork barrel The actual net result would
be to remove the pork barrel" from the
capitol to the White House. and make the
president master Of it.
As the practice i now, the president can
exercise no discrimination whatever over
a rivers and harbor~ bill. ID contains pro
visions for many projects. good, bad and
Indifferent ones. and the president must
approve, on reject these ia their entirety.
He can not approve the appropriation for
a project Of undoubted merit without also
approving the appropriations for \ dozen
scandalous ones. lie must take or reject
the bill in its totally.
That his sense OF discrimination would
have perfect freedom 1T every one of these
many projects were presented to him ~epa-
rately and independently l. obvious. And
il is pretty certain that If that were the
practice rivers and harbor- projects would
be subjected to a new and more rigorous
criticism than they have to undergo now.
So far. the result would hr rctomutory
in kind. But there would bc other conec-
quences.
One would be the exercise of even les
restraint on congress than ~ now tito case.
With the president made tile final arbiter.
congress would probably pass all bills Of
fered as the most expeditions way ont oi
the matter. II would .put IL up to the
president shift to him the responsibility.
the odium of vetoing popular aud approx
ing unpopular measures. But II would ac-
complish more than tins. Ii would put u
new and tremendous power into the hands
of the president. Then more than ever
congressman would b. IN reality lobbyists
to the White House. II would 10 there they
would have to 20 10 plead for the life III
n project dear III home. however much Y
defective il might be in an economic sense.
If now the president IL able ito bend con
gress IL his will" how much more easily
could he do il III this immense power 10 de-
cree the life or death of every river and
harbor project were given to HIM, The
president would have To rely ON reports
of the board of army engineers 10 deter
mine the intrinsic merits of these projects.
but since rarely ii ever has congress
adopted any project that has not been APP
proved By the board Of army engineers.
there would BE- more apparent than actual
safeguard in this provision. The fact that
this particular pork barrel seldom If
ever contains an item that has not with
stood the criticism ~ several army engi-
neers. including the board of army cngi-
neers itself. has apparently been forgot
ten. if il were ever generally known. Army
engineers not only report on the engineer
inc. but on the economic aspects of every
nroiect. They set forth the engineering
difficulties that have 10 be surrounded. the
cost of doing So. the amount of money that
NAV be proitably spent in u given time. and
they set forth. also. the economic con-id-
e~rations thai determine the feasibility Of
the proiect. Not only does congress rarely
II ever adopt 4 project against which
there i IN adverse report, but u often
rejects projects which have won the favor
of the army engineers