New-York tribune., 1919-03-14
Mann Defeats
All Efforts to
Cut His Power
Efforts of Liberals to Obtain
Voice on G.. o. p. Steer
ing Committee Are Beaten
Ne1U York Tribune
Wdshingt0n Bureau

tee to nine members and to give rep
resentation to the more liberal wing
of the party in passing on legislation
which will come before the House at
the next session.
Representative Johnson proposed at
to~day's session of the committee on
committees that the steering commit
tee be increased to nine members and
that Representatives Anderson, of Min
nesota; Reavis, of Nebraska; Slemp, of
Virginia, and Nolan, of California, be
given places on it, To this motion Rep
resentative Moore, of Pennsylvania, OBJ
Jected, as also did Representative Mann
and Representative Mondell, of Wyo-
ming, who was nominated for the ma
jority leadership Tuesday. The COM
mittee, which has been dominated by
the Mann forces throughout all its pro
ceedings, then rejected the proposal by
vote of Is to 3.
Five States Urge Change
The states which favored the in
creased and liberalized steering COM
mlttee were:
ONO, IA votes. Massachusetts. IL.
South Dakota, 2. West Virginia s.
Maryland g.
The states which opposed it were:
New York, "a. Michigan, 10.
pennsylvania, %. Wyoming d
Illinois, 20. Indiana 13
Wisconsin, TO- Montana, l.
iowa, II. Rhode Island. 8.
Idaho, =. Colorado, 8.
oregon, 3. Minnesota, g.
California. 6. New Hampshire, .
hentucky, 3. North Dakota, 3.
The Steering Committee as at pres
ent constituted includes Representa-
tive Mondell, chairman ex-officio; Rep
resentative Dunn, CT New York: Rep
resentative Moore, of Pennsylvania;
Representative Winslow, of Massachu-
setts; Representative Longworth, of
Ohio, and Representative Madden, of
Illinois.
Chairman Mondell, under the rules.
is merely presiding officer and does
not vote. This gives the Mann forces
clear working majority of the com
mittee through the votes of Repre-
sentatives Dunn, Moore and Madden
Representative Madden has had some
differences recently with Mr.. Mann,
however, and may be found working
with the two Gillett members on the
committee. The steering committee
will have its first meeting tomorrow.
Mann Heads Suffrage Committee
The committee on Committees to-
day designated Representative Mann
as chairman Of the Woman Suffrage
Committee of the next House, and in
accepting the assignment Mr.. Mann
promised to report out to the House
promptly" the woman suffrage CON
stitutional amendment. Other mem
bers assigned to the committee were
Representatives Little, of Kansas;
Elliott, of Indiana Nolan, of Cali
fornia; Edmunds, of Pennsylvania;
Burroughs, of New Hampshire; Nelson,
Of Wisconsin, and McCrate, of New
York.
After the close of the sessions of the
committee to-day, Representatives
Longworth and johnson made public
statements in which they expressed
strenuous objections to the action of
the committee in refusing to give the
liberal group larger representation on
the Steering Committee and in select
ing Representative Mondell, of Wyom-
ing, for majority leader.
Representative Longworth referred
to the net result of the committee ac-
ton as the "most complete triumph for
reactionism" and questioned the wis
dom of retaining as de facto leader n
man whose record on preparedness and
the war legislation was as dubious"
as that of Representative Mann.
The Longworth statement follows:
"The performance of the Republican
Committee on Committees of its most
important duty, that of selecting the
Steering Committee, the floor leader
and the whhip, was exactly what ought
TO have been expected from the mon
and under the methods controlling.
!ts net result was to make James K.
Mann the dominating figure in the
next House of Representatives. 1t is
the most complete sort Of triumph for
reactionism.
Even the final effort of some of us
to enlarge and liberalze the Steering
Committee, so as to secure representa-
ment Of the West, of the states on the
Southern border which substantially
contributed to the Republican major
lty, and of labor, was defeated by the
usual vote.
''If it had been deliberately planned
to restore the conditions existing in
the House ten years ago, as result
of which the Republican majority be-
came a minority, the plan could not
have been more successfully consum-
mated. Then the leadership was held
by Mr.. Cannon, assisted by Mr.. Mann,
of Illinois; Mr.. Dalzell, of Pennsyl-
vania, and Mr.. Tawney, of Minnesota,
together with Mr.. Payne, of New York
acting as chairman of the Ways and
Means Committee.
Mann Called Real Leader
Under to-day's arrangement the real
leadership is held by Mr.. Mann, as
sisted bY Mr. Cannon Of Illinois. Mr.
Mondell, of Wyoming, and Mr.. Moore,
Of Pennsylvania, together with Mr..
Fordney, of Michigan, acting as chair
man Of the Ways and Means Commit
tee.
CAS- gaze upon these two pictures
find it impossible to differentiate be-
tween them. If there is any real diff
ference it might lie in the views Of
the two chairmen Of the Ways ana