Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-05-14
Legislative Bill Sent Back to
House Appropriations
Committee.


between these two branches of the
| government.
The vetoed bill has been referred
! back to the House appropriations
committee. and as Chairman Wood
OF the subcommittee which drafted
the legislative appropriation bill and
Representative Sisson of Mississippi.
the ranking democrat on the sub
| committee, are out OF town, 1t Will
be several days before this measure
can be reported back to the House.
No committee conference has yet
been called.
| House Leader Mondell said today
that no action will be taken in the
House until after the committee has
carefully reconsidered the Senate
particularly objected on the ground
Il that it would muzzle executive Off
Il Gals with a Censorship" regulated
by the congressional joint committee
on printing.
There is no intention, however, to
allow this measure to lie untouched in
committee. With Congress planning
either to adjourn or to recess recess
that the House would not meet again
three months. there Is every DISPOSE
| ton to consider the vetoed bill and
send it back to the Senate as soon as
possible.
! President's Position Challenged.
! Immediately upon receipt OF the
! Presidents veto message his position
| both on the general principle involved
and the specific case cited was chal-
| lenged by republican leaders of the
| Senate and House. Senator Smoot. re-
publican, Utah, chairman of the joint
committee, declared in a formal state
| ment that the President apparently had
| been deliberately misinformed" about
| the appropriation bill. and Represen-
| tative Good, republican. Iowa, chair
man Of the House appropriations COM
/ mitee. told the House that there must
be some mistake somewhere"
| The measure carries $104 100000 for
salaries and miscellaneous expenses
it must be approved in some form by
| the end of June or these funds will
lapse.
The President cited several other
measures enacted or proposed in the
present Congress to support his charge
the province Of the executive, calcu-
lated to result in unwarranted inter-
ference in the processes Of good gov
eminent" He said that some Of these
measures he had permitted to become
law as temporary expedients, but that
he felt the time had core to call a
halt before obstructive" precedents
had been established.
Provisions Of Sections.
The section Of the appropriation
bill which led to the veto would
prohibit the printing or min eograph-
ing of any government publication
except by authority of the joint COM
mittee. Such a provision, said the
President. would give to the commit
tee power to determine what in
formation shall be given to the peo-
pie Of the country by the executive
departments"
| Both Senator Smoot and Repre-
sentative Good. however. asserted
given control over government pub
LEGATIONS by an act which the Presi.
dent signed on March /, 1919. and
! that the purpose of the present pro-
vision was to extend that power so
meritorious periodicals could be con-
tinued.
"There are now 155 government
publications printed without any au-
thority Of law" said Mr.. Good. They
; exist only by sufferance OF the joint
committee. The bill which the Presi-
sweeping than the one now vetoed
y Places Blame ON BabsOn Row.
A row between the joint committee
and Roger w. Babs0n. formerly con-
i nected with the committee on public
information, was blamed for the Pres
idents action by Senator Smoot. who
said in his statement that Babson ap-
parently had made use Of the Presi-
: dent or his advisers in carrying out
his threat and determination to end
; the censorship which. without the
least foundation. he has charged
against the joint committee.
THE President or his advisers have
been most grievously misled in this
veto,Y Senator Smoot continued, add
ing that under the authority granted
in 1919 the printing committee had
determined that departmental publ
cations were costing approximately
$2.5oo.OoO a year and that by volun-
. tary act Of the departments or regu-
this had been cut OFF. Publications
remaining included many Of the
! most Important issued by the gov
which prompted the President to use
his veto power was designed to i'm
power the committee Ito permanently
authorize these periodicals" and mot
!! for the purpose Of censorizing or sup
Z pressing Them
Il was led to believe" he said
that the section was favored by those
in the departments who are really
posted about the situation. In fact
J not single word in OPPOSITION to i,
veto except by Mr.. Babson himself.
9 If any meritorious publications are
suppressed. the responsibility for
= that will rest on the President for his
: veto Of the bill which would have
4 made their continuance possible.
81 II am of the firm opinion. therefore
: that the President has been delib.
erately misinformed concerning the
duties and purposes of the joint com
z mittee on printing, and that his ad.
vice did not come from qualified Of
ficers in the executive departments
hut rather from OUfSida inf1nA
to which l have already referred.
shall take occasion in the very near
future to advise the public as to the
character of this influence"
Z What Section Says.
III The section of the bill at which the
veto was aimed provides that nc
journal. magazine. periodical or SINH
lar government publication" shall be
issued except under regulations pre-
committee on printing. and a proviso
is added including in the category
; 'mimeographing. multigraphing and
other processes used for the duplica
ton of typewriter and printed mat
ter. other than official correspondence
and Office records
The obvious effect of this pro-
VISION" said the President, would be
to give to that committee power to
prevent the executive departments
from mimeographing, multigraphing
or otherwise duplicating any material
which they desire. and in that way
!! power to determine what information
country by the executive depart
ments Without raising any
constitutional question. / think that
! this section which would give the con-
gressional joint committee on printing
power to exercise censorship over the
: Il