The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-04-05
Will Absorb Much Time But
Will Get Neither Side
Anywhere
MANY REPUBLICANS
OPPOSED TO 1T
Possible Senate Will Amend It So 1t
VIII Only Advise the President =
Present Resolution Would Give Ger
mans Undue Advantages.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Copyright BY The Reformer.


WASHINGTON, April 5-Conferences
between Republican leaders in both the
senate and house confirm the impress
ions gained earlier that a program has
been outlined with respect to the joint
resolution declaring peace which will keep
congress and the executive in perpetual
warfare for the next few months without
getting either anywhere
just as President Wilson struck a snag
by ignoring the senate whose advice and
consent is necessary in making treaties,
so are the Republicans in congress likely
to run up against insuperable obstacles in
their efforts to negotiate an agreement
with Germany in violation of the consti-
tutional prerogative which vests the power
OF negotiation in the presidency. But
not all the Republicans are going to be
led into the acceptance Of the makeshift
proposal of peace by joint resolution.
Influential Republicans of both the SEN
ate and the house are preparing to vote
against the measure.
| 1t begins 20 look as if many of the Re
pubicans in the house who come from
states which favor the peace treaty with
the Lodge reservations will decline to
vote for resolution whose validity Is
open to serious question and which. as
its opponents are prepared to demonstrate
may involve the United States in further
complications with Germany.
Under the language of the Joint reso-
luton Germany would obtain the rights
of the treaty of Versailles. This means
incidentally all the rights which the
covenant Of the league of nations grants
to member states Germany, it is argued
would be in a position even before she
was admitted to the league to block the
solution of any questions affecting the
rights of American citizens to damages
! sustained during the war if the joint reso
luton becomes the law on the United
! States.
J But while the resolution will be at
tackled in the house by Republicans a
! well as Democrats, indications are that i
] will pass The senate leaders have beer
in constant conference lately with house
! leaders and assured themselves of tina
J fact. Yet the path of the resolution IL
q the senate is far from rosy. While TIN
) Democrats may have split on the question
y of reservations, largely because so man.
u Lodge reservations was better than non
9 at all, the full strength of the party witt
the exception OF two or three votes will b
d mustered against the joint resolution. TIL
. Republican mild reservationists are rC
& ported to be unwilling to accept the re
d sponsibihty of the effects of the joint resC
= luton and some of them will vote aganis
8 it. Constitutional lawyers like Senator
| { ,inS of nj of
. Island are hardly expected to supper
Il the proposal because of its obvious effoi
a to negotiate an agreement with a foreig
= government.
Il 1t is quite possible that by the tim
q the senate gets through with the measur
- the resolution may be amended so that
- advises the President to declare a stat
2 of peace and proceeds in the same act
l declare the purposes for which war-tim
l legislation was passed to be at an end
One thing seems certain: there will
Il almost as much debate in the sena
when the Joint resolution is up for di
/ cussion as when the neace treaty itse
was on the calendar But the Democra
/ look forward to the tusse as they Won
! to a field day. For instead of being
the defensive as they have been throug
out the treaty fight, they are now pr
pairing to tale the offensive against
1 Republican proposal. The Democra
/ have been in the position of defend
the treaty while the Republicans pun
tured it with holes They will now sta
. to pick flaws in the joint resolutic
They will have on their side a wealth
precedents about the express and |
piled powers Of congress Chiefly tn
will be able to point to the journal
the constitutional convention wherein
motion was made to give congress t