Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-11-19
BUDGET BILL IF PASSED
WOULD FULFILL CAM
PAlGN PROMISES.
MEASURE CHIEF WORK
OF SHORT SESSION
Good Bill Would Cut Appropriations
Right and Left and Put Govern
ment on Business Basis-Narrow
Republican Margin in Senate May
Prevent Its Adoption in Decer Der.
ERv 4. G. Dongherty. J


! WASHINGTON, Nov. 19.--ln an effort
/ &c clear the way for the new Harding
administration to take up the task of
revising the tax laws, republican
leaders hope to pass the biggest bill,
fathercd by Congressman James
Good, OF Iowa, chairman Of the house
appropriations committee, at the last
session, when the short session of
congress- meets next month. This bill
which was framed by the Cedar
Rapids legislator with notifications
by Senator Medil Mccormick. of
Illinois, provides for n sharp reduc-
ton in the expenditures of the fed
eral government
The hudgatory legislation. with the
customary appropriation bill. will he
the only problem disposed Of at the
coming session in the opinion of
Senator Charles Curtis. OF Kansas.
republican whip of the upper house.
Passage of the budget bill. however.
will, Of course. depend entirely on
The willingness OF the democratic
particularly the senate. to approve
the legislation. which failed to be-
come a law when President Wilson
last summer vetoed 1t.
At present the democrats have
forty seven members of the senate
and the vice president, as against
forty nine republican senators, one
of whom Is Senator Newbery. OF
Michigan, who is voluntarily re-
naming away from the senate SEES
sions until the final disposition of his
Case by the courts. Hence the repub-
licans have an actual ma jority of only
one with a democratic vice president
ready to decide any tie vote against
them.
When the new session of congress
is convened next spring, the repub-
leans will have majority OF more
than l75. at the least. in the house,
and In the senate there will be
majority Of twenty two with n vice
president of their own. party. Then
the only question will be OF recon
Cling differences inside the party as
To the legislation TO be put thru. This
may be a difficult task, but it is not
comparable to the task of putting
thru legislation under the difficult
ties which will handicap the present
congress at the short session.
Would Meet Harding Promises.
The promise of Senator Harding,
made repeatedly on the stump during
the campaign. to dispense with tn.
services OF many thousands OF lin-
necessary employees In Washington.
will be practically fulfilled If the
Good budget bill is placed on the
statute books. Reduction of the
clerical forces in the departments.
which were swelled to unheard of
numbers during the war, has been
Very slow in the more than two years
which have elapsed since the arm
istice. For practically year there
was no reduction at all. Since then
1.-the pruning has been going on, but
far more slowly than most critics
think should have been the case. eSn-
ator Harding has virtually promised
that an AK instead of pruning shears
will be used after March 4, and on
the carrying out of this promise de-
ponds whether any substantial reduc-
ton of the taxes can be made. OBJ
viously nothing is possible along the
lines of cutting the annual appro-
priations for payment of interest on
liberty bonds and other portions Of
the national debt. nor of the MAIN
tenance Of the army and navy. The
| republicans feel that they have al
ready forced as much of saving in
the army as was possible. when they
! reduced the size of the regular army