The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-07-25
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
Information Bureau
10 CHANGE SENATE RULES
FREDERIC j: HASKIN. Director.
Washington, ID. O.

thing must be done about the United
States senate. It is not functioninE
properly. A great many people have
insisted that this is the case for
very long time, but now senators are
becoming critics of themselves ana
their own institution.
As a lawmaking factory the senate
is entitled to an efficiency rating that
would shock production experts
Henry Ford who says that the rate
of production is the most important
factor in industry, would probably
have taken the senate apart and put
it together again as an entirely dl1-
ferent kind of machine had he been
elected a member when he sought the
toea that Mr.. Newberry now wears
That is. provided he could have found
a way to introduce Ford methods ano
innovations into an establishment that
seems to have been organized to pre-
vent Just that sort of thing
Waste motion is the problem the
efficiency experts tackle first when
they undertake to speed up manu-
featuring plant. Waste words-oi
waste wind-seems to be the prin-
cipal trouble with>the senate. At any
rate senatorial leaders who are ad-
dressing themselves to the question
of how to dispose OF the legislative
program before the election are
agreed that the first thing to De oone
is to find some way of limiting debate
and forcing action within reasonable
period of time on important measures
such as tariff and the bonus. Hence
the amending of the senate rules is
now under consideration.
Cfoture was at first proposed, but 1t
failed. This requires a two-thlrds
vote and cannot be brought about SO
long as any considerable minority De
Sires to continue the discussion or a
given measure. With a subject such
as the tariff before the senate. it is a
foregone conclusion that the debate
cannot be ended until the opposition
has talked itself out or has decided
that it will be good politics to let the
bill pass. Thus the necessity of chang
ing the rules is indicated. This can
be done by a majority vote at any
time and it is taken for granted that
the Republicans can muster sufficient
strength to turn the trick.
Would Avoid Boomerang.
Accordingly the problem is how to
hframe a new rule that will accomplish
the desired end and not go too far,
that will command the necessary votes
to put it thru, and that will not prove
to be a boomerang if the time should
come when control of the senate is
reversed and the Republicans are in
the minority instead of in the ma
and wisdom of a high order. 1t also
calls for caution and despite the
emergency it is unlikely that immedi-
ate action will be taken. senator
James E. Watson, of Indiana, who is
looked upon in some quarters as the
successor Of the late Senator Penrose
as the real Republican leader, has the
job in hand.
President Harding indicated clearly
what he thought~of the situation in
the congress as a whole and in the
senate in particular when he de-
nounced legislation by blocs. Secre-
ltary of War Weeks-and he, too, was
formerly a senator-spoke right out
T.. f1IndaY Q11fal
trouble is the low standard of states
manship resulting from the direct prt-
mary. Chairman Adams of the Re
publican national committee fixes the
responsibility on the Democratic min
GRITTY.
Senator Watson and other leaders
who feel the responsibility for the
party's legislative program believe
that the trouble is a com bination OF
what the president and the national
chairman have criticized. That is to
say, they attribute the procrastination
of congress 10 the power welded by
minorities, whether political or spe-
cial interest in character.
1t is to be expected that the sena-
tors and representatives of the OPP
position party will do all that they
can to obstruct legislation in which
they do not believe, but at the pres
ent time there is a farm bloc minority,
an anti-bonus minority, an anti-ship-
subsidy minority, a reclamation mi
nority and minorities on various tariff
schedules that are not necessarily
political in their lineup. These
groups or blocs in many instances in
clude both Republicans and Demo-
Gratis who stand together for or
against certain legislative proposals
with a solidarity that jeopardizes
legislation by parties which has long
been the accepted order of things in
the congress of the United States
Each group has a program of it's
NUN n cyrir nd
Each has its views which must be pre-
scented to a patient, long suffering
country thru endless speeches. None
is strong enough in itself to dominate
the senate, but any one of them can
conduct successful filibuster almost
ind efinitely and a combination of two
or more of them can render the Re-
publican majority virtually helpless.
It was such a combination that
thwarted the plan to bring the tariff
debate to an end by cloture.
Power of Small Groups.
To-day half a dozen men can pre-
vent the senate of the United States
from functioning, and that is being
done" said Senator Watson, in discuss
ing the do-nothing situation. f'Twen-
ty years ago senators coming to wash
ington to legislate studied and debated
public questions. After a senator had
presented his arguments in full and
had done his utmost to make his
viewpoint prevail he was content to
sit down and let the majority rule.
"Dfsjointed discussion and irrele-
want talk more and more are featur-
ing the proceedings of congress and
under the existing rules there is no
way to prevent this. The senate isn't
functioning because we have here mi
nority rule and we shall continue to
be governed by a minority until the
senate rules Of procedure are changed
1 am now formulating and intend
soon to introduce a proposal to change
the rules so that the senate can func-
ton, enabling a majority opinion to
prevail on any subject within a rea-
sonably limited time