Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-24
REGULAR SESSION
FACES BIG TASKS.
House to Tackle Tax Cut and
Senate Ware Case and
Tariff.
BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.


meets in its first regular session week
from tomorrow. will have big tasks i'm
mediately on its hands.
The House will tackle tax reduction,
in accordance with the recommendation
of President Hoover and Secretary
Mellon.
The Senate has first on its list dis
position Of the case Of william 8. ware,
Senator elect from Pennsylvania, which
has been hanging f1re for more than
two years. 1t has also to complete
| consideration of the tariff BILL
What further legislative tasks the
Congress will undertake awaits the
message of President Hoover and his
| recommendations to that body. It will
be the Presidents first message to
Congress dealing generally with the
neods OF the country. His message to
the Congress at the opening of the spe-
| cial session was limited almost entirely
to farm relief and tax revision. 1t is
expected that the transfer Of the pro-
hibition enforcement unit from the
Treasury to the Department Of Justice
will be one Of the measures undertaken
The Presidents Crime Commission so
| called, which has been working for sew
eral months on the problems of better
law enforcement, may have some
commentators also for the Congress
to deal with.
Tax Reduction Approved.
The Presidents proposal for tax re-
duction, looping 100000, 900 of the
Federal income tax bill which the tax
| payers must pay during the coming
year. has already received the approval
OF Democratic as well as Republican
| leaders in Congress.
The proposal is to reduce the normal
tax rate by / per cent both on the in
comes of individual taxpayers and on
| the incomes of corporations. Chair
man Hawley Of the House ways and
means committee expects to report a
| joint resolution covering the tax re-
duction soon after the session opens
and to pass it through the House
quickly. Senator Smoot, chairman OF
the Senate finance committee, said last
night that he believed the Senate also
would act speedily and favorably on
| the tax reduction. plan. He said that
his committee might hear represent
atives Of the Treasury, but that no ex-
tensive hearings on the matter were
contemplated.
The Ware case Is a special order OF
| business for the Senate under an unan-
imous consent agreement. Members
of all Senate groups said yesterday that
they expected the case to be disposed OF
| promptly. The opinion was expressed
| too, that Mr.. ware would be denied the
! right to take his seat. The Senate, II
was said, Is not likely to wait further
! for a report on the contest brought by
william B. Wilson, former Secretary OF
Labor, who was the Democratic candi-
date for the Senate against Ware, which
! has been before a subcommittee of the
/ privileges and elections committee
contest can be settled later, when the
committee is ready to report. The
! Senate in the meantime will act finally
on the recommendation OF the old Ree6
! sltiSh fund committee that Mr.. Ware be
! not seated, because Of alleged COR
! ruption and the excessive expenditure
| of money in his primary campaign and
in the election itself.
Tariff Bill Status.
| Senator Smoot said yesterday that
| the tariff bill remains the unfinished
! business of the Senate and would come
| up for consideration Immediately after
| the Ware case was out OF the way. He
| indicated that the tariff bill would be
| laid aside, however, in order to permit
! prompt action on the tax reduction
resolution after the House shall have
sent the resolution over to the Senate
The chairman of the finance COMMITTEES
was not optimistic. however, when he
| was asked If he believed the tariff bill
would be passed promptly. He saw lit
| tie chance of its being acted upon be-
! fore Christmas. He said. however, that
| it was his purpose to seek action on the
bill as speedily as 1t could be had, and
that there was no disposition, so FAR as
a.
it die.
Senator Borah Of Idaho. leader OF
the Republican progressive bloc, which
has formed coalition with the Demo-
Gratis to deal with the tarin bill. said
also that he believed the tariff bill
would be taken UP and passed. He ex.
pressed confidence that the bill would
be rewritten to meet the ideas OF the
coalitionists.
In some Democratic quarters a doubt
was expressed, however, that the tartn
bill when completed and presented to
the Senate for final action could COM
mand a majority of the Senate. Un-
less the Democrats vote practically
solidly for the BILL IL was suggested, 1t
could scarcely be passed. This was on
the supposition that only the Repub-
lican progressive bloc would support
1t in It's amended form on the Repub-
lican side of the chamber. The Demo-
Gratis. it was pointed out. have been
in the habit Of voting almost Solidly
against Republican tariff measures.
However. 1t was admitted that II Presi-
dent Hoover threw his influence into
the balance, urging passage OF the bill
so that 1t could go to conference with
the House it would be passed and sent
to conference by the great majority of
Republican Senators, Plus come Of the
Democrats.
View Of Senator BOrah.
Furthermore, the suggestion that the
Democrats would vote against the tariff
bill on its final passage in the Senate
was discounted by Senator Borah, who
believes that the Democratic members
of the coalition, having once helped to
perfect the bill. will stand by 1t. In
his opinion only two or three Demo-
Gratis at the most will vote against such
Senator Robinson of Arkansas, the
Democratic leader Of the Senate, who
has Just returned to Washington after
a visit to his home, said last night
that ne expected to vote for the tariff
him when it came to the final vote in
the Senate.
"If I write the bill or help write 1t
in a form that is satisfactory" said
Senator Robinson, Il shall certainly
vote for it,
What will happen to the bill when
1t goes to conference between the two
houses is, OF course, matter of con-
lecture. But the coalitionists in the
Senate are likely to let the debenture
plan of farm aid 30 by the board If
they can preserve In the bill the coali-
TONS plan for flexible tariff through
congressional instead Of presidential
action. They will insist, however, that
the great majority Of the changes in
rates made by the Senate stand. in
creaSing duties on agricultural products