The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1929-02-25
SUCCESS OR FAILURE
OF SHAFER PROGRAM
TO Be DECIDED soon
First Round Of Battle Over
State Mill and Elevator
Plans Comes Today

xney Will sec Tile % VI Ad1IuIS
OF the administrators legislative pro-
gram, advanced by Gov. George F..
Shafer in his inaugural.
Only few Of the bills suggested by
the executive have passed the senate,
nominally controlled by his Nonpar-
tisan opponents, and only few Of the
bills which were expected to cause
trouble when the session opened APP
pear to have passed the legislative
reefs and shoals
First among these is the bill re-
pealing the state guaranty fund law.
Its passage by the house and sigma
turc by the governor Is regarded as
virtually assured, since 1t passed the
senate by heavy majority.
The first round Of the battle over
the state mill and elevator is Sched-
uled for today, when the Hamilton
bill comes to q vote in the senate.
The measure would authorize the
governor to appoint manager for
the state-owned enterprise and to
that extent. would make the execu-
tive responsible for its success or
failure. Hamilton contends that the
bill is designed to take the mill out
of politics and put 1t on a business
basis.
Has Passed House
The governors own plan, to turn
the mill over to three-man COM
mission, of whom two would be Nom
paritsans, has passed the house, and
the senate Will consider it after 1t
gets through with the Hamilton bill.
Although the Nonpartisans have
nominal control of the senate, defeat
of the Hamilton bill and passage of
the administration bill are regarded
as probable. The only consistent
thing about the Nonpartisan senate
majority at this session has been Its
inability to hold all the Nonpartisan
senators in line. Not q single vote
has been taken in which all the Nom
partisans have been on one side and
all the Independents on the other.
The Independents usually have been
solid enough, and on most OF the Inn
portant bills they have been able to
bring from two or three Nonpartisans
over to their point of view. The de-
lection of only two NOnpartiSans
makes that faction q minority.
The nearest thing to party vote
came Saturday on bill to repeal the
law permitting the manufacture OF
farm machinery at the state prison,
rs Nonpartisans opposing it and q
T. dependents and one Nonpartisan
supporting 1t. The lone Nonpartisan
in this case was d. H. Hamilton,
McHenry county, generally credited
with being the Nonpartisan floor
leader. In this case, however, his
leadership was good for only one
vote.
Personalities Enter
All apparent effort was made to
rake party issue of the bill to Ii
ccnse naturopathic physicians. Per-
sonalities entered strongly irto this
battle and 1t became q contest to
demonstrate personal strength on the
senate floor. Despite this fact enough
Nonpartisans deserted the fold to
kill the bill.
Prognosticators of political matters
opine that the same thing will hap
pen when the Hamilton mill control
bill comes to q vote today. The lads
who are fond of political prophecy
say the vote should be Is to %, with
the Hamilton bill on the short end
of the count This would mean that
three Nonpartisans are expected to
leave their ranks to vote with the
solid Independent minority.
In the house the Independents also
have had a demonstration Of the
trials which may come to q majority.
Enough independents deserted camp
to kill the bill providing for bureau
of criminal Identification. and it is
no secret that this was done to dis
courage any tendency on the part
OF administration leaders to make
pity issues of too many bills.
Backed by independents
The bill to give one man control
of the highway department, under
the supervision Of two ex-officio
highway commissioners, may te t.
fore the house this week. It received
a handsome majority in the senate.
The bill is strongly backed by some
Independents, and these do not want
a party fight directed against 1t. II
this is done they are prepared to
desert the party, at least on this
one measure. II they do they will
take along with them as many other
Independents as they can get to de-
Sert the factional banner.
Governor George F. Sllafer is rep
resented as being distinctly UNI
friendly to the bill, but it repre-
sents q pet idea Of some indie
pendents and they are represented rs
willing to fight for it. How many
other independents they can get to
join with them remains to be seen.
They expect to get all but q few
Nonpartisan votes. on the theory that
this will offer the Nonpartisans q
fine chance to hand the cdminist-.-
ton q licking. Since the Nonpar-
t.-ans In the house have been on
the short end Of all but one Of the
beatings handed out at this session,
they are expected to take advantage
of the opportunity which. the high
way commission bill may offer them.
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