Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-11
ny WILLIAM HARD.

Almost everybody seems to b hh-
clustering ct this week snd IN wash
ington; they pretty nearly all say that
they are against special session OF the
Congress next Summer. Then they
Ing" 70 have their own way about
everything In sight. Thus . legisla..
tive jam IN this session 10 produced and
special session becomes altogether
possible.
This general statement covers the be-
havior Of the reactionartos and OF the
radicals alike, and It includes the forces
of the administration - wen - tne
forces Of the opposition.
The drought relief bin, a. amended by
the Senate, has been "hilihustsre4" day
after day the past week IN the Kouse Of
! REPRESENTATIVE By the regular Republic
an administration House leadership. 1t
has been permitted TO lie on the Speak
er's table when under the rules OF the
House IL could 90 1t once TO committee
and then at once be reported back from
committee to the House for vote. This
procedure could be taken without any
| unanimous consent. Instead Of taxing
| 1t, ths House leadership has been re-
uuegting Unanimous consent, !" which u
| impossible, for sending the bill directly
TO conference between the two houses.
In other words, the House leadership
| has been requesting an tnposstb1ltty in
order to delay q vote In the House on
the Senate amendment. The House
leadership Is conscientiously opposed 70
the Senate amendment. II therefore
conscientiously, on behalf Of the i'd
ministration, has been "nilihuStering"
against 1t.
- =
This is the second time that IL has
"nlibustered" against essentially the
same proposition. The proposal Is one
for extending loans for food for humans
as well Is loans for food for cattle and
| for fuel for tractors and for fertilizer
| for crops TO destitute people in the
| drought areas The administer atom
thinks that such people sh0uld be fed
by the Red Gross. The Senate thinks
that the Red Gross leaves them stu
hungry and that therefore they should
be fed also through loans from the Fed
| eral Government. The administra ton
maintains that the Senate is In error on
the fact and that the Red Gross feeding
| Is adequate. In defense Of the ade-
Quacy Of the feeding BY the Red Gross
It "nlibusters" The original Senate bill
for drought relief, including loans for
food for humans, was put through the
| Senate on the eth of last month. II
ives kept In the House Of Representa-
ton House leadership reported II to the
House from committee and brought 1t to
conclusive vote.
II every day becomes more manifest
here that conservative can "hlibugter"
on behalf Of his conscientious beliefs
| just a. To0olutely - q progressive can
"nlihuDter" on behalf Of his, and that
q special session Of the Congress next
Summer. II we get 1t, win be due to no
one faction but to the general human
conviction that II am right and every
body else Il wrong"
The Republican Steering Committee
Of the Senate, which n composed Of
| four conservatives and CEae progressive
and which Is therefore o conservative
body, has proposed for the Senste an
order Of business which Il In itself
"nlibuSter." The session opened with
the happy cooperative idea that quick
votes would be had on four measures
| especially dear to the progressives and
| that then the progreGsives would be
satisfied to omit q special session next
Summer and to postpone all further
| legislative insurgency to the next Yegu-
lar session next December. These four
measures were the Norris Muscle Shoals
resolution, the Norris antt-lame-duck
constitutional amendment resolution,
| the Shtpstead anti-injunction bill, and
the Wagner twin bills for promotion Of
employment.
One Of the Wagner bills has been in
| conference between the two houses, and
1t sticks there. The other is on the
calendar Of the House Of Representa-
| tives, and 1t remains glued there with
no move to date toward bringing it to
the floor for debate and action. The
Norris anti-lame-duck constitutional
| amendment resolution 10 in q commit
| tee of the House Of Representatives,
while an alternative resolution produced
| by the House itself u on the calendar
Of the House, but makes no progress
toward getting considered BY the House.
| The Norris Muscle Shoals resolution
| for governmental operation Of the
| possible tentative settlement IN q
| conference between the two houses, but
Is headed toward vigorous opposition
from regular Republicans on the House
| floor. The ShipStead anti.injunction
| bill Is on the calendar Of the Senate
| awaiting some display Of senatorial ON
| cial interest In it to take 1t from the
calendar and bring 1t to discussion.
simultaneously q large number OF
bills have been introduced By progress
sive Senators, Republican and Demo-
/ cratic, dealing with the existing busi-
ness depression and the relief Of 1t
by various means, extending from the
| promotion Of foreign commerce on the
l one hand to the Federal financial en-
eouragement Of municipal employment
1 schemes on the other.
In the midst Of this situation the bill
l which for several weeks now has been
the Senate's "unhnished business, /"
which means the legislation ofacially
immediately BEFORE th0 Senate, u the