Evening star., 1932-12-04
DIVIDED CONGRESS
MEETS. TOMORROW
Slight Hope Held for Action
on Prohibition, Farm Re-
lief and War Debts.
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Continued From First Page.)
sefore the first meeting of the new Con-
gress.
As a general rule, lame duck sessions
Of Congress accomplish no more than
the passage of the supply bills for the
operation of the Government. The
failure of one or Two OF these supply
measures would be sufficient to force
special session of the new Congress.
The Republicans in the Senate in the
short session of 1918-19 prevented final
action on some of the supply bills and
forced woodrow Wilson to call spe-
cial session of the Congress in the
Spring of 1919, Congress in which the
Republicans held the whip hand.
Face Budget Problem.
In the coming short session, in addi-
ton to prohibition and farm relief, the
question of balancing the budget
through additional taxation or through
drastic economy, or both, will raise Its
head. The reso-SbSc derived from the
tax bill passed the lasS session of Con-
gress are not expected to be suf1clent.
New forms of taxation must be found.
While the Congress took long step
In dealing with relief for the unem-
ployed in its last session when it made
$500 900 900 available for loans to States
which were unable to meet the relief
requirements, there will be agitation for
further measures of relief this Winter.
Whether Congress is willing or not to
deal with the problem of the foreign
debts owed this Government, growing
out of the demands of Great Britain,
France and others for postponement
of the December Is payments due, and
<Nf IakNf re
dent Hoover may lay the problem on
its doorstep. indeed, he is expected to
deal with the debt situation in his mes
sage to Congress which he will trans
init, it is expected, on Tuesday, or in a
special message sent later. The Repub-
lican and Democratic House leaders
have turned thumbs down SO far on the
proposals Of the foreign nations.
The question of governmental econ
omy is expected to occupy the attention
of the legislators. Both Republicans
and Democrats pledged during the cam
paign drastic cuts in Government ex-
penditures. Also there is request from
Congress that the President make
recommendations for the reorganization
of the Government.
Tax legislation, if the question Is
taken up, will demand much time in the
House and Senate. The proponents of
beer legislation are basing much of their
hope for legalized beer on the need of
additional revenue. A veritable flood
of beer bills will be introduced on the
opening days of the session.
Hearings Slated Tuesday.
Hearings on beer legislation are
scheduled before the House Ways and
Means Committee beginning Tuesday.
And probably on Wednesday beer bill,
drafted by a group of representatives
of the brewers and by members of Con-
gress, will be submitted to the House.
Notwithstanding the great agitation
for beer without delay, even for beer
before Christmas" the chances of beer
legislation at the coming session do not
appear bright. It probably will have to
go over until the next Congress, when
the Democrats are overwhelmingly in
the majority in both houses and the
President will be willing to sign such
measure.
AS matter of fact some of the Demo-
Gratis already are questioning the wis
dom OF going ahead with beer and farm
zRlief legislation at the short session
X1lesS they can have some kind of as
farance from the White House that
president Hoover will not veto these
measures. Senator Dill of Washing
ton, for example, who has just returned
to the Capital full-f1edged wet in view
of the vote taken in his State on the
prohibition issue in the election, said
yesterday that he believed it would be
waste of time for the present Congress
to tackle these problems if 1t became
evident early that the President would
not sign the bills If they were sent to
him.
Senator Corden Hull Of Tennessee, a
leading Democratic authority on reve-
nue. and tariff matters, last night urged
that Immediately the United States
governments, acting individually and
separately, the carrying out of a COM
mon policy of discontinuing any further
increases of tariff and similar trade
obstructions, and Of effecting a hori-
zontal reduction of 10 per cent of their
permanent tariff rates."
Bonus Move Threatens.
The advocates of immediate payment
OF the soldiers bonus are promising to
bring in another bill for that purpose
during the short session, despite the
TACT that there seems no prospect what
ever of passing such bill through the
Senate, no matter what the House may
do with it.
In the Senate bill providing for
eventual independence of the Philip
pine Islands is a special order of busi-
ness for this week. And the Upper
House, too, has hanging over 1t the
protocol for American adherence to the
World Court and the treaty with Can
ada for a st. Lawrence waterway, If
the Foreign Relations Committee will
report these measures out
Democratic leaders, including Sena-
tor Robinson of Arkansas, have already
decreed that President Hoover's ap-
pointments to Federal Offices are not
to be confirmed; that these appoint
ments are to be held in abeyance until
the Democratic President-elect takes
Office. The Democrats in the Senate
can prevent confirmation In the short
session, either by filibustering or by
voting them down through an alliance
with the inSurgent Republicans.
The makeup of the Senate in the
coming session will be 48 Republicans,
At Democrats and Farmer-Labor Sen
ator, Shipstead of Minnesota.
5 In the House the Democrats have a
majority, but the margin of control is
very narrow. There will be 220 Demo-
Gratis, 2l0 Republicans, l Farmer-Labor
and vacancies.
With the Democrats holding up Re-
publican appointments to office, it does
I Dt appear that there will be much in
ddnation on the part Of the Republicans
in Congress to cooperate with the
Democrats in putting through a DEM
ocratic program of legislation. Insur-
gent Republicans who supported RooSe-
velt in the campaign, like Norris of
Nebraska. Johnson of California, Gut
ting of New Mexico and La Toilette Of
Wisconsin, may be willing enough to