Evening star., 1932-10-29

President whose cabinet officers, one
by one, told the Senate Appropriations
| Committee that they could find no way
to spend less in their own departments
There is no hope of it from a President
who spends three times more in main
| tanning his own executive offices than
! did his predecessor.
| The only hope lies in Franklin D
Roosevelt, who stands 100 per cent upon
the Democratic platform. which assures
reduction of 25 per cent in the cost
| Of the Federal Government
| Four years ago Mr.. Hoover was for
| the eighteenth amendment and all laws
! enforcing it. He received the reasoned
opinions of the individual members of
the Wickersham Commission. He saw
that all Of them agreed that prohibi-
! ton enforcement had failed, and most
OF them agreed that national prohibi-
| tion itself had failed and that 1t should
either be repealed or radically revised
| Yet President Hoover led the country
to believe that the report was a report
| for the eighteenth amendment. Finally
| at Chicago last June he was forced by
an overpoWering public sentiment to
admit that a change should be made
| after all. 1 think it is now very gem
orally recognized that it was a tragic
mistake to put the eighteenth amend
ment in the Constitution. The habits
and conduct of life of l22 900 900 Amer
lean people cannot be restricted, stand
ardized and penalized in any such way
| The only thing to do now is recognize
this mistake and its disastrous conse-
quences and take the eighteenth amend
| ment out Of the Constitution, thus re-
storing the subject to the respective
| States.
i Permission Held Myth.
Let us look at the Republican situa-
| tlon. What the Republican plank does
! is pledge the Republican party to give
the States the opportunity to pass
! upon" a proposed new amendment to the
| Federal Constitution. This new amend
| ment quoting from the plank, will
| allow States TO deal with the problem
| as their citizens may determine" but
| this permission Is myth. 1t is sub
| ject to reservations which nullify it OF
which at least give Congress the right
| to nullify it.
The proposed new amendment makes
| the right of the States to deal with the
| problem subject to the reserved con-
stitutional power of Congress to pass
| Cd any laws to preserve the gains
already made in dealing with the evils
| inherent in the liquor traffic; 90 and
also any laws Ito protect those States
where prohibition may exist and safe
guard our citizens everywhere from the
return Of the saloon and attendant
abuses"
In other words, Congress by ma
| jority vote would have the constitu-
tional power to impose upon every State
n nd 1Ou ut,i y,
| Congress chose to say were calculated
to preserve gains which had been made
| in dealing with the liquor traffic or to
| protect States which wished to stay dry
There are practically no limits to
which Congress could not go under
such a power.
Curbs States Rights.
Enough has been said already to show
that the Republican plank is piece
of hypocrisy, deception and double deal
ing State control is destroyed by the
powers which the new constitutional
amendment would reserve in Congress.
The States could exercise as much con-
troll as Congress chose to let them exer-
else, and no more. And the huge, costly
Federal Bureau Of Enforcement, with
its vast army of inspectors and spies
whose task it is to annoy. harass and
imprison, would be preserved.
No wonder Vice President Curtis can
| declare himself dry and run on this
plank. The dry President Hoover can
| run on it. too. This plank is unworthy
! Of any political party which lays claim
| to the respect of the American people
| the problem as their citizens may de-
! termine"
Will Let States Act.
The Democratic plank in a clean-cu
| and fortnight way advocates the repeal
of the eighteenth amendment. with no
ifs no butts" and no reservations or
| conditions about it. 1t does not advo-
! cate continuing new method of gov
! ernmental control which would not
work any more than the present method
Of governmental control works. And
| this promise to repeal the eighteenth
amendment and turn the question back
| to the States is accompanied with the
| injunction to the States to enact such
State measures "as will actually pro-
| mote temperance, effectively prevent
| the return OF the saloon and bring the
| liquor traffic into the open under COM
plete supervision and control by the
States"
The Democratic platform promises
that pending repeal We favor immedi-
ate modification of the Volstead act to
| legaliZe the manufacture and sale of
beer and other beverages of such alco-
| holic content as is permissible under
| the Constitution and to provide there
| from proper and needed revenue"
BY this plank the Democratic plat
| form promises an immediate step which
would go far to relieve existing condi-
tions. 1t would give employment to
thousands who need it. 1t would open
| new markets for farm produce. 1t
would bring vast revenues into the
Federal and State treasures for the
relief of the people. At the convention
| of the Investment Bankers Association
the other day it was estimated that the
| increased Federal revenues from beer
| year.
I must conclude President Hoover
| the other day sounded a very proper
| note of warning to the members of the
American Bar Association, assembled
! in convention in Washington. He
warned them to beware of false proph-
cts who promise the millennium.
The Republican policies are in great
| measure to blame for the unhappy con-
| ditionS which exist in this land OF
| plenty. The American people will turn
| to the Democratic party, which has al
ways been the authentic voice of this
country in times of crises, and which
| under Franklin D. Roosevelt and John
| N. Garner, is not afraid but is ready
| to tackle the problems that are press
| ing, and with a straightforward and
| understandable platform will not pro-
| crastinate or mislead about farm re-
| lief, the tariff, economy, fiscal affairs
prohibition or anything else.