Evening star., 1933-02-21
REPEAL CONVENTION
HELD UP TO STATES.
Senators Walsh and Borah
Doubt Authority of Con-
greSS.

The States themselves must be left
free to set up the constitutional con-
ventions to which repeal of the ma
tional prohibition amendment has now
been submitted by the Congress for
ratification, in the opinion of such con-
stitutional lawyers as Senator Thomas
j. Walsh of Montana and Senator Will
liam E. Borah of Idaho
Both these Senators take the posi-
tion that Congress has no authority
under the Constitution to pass a law
seeking to set out the pattern for these
State conventions. They look with ap-
proval neither on the bill offered by
Representative Summers, chairman of
the House Judiciary Committee. nor
that proposed by Representative La
pose.
Challenge Seen.
II the Congress should undertake to
put through and did put through such
law. they insist that the constitu-
tionality of the proceedings might well
be challenged in the courts.
1t was suggested that if the vets
really wish to play into the hands of
the drys, they enact the Summers or
The La Guardia bills, thereby making
it possible to tie up in the courts rati-
f1cation of the repeal amendment and
bring about an ultimate decision by
the Supreme Court that the ratification
was unconstitutional.
The Summers bill proposes that the
delegates to the State constitutional
conventions shall be chosen in the same
manner and in the same numbers as
are presidential electors. While it un-
dertakes to fix a date for the election
of these delegates in all the States, 1t
at the same time says the delegates
may be elected "at such other times
as may be designated by the Governors
of such States"
The La Guardia bill would direct the
holding of the conventions in all the
States within the next four and half
months, with Congress supervising them
and paying the bills. The delegates
would be elected under this bill on
May 16 in all the States, and would
be required to assemble and act be-
tween 80 and As days thereafter.
Not Their Purpose.
Speaker Garner and Representative
Rainey of Illinois, Democratic floor
leader. have both indicated that it was
not their purpose to press for such
legislation during the present session,
although Chairman Summers said that
he would ask his committee to consider
his bill one day this week.
But whether the matter is agitated
in the House or not, there seems little
chance that such a bill would get any
where in the Senate. Senator Robin
son of Arkansas, the Democratic leader
of that body to whose driving initiative
the adoption of the Blaine resolution
it, In 70 Ia CT ic 10 d1Io
secuted the idea that the Senate would
ever agree to have the Congress pre-
scribe the set-up, the manner of elect
ing, or the time of electing the State
constitutional conventions.
That" said Senator Robinson, lis
matter for the States to take care Of"
This, too, was the view of Senator
David l. Walsh of Massachusetts,.
Senator Thomas j. Walsh of Montana,
who is to become Attorney General in
the Roosevelt administration, insisted
that the Congress was entirely without
power to pass such a measure as the
Summers bill.
The Constitution" said the Montana
Senator, does not reserve the right to
arrange for these State constitutional
conventions. 1t has always been held
that any powers not especially reserved
TO the FeQeral Government Dy the COn-
stitution remain in the hands of the
States. If we undertook now to pass
this legislation and to arrange for the
State conventions we would be clearly
in violation of the Constitution. Not
only have the States sole jurisdiction
in this matter, but it is their duty to
proceed to set up the constitutional con-
ventions to pass upon the repeal amend
ment. They have full authority"
No Less Emphatic.
Senator Borah was no less emphatic
in his assertion that the Congress had
no authority to act in this matter of
the State conventions. He is against re-
peal of the eighteenth amendment.
In support of his proposal, Mr.
Summers took the ground that the rati-
fication by the States might be called
into question in the courts If Congress
did not put through a bill specifying
the kind of conventions which would
ratify, since, he held, ratification of
constitutional amendment was Fed
eral function" In this he has the back
ing of A. Mitchell Palmer, Attorney
General in the Wilson administration
and one time candidate for the Demo-
cratic presidential nomination.