Red Lodge daily news combined with Carbon County news., 1933-04-26
Government
How 1t Operates
TO CHANGE
INAUGURATION DATE

A~co dit diAiOS1 tclldih W nttucos
an epochal change In our govern,
ment. After more than $50 years
our nation Is about TO alter a basic
date In our system of government
namely, the date upon which the
terms of our Presidents. Vice Pres.
ldents and senators and representa-
tives In congress begin. In all prob
ability the change will have been
ordered In advance of 1896, but II
will not take effect until early In
1887.
The fundamental revision Is to
take place through adoption or rat
itication, by the several states of
the so-called Lame Duck Amend
ment" to the federal Constitution.
1t Is the consensus now that Its rat
ification as a part Of the organic
law Is only a question OF time.
So, In a few years then we will
witness the converting of III con-
gress In January of each year for
sessions of no fixed duration or
life up TO M year. and each four
years we will see a President In
Quoted into office In the same
month. Congress now meets In De
cember, of course, but Its sessions.
started In the odd years. end auto
matically on March 4 of the sue
ceeding even year; the sessions be-
ginning In December of the even
years may run through to the fol-
lowing December. If the legislative
body 50 choose. The new amend
ment will start the sessions on jan
nary 3. Of every year, and they may
continue until that date of the next
year If the work has not been done
in the meantime.
In the case of the Chief Execu-
tive. he will take office on January
20, of the year following his cleo
ton. The term of office beginning
next March 4, therefore. appears
certain to be the n break In
a steady succession of four-year
terms for President since the forma-
ton of our government, for it will
be reduced by the difference OF time
from January 20 to March 4, In or
der that the succeeding Presiden.
tial terms may be for four full
years.
The purpose of the amendment Is.
In the words of Its author, Sena-
tor George w. Norris, of Nebraska,
ito bring congress closer to the peo-
Pile" And there Is not a great deal
of disagreement about that. IT will
make congress a body more respon-
sive to the people. because sen
tors and representatives who are
elected In November will take office
In just two months thereafter.
Considerable research has failed
to disclose how the term. Lame
Duck" had its origin. 1t has long
been applied to the unfortunate pol
itician who guessed wrong as to
what his constituents wanted. and
was defeated. He has served through
another session of congress, how
ever, before surrendering Office to
a
While the new amendment will
make congress more responsive and
closer to the people, there Is and
probably always will be some lack
Of nnanimity of opinion as to its
value. The school of thought In
congress that oppo-2d the amend.
ment felt there was danger that con.
gress would be too responsive to
public will that there were such
things as whims and public de-
mands based on mlslnformation, and
that t. e present period of delay af-
forded time for the electorate to
cool off,"
Those who look at both sides of
the question see that danger. They
recognize 1t is possible for a ma
jority of the citizens of the Repub-
lie to be swayed by demagoguery
from a raucous minority. Some act
OF a foreign nation might possibly
%engender such steaming hatred just
In advance Of an election as to
cause the selection Of a majority
of congress willing to rush into war.
Or there may be some domestic Is
sue about which the flames of pub
lie sentiment may be famed, with
a subsequent action by congress
that would be regretted In later
years.
On the other hand, those who fos-
tered the change and who passed 1t
through congress have contended
that this new responsiveness will
work both ways. 1t Is their view
that senators and representatives
will hear from home" more quickly
than ever before If sentiment swings
back from the point that 1t reached
at the polls. Plenty Of safeguards
are said to exist.
After watching the performance
Of congress through than a
decade, | hold the conviction that
they represent a rather good cross
section Of the population that elects
them. The voters now and then get
one who Is better than the aver
age and now and then put one In
office who does no credit to the dis
trica or state from which he or she