Evening star., 1933-01-23
LAME DUCK" AMENDMENT
MAY WORRY NEW PRESIDENTS
Incoming Executives of Future Will Find
Congress at Work 2 Weeks Ahead of
Them, With Control Doubtful.

Although the newly ratified twentieth
amendment to the Constitution Is ex-
pected to advance the efficiency Of Con-
gress by eliminating lame duck" ses-
sions. It will inevitably saddle an ad-
ditional burden of worries on incoming
Presidents.
BY 1t the President loses irrevocably
the peace, relative though 1t is, that
may now be had as he begins a term
with no legal compulsion to call Con-
grsSs in session until nine months after
Inauguration. Even the friendliest and
most conservative of Congresses can
cause President sleepless nights and
bring gray hairs. 1t may prove de-
liberate when he wants speed, and often
enough 1t runs away with legislation
he would like to see ditched.
How important to a new Chief
Executive a breathing spell Is at the
beginning is shown by the fact that
special sessions when called usually
start in June. or at the earliest in
April. Even now that such session is
unavoidable this year, Franklin D.
Roosevelt wants six-week period of
adjustment, and the probable meeting
date is around April 90.
Congress to Get Early Start.
Beginning with the next Inaugural
ton the President will find Congress
already in session two weeks, doubtless
organized and working to some extent
upon its own and his legislative ideas
1t will include, usually, many new
members not schooled in parliamentary
tricks nor broken in to acceptance Of
discipline at the hands of party leaders,
but fresh from the campaign Of the
preceding Autumn
That session will have major work
to do. 1t must, between January and
the end OF June. shape up the budget
for the fiscal year beginning July /.
A new President and his new officials
will have to propose revenues and ex-
penditures and get them through Con-
gress within that time. Up to now the
job has been done by the retiring ad-
ministration.
The Democrats in this Congress have
decided to pass the appropriations only
and let the revenue end be taken care
of later. But the groundwork of budg-
etary study, no matter how many
conclusions may be discarded, has been
laid by the outgoing administration,
plans, estimates and figures.
President Must Gram"
BY taking Office only two months after
election instead of four, the new Presi-
dent will have to do much studying
and examining on current affairs to be
ready to go into action the moment
he takes Office. The preparation will
have to be shared by a crew of aides
ready not only to manage departments
and bureaus, but to present their needs
and defend their estimates before Con-
~
With the adoption of the amendment.
American politics has shaken of the
grip OF the stage coach era, the old
order having been founded in the days
when 1t took months for members Of
Congress to move themselves to the
Capital, and 1t took weeks at least for
the election results to become known in
Washington.
The amendment was ratified by
the necessary SO States in less than a
year, although it took Congress 10 years
to agree upon proposing it. 1t will go
into effect next Ocotber Is, controlling
the terms Of Congress and the President
from then on.
This is the first fundamental modern
1zation in the Federal Government since
took election of Senators from the
Legislatures and placed it directly in
the hands of the people.
Unlimited Sway Feared.
Had the twentieth amendment been
in force last October, Mr.. Roosevelt
would be In the White House today,
and the new Congress would be hard
at work In place of the present gather
ing, doomed to ineffectuality.
The old system was clung to by ultra
conservatives who feared too unlimited
sway for public opinion; by those lame
ducks" and members anticipating
defeat, who favored long adjustment
period during which they could look
around for new Job while clinging to
the Federal pay roll; by executive off,
cials who found that defeated members
looking for appointive berths were more
responsive to their desires than when
the will OF constituents controlled them.
1t was fought also by those who OBJ
jected to unlimited sessions of Congress.
Among these was the late Nicholas
LongWorth, Speaker and Republican
chief OF the House, who repeatedly
killed the resolution.
Norris Fostered Plan.
Senator George Norris of Nebraska is
the man who put it over. With un-
shaking patience he kept on advocating
his reform. First he convinced the
Senate, SO that in 10 years it approved
the resolution and sent it to the House
six times. In the last Republican House,
when big majorities for the G. o. p.
were fading, Longworth agreed to a
compromise, but Norris held fast When
the Democrats took the House control
the resolution went through
It was submitted March 2, 1882. Two
days later the Virginia Legislature
ratified. not even waiting for a CODY of
the amendment to be forwarded it by
the Secretary of State.
Before the legislative season of last
year had ended, seventeen States had
given their approval.
Legislatures all over the country met
during the first week of this month.
AS soon as they organized, ratifcations
began to pour in, until in the last weeks
they came two and three day. There
was not dissenting voice.
The lame duck" was told In chorus
that he was no longer wanted
The manner in which the amendment
d1Sposes of the lame ducks is simple.
1t provides two things: First, that the
terms OF members of Congress expire
at noon Of January of the year fol-
lowing election and that the term of
President and Vice President end and
begin at noon on January 90 Second
that Congress shall meet every year on
January unless another date is fixed
by law. No adjournment date is fixed,
so there Is no short session, and filibus-
ters lose the power that limited time
confers.