Evening star., 1934-06-10
RECOVERY is TERMED KEY
TO NOVEMBER ELECTIONS
Democrats Must Have Business Better.
ment to Hold Their Strength in
Senate and House.

OI any OklG ulllJ Vi DuSlIlcSS WlLlll1 an
industry. They could, if such should
be their wish, so control business as to
bring to an end in America the whole
system of privately owned business
conducted for profit. Alternately
these same authorities could so ad-
minister the controls in their hands
as to promote business recovery along
lines not greatly different from the
traditional American ones.
That last statement may be too
strong. 1t is true Of most Of the new
measures. But A. A. A. and perhaps
a few others can hardly be admin
istered. by whatever degree of discre-
ton, in a way consistent with the
American ideal of individual freedom
and private ownership of land. If the
old American ideal is to be preserved
the only thing to do with A. A. A. is
to scrap it or forget it.
The forces making for business re-
covery are strong Il almost am
tempted to say they are invincible, as
invincible as, few years ago, the
forces making for depression. Yet let
us not delude ourselves in direction
too greatly toward optimism. AS to
some Of the controls over business now
in the hands of the administration, no
possible benevolence of discretion in
the administration of them can make
for anything other than limitation Of
some lines of business. An example is
the tariff control. The purpose of
that is the limitation or even extinc-
ton Of some industries for the sake Of
ultimate expansion of some other in
dustrles. From the moment of this
measures enactment. every business
dependent upon tariff protection must
know 1t is subject to reduction Of its
protection. The reduction in some
cases will be great enough to wipe
the industry out-that is the avowed
intention as to those industries
deemed in Secretary Wallace's word,
inefficient"
The mere existence Of this state Of
uncertainty through the area of busi-
ness which has tariff protection
roughly third of the whole-must
work during the coming months, dur
ing so long as the measure Is in eff
feet, toward state of mind not con-
sistent with hearty recovery.
One thing is sure: Business re-
covery, and pretty prompt business
recovery, is indispensable to the coun-
try. For the same reasons it should
be indispensable to the administra-
ton. We can put it this way, in
chain of "becauses":
The country (and the administra-
tom must have business recovery be-
cause We must have profits; we must
have profits because we must have
the taxes which come in great part
from profits: We must haves taxes be-
cause We must stop borrowing and
must pay the interest on what We
have already borrowed.
The same thing can be put the
other way round and in briefer form:
II we do not have great business re-
covery, then the administration must
go on borrowing And If the admin
istration goes on borrowing it will
come presently to the point where it
cannot borrow any more. And when
1t cannot borrow any more II must
do what Germany did, take to the
printing press and initiate. In other
words, we must have business recov-
| cry, and have it in large proportions
and early-else We shall have infla-
ton.
Recovery Is indispensable.
, To the same effect is a collateral
condition: Mr.. Roosevelt has COM
mitted himself to the theory that the
Federal Government must be respon-
sible for unemployed persons If
there is not business recovery, there
will be many millions of unemployed
To take care of those unemployed will
require much borrowing by the ad-
ministration II the borrowing is car
ried beyond certain point, it must
come to an end When (and III the
borrowing comes to an end, the ad-
ministration must take to the print
ing press.
All of which is merely another way
of arriving at the same conclusion:
Business recovery, in large proper
tions and fairly early, is indispensable
to the administration. That is. 1t is
indispensable unless the administra-
ton really wants inf1ation-and no
informed person in Washington thinks
the administration, at this time,
wants imitation
| All in all. 1t would seem that the
administration, as soon as Congress
ends, has many reasons for so ad
ministering its controls over business
as to promote business recovery
many reasons besides the political one
of electing a Congress favorable to
the administration.
About the congressional campaign,
soon beginning, the underlying facts
| are simple. In the Senate now are
so Democrats, Farmer-Labor and IS
Republicans (including the Progress
sive Republicans of the La Toilette
type). Here the Republicans can
hardly make any gains. The Demo-
cratic Senate vacancies to be filled
next November are mainly in the
South or otherwise in Democratic ter
ritory-Democrats will succeed Demo-
Gratis. The Republican vacancies, on
the other hand, are largely in doubtful
territory-Maryland, Ohio, West Vir-
ginia, Mississippi and the like. Re-
publican Senators who easily came in
on the Hoover landslide of 1928 will
find it now, at the end of their six
year terms. less easy to be reelected
The sum of which is, the Democrats
will retain control Of the Senate easily.
Democrat Majority zoo.
The House is a different story. In
! the House are 313 Democrats and lib
D III