Evening star., 1934-03-28
The Floods Came.

The floods came in the House yes
terday BY a vote of $40 to 70, al
most Az to l, the House passed the
independent Offices appropriation bill,
providing for greater liberality to the
war veterans and restoration Of Gov
ernment workers pay, over the veto
OF President Roosevelt. 1t was the
first major revolt of the House against
the Presidents leadership since he
took office more than year ago.
What does it preSage? Does it mean
that some of the legislation proposed
by the administration, suggested per-
haps by the brain trust" will be IN
turn rejected by the House? Was the
action of the House yesterday a real
declaration of independence against
the domination of the Executive or
was it only subservience to the SOL
diers' vote?
Whatever the Senate does with re-
gard to the independent Offices bill,
the slap in the face which was ad
ministered by preponderantly Demo-
cratic House, apparently quite unex-
pectedly. stands. Speaker Rainey not
long ago gave it out that he was
keeping a list of the Democrats in
the House who voted against the ad-
ministration on measures that came
before that body. Yesterday the roll
call showed 209 Democrats voting
against the President and only 70
standing by him in his veto of the
bill. 1t cannot be that the admins
tration really expects TO turn its fire
on the great majority of the Demo-
Gratis in the House. The efforts Of
the administration up to date to chas-
tise members of the Senate and
House for failure to stand by the
President in every vote are perhaps
bearing fruit today. Certainly there
are Democratic Senators to whom
patronage has been denied and whose
aid the President would now be glad
to have.
The Presidents veto message was
not impressive. While he turned
down the proposals of the Congress
giving more liberal treatment to the
veterans, he announced that by exec
utive order he proposed to grant the
veterans, at least temporarily, the
very treatment which the House and
Senate had provided in the bill. At
the same time he proposed to give to
the veterans much that the Congress
had already undertaken to give them.
The Government workers, whose
pay has been cut fifteen per cent in the
administration economy drive, fare
less well in the Presidents message.
He declared himself absolutely opposed
to the plan which proposed to restore
Immediately, retroactive to February
VI LIlC pay llO"
from the workers, and another third
July l. Yet this plan was devised by
the Senate administration Democrats
some weeks ago when the independent
Offices bill reached that body and it
was clear that revolt was in the air,
and administration leaders there let it
be understood that the President
would acquiesce in the amendment.
Seemingly the administration has
come to believe with the passing of
the weeks that it was strong enough
to reject this compromise proposal.
And now the President proposes to do
quite lot for the veterans, but Moth
ing for the Government workers, ex-
cept to hold out a suggestion that
something may be done in the future.
Should the Senate sustain the veto
of the President, it is likely that it
will vote with the Chief Executive by
only a small margin. 1t seems clear
that in the end the President will be
forced to compromise with the Con-
gress if law is to be passed, for
he cannot command a majority of
either House to support his own pro-
posals on these questions. If no law
be passed, the provision now in effect
reducing Government workers pay by
fifteen per cent ceases.