The Republican., 1935-02-14
By FRANK R. KENT,
Copyright by the Baltimore Sun and
reprinted in The Republican by
special permission.
Weather Signs
Washington, Feb. IL

Some of the more acute observers
of political weather think they sense
a change in the wind. Like sailors at
sea, there always keep their eyes
skinned for the shift. The favored
political expression of the moment is
"reaction."
For nearly two years now both wind
and tide have been strongly with Mr..
Roosevelt. They have enabled him to
embark us upon series Of costly and
dangerous experiments evolved by
immature young theorists to which
and to whom the sober thought of the
country was and is opposed. Swept
off their feet by the popular current,
the politicians of his own party have
been carried along with him, pri-
vately disbelieving and distrustful. A
kind of political obsession concerning
him seemed to grip members of Con-
gress, paralyze the press and enthrall
the people. But at no time since he
abandoned his sound and sane course
epitomized in the Economy Act of
1888, and began to drench the country
with Federal funds, has he had the
trust of the more clear-headed people
either within or without Congress.
o.
With these the question has been
how long before the tide would turn.
Conceding the great popularity of
dishing out money to those who have
none, and the attractiveness of policies
which enable millions to borrow and
more millions to live on the Govern
ment, still the conviction remained
that the end of this must some day
occur, and the revulsion would be very
great indeed. The uncertainty has
been only as to when-whether the
reaction would come in time to avoid
a crash, or whether we will be kept
headed straight toward the imitation
brink until too late to stop.
Within the past week two things
have developed indicative of a change.
One of these is the unexpected senti-
ment in the Senate toward the vast
works relief bill, which is to supersede
the Administration failures of 1884
and embodies the Roosevelt 1885 pro-
gram. The feeling among Democrats
that, both as to money and as to pow
er, Mr.. Roosevelt has. asked too much
this time is really significant. By ex-
erting full White House pressure
probably he will be able to get the
bill through the Seante in approx
mately the form he wants, or if not
that, to restore eliminated features in
conference committee.
D.
But it is now clear that many
Democratic votes in the Senate will
be cast for the bill with extreme re-
luctance; that there is within his par
ty not only great unwillingness to
give him $1OO,O0O,O0O for each of the
forty-eight States but grave doubt of
his ability to effectively spend the
money. In brief, there has been a
change, and this is made plain not
only in private conversations of Sena-
tors, but in their public attitude.
There is a feeling that he has asked
too much and gone too far. In other
words, there are signs in the Senate
of a reaction. 1t may be crushed out
and the recalcitrants forced into line.
But it is there none the less, and it
was not there last year.
O.
The other sign is the unusual popu-
lar response to the effort of Repre-
sentative Bacon, of New York, to re-
peal the La Follett resolution requir-
ing publicity for income-tax returns,
and to eradicate that other resolu-
ton requiring separate report to the
Treasury of those on the pay roll re-
ceiving more than $4,000 year. No
one seems to know who was RESPONSE
bic for this latter little gem It's par
entage is forgotten. 1t is a Little Or
phan Annie among resolutions which
no one claims or defends.