The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-12-09
Washington
Merry-Go-
Round
BY DREW PEARSON and
ROBERT S. ALLEN.


ROBERT S. ALLEN.
XXTASHINGTON. Dec. 9.-When
w Solicitor General Stanley
Reed rises before the Supreme
Court today (Monday) to defend the
constitutionality Of the Agricultural
Adjustment Act, he will do so with
the knowledge that the Administra-
ton is ready for any eventuality.
The bitter lesson learned when
the Nine Old Men dirked the NRA
has not been forgotten. New Dealers
believe the court will uphold the
farm law, but they are taking no
chances. Within practicable limits,
emergency plans have been secretly
prepared in the event Of an ad-
verse decision.
THESE plans fall into three cate
Il gories, as follows:
l. If the court outlaws the proc
essing taxes on the ground they are
for social and not revenue purposes,
new bill promptly will be intro
duced to reimpose these taxes as
part of the general revenue laws in
stead of being directly related to the
crop control program. as at present.
Benefit payments from general
treasury revenues would then be
legaliZed by another bill.
2. Or if the court outlaws the
processing taxes on the ground that
Congress was unconstitutional IN
delegating power to fix revenue
rates to the Secretary of Agricul-
| ture, another line of action will be
| taken. A bill will be rushed 70
Capitol Hill under which the taxes
would be validated by act of Con-
gress.
3. If the court pronounces crop
control purely intra state and not
within the province of the Federal
government to regulate, then, Tri-
pie A-ers frankly admit they would
be stumped. Such decision, they
say, would mean complete wreckage
of the law, with a constitutional
amendment the only solution.
WHAT government attorneys
w privately anticipate is a
closely divided decision upholding
the fundamentals of the act-the
right of the government to control
farm production-but tossing out
the processing taxes. These taxes
they consider the weakest point in
their case.
Such a decision would be a smash
ing victory for the New Deal, for
if the power to regulate crops is
sustained, ways and means easily
can be found to finance such opera
tons.
| If there is no other solution, Adj
ministrationites ominously hint that
income taxes can be increased to
provide the required funds.
TINE possibility of tax boost, in
l. case the Supreme Court man
handles the AAA. is no idle threat.
1t is not generally realized that
the government has contracts with
individual farmers under the crop
control program, calling for benefit
payments amounting TO more than
$500000,000.
These contracts are between the
government and the individual
growers. They are valid in law and
the government is committed to pay.
The farmers would be certain to de-
mand their money in the courts, or
in Congress if necessary. New Deal
ers say they would be the first to
insist on payment
II
TN these days of political polls
L. soa,e interesting deductions may
be drawn from a poll conducted by
The Washington Merry Go-Round
which shows a percentage of 69.7
for Roosevelts reelection as
against 30 per cent for his defeat.
The most important deduction
probably is that many people are
for Roosevelt who may not be for
all his policies, the latter being in
dictated by the Literary Digest poll.
The question asked in The Wash
ington Merry-Go-Round poll is:
Should President Roosevelt be re-
6lccIeu! On Jl1e OIIleI IidIluJ IIie
question asked by the Literary Di-
gest poll is: do you now approve
the acts and policies of the New
Deal to date?"
So far the Digest poll is running
$50 per cent against Roosevelt
policies. In analyzing its poll the
Merry Go-Round came across the
significant fact that out of those
who favor Roosevelt 1928 per cent
disapprove of one or more Of the
Presidents policies, but believe he
should be reelected anyway.
The Merry Go-Round poll has
been in progress one week. It will
continue for three additional weeks.
Letters stating reasons for or against
Roosevelt's reelection may be sent
to the Washington Merry-Go-
Round, Washington, D. c..
| Copyright. 1895, by United Feature
J Syndicate, Incl