Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1935-06-22
REACTIONS TO TAX
PROPOSALS VARIED
Radicals Are SkepticaI, but
Conservatives Certain
of Sincerity.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

50 Two curiousIy opposite reactions
have developed TO President Foose-
velt's acceptance of the Huey Long
doctrine of redistribution OF wealth.
~ One which is held by "Prcgressives"
and other radicals in Congress is
that Mr.. Roosevelt doesn't mean what
he says and that he has no real tnten-
ton of pressing the legislation for
passage.
The other is held by conservatives
who believe that Mr.. Roosevelt means
what he says and that he has aligned
himself definitely with radical ele-
mentS in preparation for the 1886
campaign.
Progressives Open Drive.
Because the "Progfessives," led by
Senator La Toilette and Senator
Wheeler, haven't the slightest idea OF
letting Mr.. Roosevelt get the headlines
for being "anti-rich" and then quietly
permit the matter to be buffeted about
and perhaps defeated by the GIo-line
Democrats, they have begun an active
campaign to put the legislation
through this Congress
Senator La Follette's petition asking
fellow Senators to sign an understand
ing that they would stay in session to
pass the Presidents program on tax
p. alton is significant of the Skepucism
which the ProgreSsives have aooi1t the
sincerity of the administration.
Senator Long, of course, will push
hard for action because Mr.. Roosevelt
has come over to his side and the
Louisiana Senator is alert enough to
detect political gesture when he sees
one. He was the first to say pub
licly that the Presidents tax message
- was just a smoke-screen intended by
its sensational character and sweep
ing recommendations to divert atten-
ton from the revelations OF the
Mitchell charges against the Depart
ment of Commerce and the Senate's
investigation thereof.
Wisdom Questionable.
II the tax message was a political
document, and there are signs that
1t could not have been seriously in
tended for action at this session, then
the question arises whether Mr..
Roosevelt was wise in starting his
1885 crusade at this time. For, after
all, the forces that have been alien
ated by the President have very little
unity or comradeship. The Grass
Roots" convention at Sprinfleld, ILL.,,
showed how deeply the pride of party
still courses in the veins Of Repub-
: UcanS.
b When the President starts out,
however, on a share-the-wealth agi-
tation, he only drives together most
! of the opposition, irrespective of party.
For instance, until recently stock
holders in companies that were out
side the utility field were inclined to
regard the electric light and power
companies as just the victims of spe-
cial attack by the President. Today
they know that bigneSS as such is
under fire and that investments in
common stock equities or even in
preferred stocks or bonds in American
industry must be regarded entirely in
the light Of direct injury to come
from the legislative reforms spon-
6ored by the President.
When Mr.. Roosevelt talks about
simplifying corporate structures by
the coercive use of the taxing power
. or when he refers to unnecessary"
holding companies in all lines of busi-
ness as being objectionable, he merely
says that he wants the Federal Gov
eminent to assume control over all
of them and decide which shall be
permitted to live and which shall be
sentenced to death. Once the princi-
pie of Federal control of holding COM
panieS Is conceded In the utility field
to be within the Federal power, 1t
can quickly be extended to other lines
of business. Indeed, 1t would not be
surprising II the Federal Trade Com
mission were to be authorized to
study all forms of holding companies
with an idea of bringing In the de-
sired legislation to achieve their dis
solution.
Reasoning Is Superficial.
The superhcia1ity of the reasoning
Of the New Dealers in this respect
Is tragic. They forget that millions
sof men and women have invested
: their savings in American industrial
concerns and that Federal regulation,
control, and intrusion in their
financial structure can only mean a
painful period of dehation and de-
sstruction of values.
/, The country as whole has perhaps
assumed that the legislation with re-
.spect to utility holding companies and
sother holding companies would be de-
clared unconstitutional in the end, so
there is no cause for concern. But
while ultimately the Supreme Court
will throw out many of the absurd
laws now being passed by the New
Deal, economic recovery in the interim
is retarded by the passion for reform
and by what appears to be deliber-
ate effort on the part Of many of the
reformers to pile up so many legiSla-
tive restrictions as to produce chaos
and then their argument for a dicta-
torial centralized government and a
change In the Constitution will be
justified, they think, as a counsel Of
dee0era ti0T