The Hardin tribune-herald. [volume] (Hardin, Mont.) 1925-1973, 1935-08-23
sas HEARD
around the
National Capital
by CARTER FIELD

National Capital
@Ry CARTER FIELDz
Westinghouse one knows where
the figure Of $34O.OOO ,OOO-frst mem
toned in connection with the Presi-
dents tax proposal as the amount GER
tain schedules would raise-came from.
But 1t is no secret that while no clever
work had been. done in figuring the re-
turns. for they were obviously wrong,
the figure did mean something.
What the figure meant was the esti-
mate of a certain brain truster, now
very much in the saddle, Of what the
treasury needed each year In addition
to present revenues.
The reason the figures were so far
wrong. in fixing the amount which
those mysterious levies would raise
(for no n has ever admitted parent
hood for the figures either) was that
the administration, after working out
n schedules, did not ask the treasury
to put its experts on them. The rea-
son for this vas not an oversight, but
the fact that Treasury Secretary Nor
genthau had just expressed himself in
such vigorous terms against the tax
proposals being made at that time that
the brain trusters who had won the
Presidents approval hesitated to ask
him.
L But let no one be deceived about
the significance Of the figures, despite
the discrepancy that the rates
toned do not produce the S340.OO0,000
/ The rates were not imagined by en-
terprising- newspaper reporters. Nor
was the $340,OOO,OOO. Both were con-
!ceived inside the administration and
formally given out.
The only advantage Of the denials
Is that the administration Is now free
to produce an entirely different set of
rates, and an entirely different total,
and insist that these new figures rep
resent carefully worked out studies of
the problem. While the Republicans
a never prove that the first, figures
were official. ~. ..
want More Taxes
All of which is only important politi-
cally. Actually what. is important is
that certain trusted andsat the moment
successful advisers to the President
believe the treasury should have $780,
100000 a year more in taxes than are
now coming in. Also-this opinion was
held prior to the avalanche Of de-
%cisions against AAA processing taxes.
If you will examine the highest scale
of. taxes IN which Morgenthau report
ed to the house ways and means COM
mittee, and then boost the whole level
by about o~ne-fourth, the taxes would
represent the treasury judgment on
what Is needed to make up forsflA, the
present deficiency in revenue !asNSseen
by certain very potent-ini infiuenHe
with the President-brain trusters. AID
(2)sthe loss of processingt tax revenue.
This is not a predictions that any
EssuchE rates will be enacted.ss9FThe Pres
IJfdsnt has no idea 9of$ going anything
like, that far. He never did. His.orfg-
-inal idea. was, to increase taxes only,
on very large incomes, and impose
levies on very large inheritances and
gifts. Also to boost corporation taxes
by the sliding scale aimed at bigness.
1t is perfectly true that the sliding
scale corporation tax is frankly re-
garded by insiders as just AIN opening
wedge. That the ultimate objective is
to make the taxes on large corpora
| tons so heavy as to make it advisable
for many of them to dissolve, and GER
tainlyr for no more mergers to be con-
sidered.
But at the time of his proposal the
president had no idea of irritating as
many people as would be hit, and hit
hard, by any tax program which would
raise the amount of money needed.
Not this. year, or next! j..
New Day in Politics
Maybe Business will come ia, a realf-
zation that there is a new day In
American politics as well as a New
Deal in Washington in time to save
itself, but it is about an even bet.
It appeared some months back that
the public utilities. long politically the
most stupid aggregation of successful
men In other fields in America, had
learned at least the elemental rules of
the new game. But eve this demon.
stration does not seem to have had
much effect on other business men.
The immediate case in point Is the
administration drive against bigness.
exemplified in the sliding scale tax on
corporation income. If 1t were Just a
boost in taxes no one except perhaps
the immediate taxpayers would be in.
terested. But its avowed object Is a
better social order"
Which means that the sliding scale
Idea Is just the opening wedge-that
the nraSant nronoSad ton rnto Il 4ha