Evening star., 1935-01-13
Adroit Maneuvering by President Now
Needed in Development of the New Deal

willing to lend their FUNDS Tor use
in this field.
But President Roosevelt is far from
convinced that any amount Of en-
ticing by the Government would work
the wonders claimed for it by indus
trialists and bankers. He Is known
to have put some pointed questions
to visitors on this very subject.
The White House attitude Is be-
lieved to be that some revival can
be expected In the formerly normal
field of construction during the
period Immediately ahead. but the
volume can hardly absorb big pro-
portion Of the unemployed. Instead.
attention has turned to low-cost hous-
ing for the mass Of the people. In
this field Is q vast untitled demand.
The Federal Housing Administration
was created to function as q stimu-
lating influence. New Dealers already
class F. H. A. as huge disappoint-
ment. They praise the law: criticize
its administration. A change may
impend here.
One development has had q de-
cidedly Christening influence on the
administration.
+ y 4
The Supreme Court may have found
one section Of the national industrial
recovery act unconstitutional on a
technicality. but the language used
by the court in its decision and the
almost unanimous character of its
disapproval of some New Deal meth
DDS have served to check the trend
toward assumption of dictatorial
powers by the Executive.
Laws being drafted were hastily
scanned to see whether they fulfilled
the requirements set up by the ST.
preme Court. Every deferenence was
shown that body, with little criticism
of its adverse ruling on the first piece
of New Deal legislation to come up for
review.
Many q New Dealer feels now that
the experiments being made will need
to be changed Importantly to meet
the tests to be applied by the Supreme
Court.
The respectful attitude taken to-
ward the court is accepted as con-
servative sign, and contrasts with
comment heard In months past. An
other rather conservative gesture Is
seen In the social insurance program.
Bills dealing with unemployment
insurance, old-age pensions and other
phases of social legislation are much
less broad in scope than called for by
the recommendation Of the Presi-
dents Committee on Economic Secur-
ity. Their entire cost to the Federal
Government as q starter will not sur
pass 100000, 900, If Congress holds
to the plan offered by the White
House. In England the social insur-
ance cost to the Government, to in
dustry and to workers Is set at about
81, 2,000, 100000 q year, or equal to
ST, ,000. 900, 900. on the basis Of the pres
ent population Of this country.
y \
1t is obvious that President Roose-
velt in starting this program wants
to create as little disturbance in in
dustry as possible. Congress may
have different ideas concerning the
scope Of unemployment insurance and
old-age pensions. but If they are
grandiose they will be opposed. Sim
ilarly, radical New Dealers may have
had their ideas about what should
be done in this field, but they have
had little influence.
All in all, signs point to waning
power Of the radical group of presi-
dental advisers, for the time beaing,
at least. Whether Q change comes in
that situation probably will depend
on results that flow from the program
now recommended to Congress. If
industry absorbs more and more Of
the unemployed, the swing will con-
tinue to the right. If 1t fails or is un-
able to absorb them. then groundwork
is laid to swing sharply to the left.
(Copyright 1880