The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1935-01-04
ACT PROVIDES
AID TO AGED
AND JOBLESS
Measure Presented by
Lundeen Is Seen as
Improvement
BY Seymour Waldman
DAILY Worker Washington Bureau

AOahy NuNhcE NdShih6toh DhHOaH
WASHINGTON, Jan. 8. = The
Seventy fourth Congress of the
United States, whose actions are
controlled by the leading strings of
Wall Street and which was voted
into Office by millions of workers
who still look for the fulfillment of
Rooseyelt's New Deal promises, for
mally opened its sessions today.
Of the nearly 5000 legislative
measures sent by House members
to the legislative hopper, the only
one which proposes substantially
adequate treatment for the great
mass of the unemployed is the
Workers Unemployment, Old Aage
and Social Insurance Act, the meas
u9a which Representative Ernest
Lundeen of Minnesota formally
substituted fcr the widely known
Workers Unemployment. Old Age
Insurance Bill, H. r. 1898.
The new bill, which has not yet
been numbered, provides more con-
cretely for old age benefits. Any
one SIS years old, or older, does not
have to work to receive the bene-
fits of the act. The new bill also
provides maternity benefits during
the eight weeks before and after
confinement, provides for an appro-
p-i~tio1 from the U. S. Treasury
from funds not otherwise appropri-
atsd and declares that the benefits
are to be given to anyone Is years
of age or over.
Says Bill Is Improvement
Herbert Benjamin, National Elk
ecutiye Secretary of the National
Sponsoring Committee of the I'm
employed Congress, told the Daily
Worker today that "the new bill is
an Improvement over the previous
GcS il that it makes specific provi
sion for old age and maternity, and
p3aidcs moe specifically for part
tine workers.
The bill continued Benjamin,
is better than the old one in that
1t provides definitely for an appro-
priation. 1t meets such legitimate
criticism as has been previously
made and takes into consideration
the many valuable suggestions that
have come from workers organiza-
tions and experts from all parts Of
the country.
However, it falls short in that it
docs not provide specifically for
compensation during the period of
present and Forthcoming strikes al
thcuoh it does not disqualify strik-
ers. This change was made by Mr..
Lundeen contrary to the original
tex presented to him yesterday by
the National Sponsoring Commit
tee
Text Not Available
Conrorr tn the usual practice
the text of the bills introduced in
-'ot available. The
printed list of the bills gave only
ii the measures. Martin
Dies of Texas re-introduced his bills
for the exclusion of the militant
sforeign-born. The title of Dies H.R.
2010, reads: ITO provide for the ex-
clusion and expulsion of alien Com
mL4lists." 1t was referred to the
Committee on immigration and
Naturalization.
Neither John W. Mccormack, of
Massachusetts,, nor Samuel Dick
stein, chairman and vice-chairman
respectively, of the Dickstein or
House Committee Investigating
American Activities" introduced
bills aimed at the militant foreign
born worker or the Communist
Party, the generally expected first
legislative attack in the move to
smash the entire Labor movement.
At Dickstein's office 1t was an
nounced that the committee has not
vet finished it's report on which the
bills will be based.
The swearing in of new and re-
elected Senators and Representa-
tives, the execution of the agreed
upon motions for electing Joseph
w. Byrns of Tennessee Speaker of
the House by BIC votes and the in
PRODUCTION of nearly three thousand
House bills set the stage for tomor-
rows appearance of President
9 Roosevelt before a joint session of
both houses of Congress. For all
practical purposes, the President,
whose legislative lieutenants have
stronger hold than ever on Con-
gress, through the new gag rule
which makes it necessary to muster
218 rather than the old 145 votes
to get House bill out of the COM
mittee. will open Congress by read
ing the general legislative recon-
mendations which the Big Bust