The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1936-03-20
Hot Potato
orCongress

ing nothing to re-
place 1t. With much less ballyhoo than
ordinarily precedes the presentation Of
tax legislation to congress, the Presi-
dent sent q message to the Capitol
calling for new tax levies approximate
Ing billion dollars in yield and In
so doing dropped into the laps of the
house and senate critics one of the
hottest potatoes they have ever been
called upon to handle. If one were
to characterize the play in the Ian
guage Of baseball, since spring is here,
l believe one could say that congress
either must play ball or let the run
ners score.
It was the greatest tax bill ever sub
mitted in peace time. Whether the
proposals the President has made are
economically sound or whether the lev
les he thinks advisable will do the job
he expects Of them, of course, remains
to be seen. But the fact cannot be
lodged that Mr.. Roosevelt has figura-
lively settled down around the ears Of
those who have constantly challenged
the waste inherent in his vast reform
and recovery program with straight
from the-shoulder demand upon con-
gress that 1t vote new taxes.
1t Is most interesting situation,
politically. In nearly score of years
of Washington reportorial experience,
l cannot recall having seen so much
squlrming and wriggling as well as fret
ting and mumbllng among represent
atives and senators. 1t Is only natural
that they do not wish to go into cam
paign for reelection when there Is the
certainty that here, there and every
where they will be confronted with
heckling as to their vote for new taxes
assuming they will vote terrifically
heavy levies as the President has sug-
gested, and as present indications seem
to assure. They have no heart for
tax increase at this time. But, to re-
peat, they are faced with situation
in which they must either vote for
new and heavier taxes or else they
will be forced to swallow many long
winded speeches in condemnation of
the Presidents course.
Whatever the merits Of the Roose-
welt proposals may be, there Is no
course open for his
Force Hands opponents except to
of Opponents support him in the
general move to pay
as you go. Unless they support these
new tax levies, all of the bowling and
the shouting and tumult about reduc-
ton in the treasury deficit becomes
just so much belly-wash.
Opponents may differ with the Pres
ident as to the details Of his tax plan
but the situation he has created for
them compels that they stand with
him. To do otherwise would be not
only inconsistent but rather dumb.
Frank Kent, the able news common
tator, summarized one phase of this
situation the other day by saying !:
1T makes no difference that the
situation which compels the imposition
of new and heavy taxes is largely Mr..
ROOsevelt's fault. And 1t makes no
difference that the move is forced by
the exigencies of his campaign for re-
election and is designed to spike the
most damaging charge against him
that he has piled the debt mountain
high AMI by terrific expenditures men
aced the national solvency. All that
and more may be perfectly true; but
for the Republicans and his nOn-politi-
cal critics, who have been assaiing Mr..
Roosevelt for months because of his
failure to balance the budget to either
obstruct or hold back now that the
President urges congress to provide by
taxation the money to pay for the vast
gifts it has voted would be beyond the
limit in political insincerity and n.y.
pocrisy."
In other words, there nearly is no
alternative for opponents of the Pres
ident's policies They must show their
sincerity by going through with him in
the laying of new taxes. do not
mean by that statement that 1t is nee
essary for them to accept without ar
gument the exact levies which he has
proposed. If they were not In accord
with the taxes he proposes they would
not be serving their constituencies un-
less they so stated, but if they object
to the levies he has offered, let them
bring forward substitute proposals
that will produce revenue yield in
a like amount. They cannot afford
to criticize and then refuse to offer
constructive propositions in turn.
On the other hand, 1t seems to be the
consensus among Washington Observ-
ers that Mr.. Roose-
Bton1eS welt ought not to be
Hioh Court allowed to get away
with one declaration
which he made in submitting his
tax proposals to congress. He said
that the necessity for these new taxes
arose from the Supreme court decision
invalidating the processing taxes upon
which the Agricultural Adjustment ad-
ministration and its subsidies to agri-
culture was predicated. OF course.
that may be true at the moment, but,