Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1937-04-15

ton OF which even Mr.. Roosevelt
himself has thus far declined to rec
ognize.
Up to few weeks ago hardly any
lawyer of consequence who had fol-
lowed Supreme Court decisions would
have hesitated a moment to predict
that the court would invalidate the
Wagner act on the ground that pro
duction Is not commerce" and that
employer -employe relations are not
subject to Federal regulation.
But this was before John L. Lewis
gave a sensational demonstration Of
his power. This was before any ma
tional labor organization had sue
ceeded in paralyZing interstate COM
merce in major industry, and before
that same national organization had
begun to issue threats to tie up other
major industries as we'll.
Openly BoastfuI Now.
Prior to the time the Shutdown"
strike technique was developed, labor
leaders never ventured to stop inter-
state commerce and boast about it
openly. They avoided any such &C
Acknowledgement of purpose But to-
day Mr.. Lewis, with his dictatorship
over government, and particularly
with the influence of his organization
over White House policies, has &C
tually proved how interstate COM
merce can be stopped and how his
political power can keep the head Of
the Federal Government from daring
to speak out against his tactics.
So skillful is Mr. Lewis and so sue
cessfully has he unanswered White
House policy into passive acquiescence
that when Congress, pressed by public
opinion to denounce Shutdown"
strikes, drafts a resolution it is so
handled by the Presidents agents
In Congress as to spare Mr.. Roose-
welt the necessity of approving or
disappearing it. A concurrent" reso-
luton was the method chosen, be-
cause. unlike joint resolution, it
doesn't require presidential signature.
Saw Ominous Realities.
IN the face Of such power and in
duence exercised by a national labor
organization to tie up interstate COM
neroe the Supreme Court saw the
ominous realities. Whatever theoreti-
cal limitations 1t might have dis
cuSsed In the past in ruling that pro-
duction Is not commerce were Of
academic value compared to the
plain evidence that commerce itself
was actually being interrupted by
physical violence or threats of vio-
lence and that restraining orders of
a State court were proving futile. It
was a lesson in obstruction" to in
terstate commerce more realistic than
any precedent of words or theory.
The White House, incidentally,
would prefer to discuss other phases
of the latest decisions of the Supreme
Court. 1t is logically asserted by the
Presidents spokesman that the ST.
preme Court has done nothing which
atirmS the power of Congress to
enact a minimum wage law or q law
to fix maximum hours. Indeed, the
President is represented as somewhat
doubtful as to whether or not the
decision invalidating the Guffey act
last year has been overruled
No Overriding of Guffey Case.
A careful study of the latest de-
cision will reveal that there has been
no overriding Of the Guffey case.
In that instance scheme for regu-
lation OF wages and hours was pro-
mulgated by Federal statute, and
this was by virtually unanimous
court brushed aside as invalid. The
minority in that case did not defend
the labor provisions. Today the Su-
preme Court has limited itself in the
Wagner act cases to the simple oues-
ton Of compulsory negotiation and
collective bargaining. Nothing else
has been touched by the cases Just
decided. There is no Federal power
to regulate wages and hours. The
Federal power, according to the
court, extends to the right of Con-
gress to set up machinery to adjust
labor disputes.
For these reasons it is natural that
Mr.. Roosevelt, considering his point
OF view on the need for reorganiza-
ton Of the Supreme Court, will con-
tend that he has not yet obtained
what he wants. What he desires is
not simply five justices who will de-
eide things even partially in his d.
rection. but nine justices who will 20
the whole way-giving to Congress
which nowadays means the President.
the power to regulate hours and fix
wages in all industries engaged in
or affected by interstate commerce.
Prefers Short Cut.
The President wants the justices
TO write decisions which will amend
the Constitution. He prefers this as
. short cut to the supposedly round
about process by which amendments
have hitherto been written into the
Constitution, namely, by letting the
people vote on specific issues. He
has chosen to place his entire reliance
on judicial Interpretation as a means
Of changing the fundamental rules
OF constitutional law in America
And since he alone is to pick the new
justices, and since he controls a ma
jority Of the Senate, which has to
confirm his appointments, it may be
assumed that he will pick justices
whose attitude and views correspond
to his own, namely, that the Con-
stitution should be amended here
after by judicial Interpretation.
In other words, the oft-twisted
words OF Charles Evans Hughes, ut
tered 80 years ago. before he be-
came Supreme Court justice, name
", that the Constitution is what
the judges say it is" will have as a
SEQUEL now a new slogan ar motto !.