Evening star., 1937-02-16
Text of Senator MintOn's Address

Following is the text of the address
last night by Senator Sherman Min
ton Of Indiana, delivered over Ma
tional Broadcasting Co. network dur
ing the National Radio Forum pro-
gram, arranged by The Evening Star:
In his inaugural address January
20, 1887, the President of the United
Nation ill-clad, ill-housed and ILL
nourished." He was talking about this
Nation, not some other
Congress passed legislation recog-
nizing the right of labor to collective
bargaining. Certain captains of in
dustry said that's not constitutional.
We won't obey it. Laborers struck
for the principle and sat down in the
factories to protect their jobs. A court
said this was unlawful. Result: EN-
ployer and employe are at war. A
strike is settled here only to have one
break out yonder.
Congress passed legislation to ex-
tend to farming, the largest industry
in the Nation, aid in its bankrupt and
PROSTATE condition, such as the Gov
ernment had been extending to manu-
featuring for rs years. only to dis
cover that it could help big business.
but under our Constitution, as viewed
by a majority of the Supreme Court
we couldn't help the farmer.
That there is maldistribution OF
wealth in the Nation is evident when
We recall that 3 per cent of the people
own 81 per cent of its wealth. When
legislation is proposed by Congress in
an effort to meet some of the problems
of poverty, bankruptcy on the farm,
capital and labor, and the redistribu-
ton of wealth. we find it cannot be
done Men and women who ask only
the right to live by their work in COM
fort, and enjoy some luxuries, find
themselves frustrated and their Gov
ernment powerless to help them. This
is the picture that confronts us today.
Power of Five Men.
In such a predicament, we survey
our governmental situation and find a
Congress and President freshly re-
turned from an election in which the
people expressed approval with what
had been done and gave their mandate
to GO ahead. The President and Con-
gress are willing to go ahead, but they
are unable to do so. Why? Because
the Supreme Court by decisions, more
often than not by divided court. says
Congress has not the power to do the
Al-;, t,oI; n dn
Under our system of government as
it now operates, five men on the Su-
preme Court have an absolute veto
power over the legislative policy OF the
peoples elected Representatives. Five
men on that court exercise more power
than ABS Congressman. 96 Senators
and the President, and that in a field
where they have no restraint except
that imposed by their own conscience.
II you were given an opportunity to
do so, would you vote to put all the
power Of government in the hands OF
five men? Would you do it where you
had nothing to do with the selection Of
any Of the men? Would you do 1t
where you have no power to remove
them? However, that is exactly what
has happened in this country Under
our constitutional development. This
tremendous power lies in the hands OF
five men, who constitute ma jorlty OF
the Supreme Court. This awful power
should not rest in the hands of any
five men. I go further and say that
no five men should want it.
Let us recall the nature Of our Gov
ernment and the scheme Of it. Our
Government is set up on system OF
checks and balances. Congress checks
the President, the President checks
the Congress with his veto, and the
people every two and four years check
both Congress and the President in
an election, but who checks the Su-
preme Court? They are not elected
by the people: they are nominated
by the President and confirmed by the
Senate. and when confirmed they hold
Office for life or during good behavior.
There isn't a check upon their power,
save their own conscience, and your
Constitution, in the words of Chief
Justice Hughes, means just what the
Judges say it is. They are Independent
of the people.
In discussing the power of the court
Thomas Jefferson once said: 1T
should be remembered as an axiom of
eternal truth in politics, that whatever
power in any government is inde-
pendent, is absolute also" Jefferson
to Roane, September 6, 1919, Vol. 7.
l34). Today the veto power Of the
Supreme Court Is absolute. If our
Government was set up on system
Of three coordinate branches, execu-
tive. legislative and judiciary, and it
was, then we are woefully out Of bal
Al1ce on the side OF the court.
A proposal is made to redress this
balance of power. The proposal en-
visages the whole of the Federal ju-
dietary, but shall discuss it in rela-
ton to the retirement of judges from
the Supreme Court only.
Here it Is: The Supreme Court Is
now composed of Chief Justice and
eight associates, nine members in all |
The President has proposed that Con-
gress enact legislation providing that |
where judges have been on the Su-
preme Court 10 years, and have
reached 10 years Of age, they may re-
tire. and If such judge or judges do |
not choose to retire. the President is
authorized to appoint an additional
Judge with the limitation that the
size Of the Supreme Court does not at
any time exceed IS. 1t may never
reach Is. If Judges 70 or over retire.