The Waterbury Democrat., 1937-07-24
BY RODNEY BUTCHER Democrat Washington
 Correspondent

BY RODNEY BUTCHER
 Democrat Washington
 Correspondent
 Washington, July 24-Balances of power in America have been shift ed around great deal in the last four years.
 Congress has delegated a great deal of its power to Roosevelt and will delegate more. Yet Congress has more legislative power than ever, because recent Supreme Court decisions have broadened its jurisdiction. At present, how ever, Congress is divided as to the extent to which the President and his power should be curbed, if any.
 The Supreme Court indulged in a confident outburst of power to veto New Deal legislation, but lately has been as meek as a shorn lamb, apparently for no bet ter reason than that Roosevelt and his followers threatened to render it impotent. The PreSi- dent still seeks additional power to change the complexion of the court.
 Ups and Downs
 The economic royalists" and less puissant business men, 8 group which once had large vested interests in the Republican Party, the White House, Congress, the Supreme Court and big-state governments, apparently lost fur ther gobs of power when they proved they couldn't "buy" the last election. The New Deal sel- dom if ever consults them any more and they howl to heaven as they hear of new plots against their pocketbooks. But the New Deal may be hamstrung by Con- gress.
 Labor, kicked around, exploited and, in many cases, starved for a long time, has achieved much new power through its own organiza- tion effort, through political &C., ton which has given it influence with public officials, and through an alliance with a New Deal which firmly believes in strong labor 
 c. I. O. labor has claimed the power to occupy plants in sitdown strikes to achieve certain objec- tives, and the power by mass to keep non-strikers in or out of plants by threatened or actual violence.
 It has won great victories in steel, automobiles and elsewhere. But hard-boiled old-time union- busters of the Girdler- Grace type swear they'll never sign a union contract. And the federal and in- dustrial-stae governments have proved they'll go against such em- ployers and help labor-up to certain point.
 Public" Divided
 Farmers, who went through hell as a class, now have power to de- mand and get federal subsidies and, through their organizations, to tell the New Deal and Con- gress just what laws they want. Even the needy unemployed have theoretically won the con- cession that they're no required to starve.
 The dear old public-whatever that may be-is confused and di- vided about all this, as usual. It vii be able to express itself at the polls next year and again in 194O. Roosevelt plans to make himself and his policies an issue both times)
 It has the satisfaction of know ing that the contestants for power tend to counterbalance each other, and that labors recent ran- page has been somewhat checked.
 AS consumers" the public" has small cause for rejoicing and will have even less reason to cheer unless 1t is able to organize effec- lively on a consumer basis.
 Balance Sought
 The idea that government and law are an impartial arbiter be- tween conflicting interests in so- ciety is nice but phoney. They are balancing factor which reacts to pressures.
 Justice is surer when conflicting interests are more or less evenly matched. Industry and labor-or so New Deal theory runs-should be on even terms to strike a fair bargain. So labor must get cor ner on labor power.
 But this becomes dangerous If the state is not prepared to step in and preserve equilibrium. It's the function of presidents and governors, If not courts, to serve as umpires.
 Labor Political Influence
 Roosevelt needs and wants strong labor movement because that is in part of the progressive tradition, because 1t will aid and hel carry out the New Deal pur- chasing power prosperity theory, and because its a political neces- sity for him.
 Labor was slowly getting its own legislation before Roosevelt appeared, but he helped get 1t the Wagner act, has helped it get strike settlements and now prom ises a wage-hour law.
 Labor helped elect Governors Earle of Pennsylvania, Townsend of Indiana, Horner of Illinois Burphy of Michigan, Lehman of New York and particularly Davey of Ohio. Murphy helped 0. I. O.