Evening star., 1937-05-02
FILIBUSTER ON COURT
HELD QUITE POSSIBLE
Change in Length of Sessions Does Not
Preclude Talking of Proposal
to Death.

proposal have come from Democrats
This preponderance of Democrats
in leadership of the opposition has
had special value: the spectacle Of
important Democratic leaders oppos-
Ing measure originated by Demo-
cratic President was convincing to
the public.
But the condition had a weakness
A Democrat, making a speech against
the Presidents court measure, COM
monty began by saying that he re-
garded Mr.. Roosevelt as a very great
President, as indeed the greatest since
Andrew Jackson, that he felt Mr..
Roosevelt's services to the country
to be OF the greatest possible value;
that because President Roosevelt was
so great and good man, it was
pleasure to support him in every
thing-except this one detail, the
court measure. And so an and so on.
Now that sort of speech doesn't stir
the public to fighting frenzy. The
public cannot understand how
President who is great and good can
propose a measure that is vast and
evil. Democratic speeches against the
court proposal could not stir UP the
sort Of fight that, for example, arose
against President Wilson's League OF
Nations. Only Republican speeches
could do that-speeches which would
say that the court proposal was wicked.
and that only wicked President could
propose it.
No Real Emotion Ignited.
I do not know if it is now too late
for the Republicans to take the lead
ershlp in the fight against the court
measure. But I am confident that
Democratic leadership cannot ignite
any real fighting public emotion
against Mr.. Roosevelt's court proposal.
After discussion of Mr.. Roosevelt's
court proposal had been under way
some eight weeks, the object of that
proposal the Supreme Court itself,
did striking thing 1t reversed itself
on two important points. Having
previously held minimum wage laws
unconstitutional, it now held one con-
hsAsbeio'AtA pllA III ~ SUdteu
frankly that it was reversing itself.
And having previously held that Con-
gress can legislate very little on labor
conditions within a State. the court
now held tina Congress can legislate
very broadly on labor conditions, as
expressed in the Wagner labor re-
lationS act.
About the merit of these decisions
by the court, nothing needs to be
said here The question here is
whether the courts reversal of itself
had any effect on the prospects of
Mr.. Roosevelts proposal to change
the court
Immediately after the courts de-
clSlons, opponents of the Presidents
measure said the court had now proved
it was liberal, and that there now re-
malned no material reason why Mr.
Roosevelt should wish to change the
court. But advocates of the Presi-
dents measure said that the courts
decisions were An admission that Mr.
Roosevelt's early complaints against
the court had been we'll based: that
Mr.. Roosevelt was now justified.
Court May Be Undermined.
In terms of effect on the public
mind, with respect to Mr.. Roosevelt's s
attack on the court, I think the court 5
reversal of itself undermined the court
little. The public could not possibly
see the legal aspect of what the court
now did. nor the technical reasons.
The public only saw the headlines
which said that the court had reversed
ltself-1hat the court had now taken
some positions which Mr.. Roosevelt
had said the court ought to take.
Previously the public had assumed
there was a fight, a battle, with the
court on one side. the President on
the other. If such battle were Wis
ualized, and il the drama of battle
were maintained long enough, the
public might have become worked up
"a good deal OF it, of course, on the
side OF the court. But now apparently
there was no real battle, apparently
the court to some degree had gone
over on the Presidents side. Those
reversing decisions of the court NAV
have been the greatest of statesman
ship; but for the purpose of working
up popular emotion on the side of
the court, they did not help. The
work of the court, expressed in its
decisions, is austere law; the fight
to change the court is politics. Be-
cause the court could do nothing
political because it had to act ac-
cording to law and conscience, it was
unable to avoid damaging itself with
respect to the political fight.