The Washington times., 1937-11-22
ORATORS BOIL,
BUT THAT'S ALL
FROM CONGRESS-
Nothing to Be Expected,
Say Writers
BY JOHN O'DONNELL AND
DORIS FLEESON

Congress Of the United States in
this Thanksgiving period as the
worthy lawmakers swing into the
second week of their special
session.
Not on the schedule, but certain
to happen-and entirely divorced
from the reasons which sum-
moned Congress to Washington
are these expected developments:
l. A sustained senatorial blah
in the anti-lynching bill filibuster.
The boys from Dixie checked up
on their larynxes over the Sab
bath and agreed they were in good
voice at least for all day Monday
and possibly into Tuesday, when
the crop-control bill may be ready.
When the farm legislation reaches
the floor, the filihuster will auto
matically dissolve, only to squirt
into life again when farm legiSla-
ton is voted and anti-lynching
again takes its place.
WILL DEMAND ISOLATION
2. Loud and breast.beating an.
nouncements that the New Deal
foreign policy is getting us into
war. There will be more Scorn
heaped on the futile Brussels
nine.power conference. Anti.
Administration Senators will drag
out F. D. RS Chicago declaration,
America actively engages in a
search for peace" and demand a
return to complete isolation.
3. And the very fact that F. D.
r. has decided to slip away to
Warm Springs for a holiday and
then spend 10 days fishing off
Florida, while Congress sweats and
wrangles, will be tossed against
the sounding boards of Capitol
Hill with the implied complaint
that Congress can't be expected to
get anything done if Papa Roose.'
welt isn't down on Pennsylvania
Avenue to listen to problems-or
at least answer the telephone.
TAX REFORM HOPELESS
But so far as actual accomplish
ment is concerned, on the specific
chores for which the 435 Repre-
sentatiVes and 96 Senators were
paid 20 cents a mile to come from
their homes to Washington,
nothing is seriously expected.
Tax reform, by restating and
modifying levies on capital gains
and undistributed corporation sur
pluses, is apparently hopeless in
this special session. This involved
subject, despite the prevalent be
good-to-business" plea on Capitol
Hill, cannot reach a final vote be-
fore midwinter except by a
miracle.
The wages and hours bill Is still
locked up tightly in the House
Rules Committee. where 1t was
placed on ice last August.
The patronage boys are ready
to fight and crate Unfortunately
against the Roosevelt plea for re.
organizing the executive branch Of
the Government along lines Of big
business efficiency.
UTILITY LOBBY LABORS
And the public utility lobby, less
brazen but no less effective than
1t was two or three years ago,
has been laboring with pious zeal
to ditch the New Deal proposal for
regional planning-the creation Of
the seven Little Twas"
This leaves only farm legislation
in the immediate offing, and the
pressure of farm groups and Ad-
miniStration leaders has in this
case been forceful enough to get
action. 1t was even successful in
making the farm committee in
both houses pass up some Wash.
ington cocktail parties today and
do some Sunday brain work. The
Senate group hoped to have its
proposals in shape by Tuesday,
the House group by Wednesday
Out Of the fury Of committee
wrangles, still in savage progress,
the measures are expected to pro
vide for rigid production and
marketing restrictions, which, In
effect at least, will be compulsory
if not by legislative expression
CThiS as a conciliatory gesture to
the Old Guard on the Supreme
Court and men10Ii - NJ AAA