The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1937-10-28
tl[pII'j'ia2l94 IS5jjq1a(1k
National Topics Interpreted "a fLMA1R
by William Bruckart TTTETffHW
national PressB uild

itically limb from limb with con-
structive proposals to take the place
of those things he has done which
represent encouragement, deceit
and disaster to the country's eco
nomic life.
There will be no gain for the Re
publicans in 1888 elections if they at
tempt to ride two or three different
horses as they did in 1886. For ex-
ample, they cannot do as Candidate
Landon did, to wit, call for a bal
anced budget in one speech and ad-
vocate being Santa Claus in anoth-
er; they cannot blow hot and cold,
and, therefore, they must be either
conservative or radical.
1t seems to me the Republicans
can probably plan for an immediate
balancing of the national budget. In
that connection, they can with justi-
fication demand curtailment, if not
entire elimination, of many govern
mental functions inaugurated under
the New Deal. They can offer con-
structively a proposal to legislate
out of existence some 20 or 80 fed
eral agencies for which there never
has been and is not now any ex-
cuse for their existence.
AS a national policy, l think the
Republican party can very well de-
mand a revision of the Wagner Ia
Dor relations act-a law that has
proved its fallacy. There is no doubt
that labor needs protection and
probably the federal government is
the unit which ought to guarantee
that protection. But labor has re-
sponsibilities and labor must be
made to accept those responsible
ties. One faction of labor-the
American Federation of Labor-rec-
ognizes that the labor relations act
as now written promises, even en-
courages, bias on the part of the
national labor relations board.
Another question that is crying
for attention is the huge national
debt, now at $751;
National OOO,OOO,OOO, til e
Debt highest in history.
That debt must be
reorganized and placed on basis
that will permit gradual liquida-
ton of it. The Roosevelt admins
tration has done nothing regard
ing the debt except to build it higher
and higher.
If the Republican party wants to
do a constructive job it ought to
set to work to examine all of the
statutes enacted by congress in the
last ten or twelve years and espe-
cially those enacted in the haste of
the emergency with a view to re-
pealing of many of them. Some
can and should be rewritten to make
them workable. Those statutes
placed on the books by the Roose-
welt administration constitute out
standing evidence of the lack of
opposition. We all know many of
those bills were written in execu-
tive departments and sent to con-
gress with instructions to pass them
unchanged. Bad legislation has re-
suited many times and a checkup
surely is indicated.
AS regards legislation now on the
statute books, it seems to me we
will never have sound prosperity un-
til certain laws that increase pro-
duction costs are eliminated. mean
by this that there are numerous
laws which have the effect of widen
ing the spread between the price of
the raw materials and the price of
the manufactured products. Legis-
lation of this kind is bound to force
down the prices paid to the pro-
ducers and, in my opinion, the re-
suits are beginning to be reflected
on products of the farm.
Probably the most delicate ques-
ton with which the Republicans are
confronted relates to wages and
hours of labor. Business interests
have been shortsighted. Too many
times employers have overworked
their employees and have shown but
little consideration for the rights of
labor. The result is that labor is
demanding consideration in the
shape of protection at the hands of
its national government and the Re-
publicans, whether they desire to
or not, must take stand.
Among other principles upon
which l think the Republicans as
the conservative
Then, There's party surely can
These agree is that there
=