Montana labor news., 1937-03-25
The Washington Scene
By HENRY ION
Federated Press

thlhg is gong TO happen to the Su-
preme Court if the cards fall the
way they are now stacked. Just
what that something is does not yet
appear but action will rapidly ma
terialize when the court throws out
the Wagner labor relations act.
Antagonist to the court was made
plain as soon as Congress convened.
Even old hardshells such as Joe Rob
inson, floor leader in the Senate,
permitted himself to be harried into
a declaration in favor of altering our
judicial process to some degree.
The hue and cry became louder as
Sen. Ashurst, chairman of the power
Senate judicial committee, took up
the cudgels. In the House numer-
Gus persons asked for the privilege
of ripping from the court the auto
cratic cloak in which it has clothed
itself.
Now it is learned President Roose-
welt will hold a conference on the
problem of what's to be done with
the Supreme Court in which mem
bers of the Attorney Generals office
as well as legislators will participate.
Date of the conference has not yet
been set but presumably it will be
called as soon as the White House
satisfies itself that responses to its
recent trial balloons indicate that the
way is clear.
AS yet, however, there is nothing
to indicate that any fundamental
change will be sought in the judi
cial process which permits industry
to hide behind the skirts of legality.
The whole federal hierarchy OF
Judges, maintaining their positions
and salaries for life, during good
behavior" constitutes as great an
obstacle in the path of labor as the
Supreme Court.
There have been some suggestions
regarding the problem of federal dis
trict and circuit court judges but
they have come mostly from sources
outside the group in power. None
of those in the verbal firing line
against the Supreme Court have yet
ventured to aim their words at the
thousands of federal judges who en-
join the governments power pro-
gram in the Tennessee Valley, or
who uphold criminal s%yndicalism
laws, or who issue writs allowing
strikebound companies to move
property and then fine strikers for
Contempt" when they picket to pre-
vent such removal, or who perform
the thousand one other acts which
enable masters of industry to WELD
the power of government unre-
strained.
In short, whatever tinkering is
done with the Supreme Court it is
a surety that nothing will be done
to impair that vital bulwark of prop
erty against the rights of man that
is the federal judicial system. The
Supreme Court merely constitutes
the outposts of the enemy labor mus
storm and capture before it is tC
achieve complete expression of those
things it holds most dear.
Credit for the best quip of the
month goes to a local newspapermar
who sat in the gallery watching th'
House of Representatives hagglt
over the embargo on shipments t
Spain. AS the race between Con
gress and the Mar Cantabrico, thu
ship carrying the Cuse shipment
drew to a close and floor leader
made a desperate effort to get tn
resolution passed in time, wires from
New York were carefully watched
The boat got away in time ant
Congress recorded its first officia
act as n embargoing goods to
friendly nation. Well" remarke,
this newsman, Congress c~ertainl,
missed the boat"
Taking their cue from the strike
bound auto plants in which worker
have successfully sat down on tn
LOB, government employees EN-
ployed the same technique, witt
similar success, against the bras
hats.
Seats for the inaugural parade be
ing at a premium, government work
ers with offices fronting on the rout
prided themselves on having avail
able free and comfortable seats t
view the march. Officials, however
in the Resettlement Administrator
decided the seats were too good am
took unto themselves the privileg
of looking out those particular win
dows. The employees union prompt
|; ly threatened a sit-down strike tina
would last until the parade was ovel
The employees won.
) More than 1920, 000, 900 will b
, sDent nv the steel industry d11rin