Evening star., 1938-04-09
REORCAN|z|NC BILL
DEFEAT D|SRUPTS
REFORM EFFORTS
Temporary Abandonment of
Legislative Program
Is Forecast.
LEADERSHIP SHAKEN
BY HOUSE ACTION
Bankhead and Rayburn Fail in
Effort to Rally Forces for
Roosevelt.
BACKGROUND

BAG ChGROUNO-
Administration plan for rear
ranging Government agencies be-
came last minute issue OF bitter con-
trouersu ,cith passage gained in the
Senate by seren-Uote margin. Pres
sure against measure increased
greatly, hoUerer, and reached SUI
fcient force to bring House defeat
yesterday. President considered
measure essential reform.
Political implications became a par
amount subject of speculation today
as the administration recoiled from its
surprising defeat Yesterday when the
House recommitted the Government
reorganization bill by vote of 204
to 1856.
BY this narrow margin Of eight votes
the controversial measure not only be-
came dead issue for the present Con-
Eress, at least, but the prestige of the
White House leadership was shaken
to a degree comparable to last years
Senate defeat Of the Supreme Court
bill
That the issue was largely one of
party leadership, indicated throughout
recent weeks of Wrangling over the
measure. became concretely fact just
before the vote yesterday as Speaker
Bankhead and Majority Leader Ray
burn attempted to rally their forces
by the direct appeal of loyalty to the
President.
They succeeded only to the extent
OF holding l91 Democratic votes in line
supplemented by three Fdrmer-Labor-
ties and two ProgresSives.
Comprising the opposition in their
drive to reconnlit were l08 Democrats.
88 Republicans, Progressive6 and
Farmer -Laborites.
President Is Silent.
: No immediate reaction was forthcom-
Ing from President Roosevelt, but OBJ
servers predicted the defeat would
mean an end, temporarily at least, to
efforts for reform legislation. Some
Democrats said it virtually ended
chances for a wage-hour bill Further
speculation centered on the possible
effect on the primaries of the next few
months and the congressional elections
in November.
Reconlmittal Is believed by observers
at the Capitol to have increased
chances for adjournment of Congress
sometime in May, since passage OF the
measure would have meant revival CT
the battle later in both Houses after
the conferees had worked out a COM
promise between the House and Senate
plans.
Recommittal of the bill to the
Reorganization Committee, which had
spent two days Offering concessions
to stem the tide of opposition, came
as a dramatic climax shortly after Z
O'Clock last night.
The motion to recommit by Repre-
sentative Taber, Republican, of New
York. carried no qualifying instruc-
tions, and Majority Leader Rayburn
said as he left the floor he knew Of no
plans to bring the subject up again
at this session.
Arrayed against the House leaders
in the fight was the Democratic chair
man of the Rules Committee, Repre-
sentative O'Connor of New York, who
predicted from the time the bill passed
the Senate 10 days ago that it would
not become law at this session.
Denies Roosevelt is Issue.
While Majority Leader Rayburn was
making last-minute appeal to the
huge Democratic majority in the House
not to let the impression go out to the
country that they were voting a lack
of confidence in President Roosevelt,
Mr.. O'Connor was insisting that sup
port of the President was not the issue
His final warning was that if the bill
was not recommitted it would prove
disastrous to my party and to the
country, which love above my party"
Before the roll call started, however,
Speaker Bankhead left the rostrum
and STROBE down into the we'll of the
House with another appeal to, the
Democrats to stand together.
After declaring the subject had been
"jockeyed into a position where a vote
to recommit" would be construed as a
reputation of the Democratic party,
he urged his colleagues to SAY to that
man down yonder that you have con-
fidence in him.
He returned to the Speakers chair,
and, in tense silence the clerk began
(See REORGANIZATION, Page A-7J