The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1939-08-10
CAPITOL!
8~WeZN
Neutrality Postponed
By COneresSn,anKnutsOn

President Roosevelt did an I'M
usual thing last week when he In
yited the Republican leaders in the
Senate to meet at the White House
with himself and a few Democratic
leaders to discuss the possibility OF
securing neutrality legislation in
this session. Vice-President Car
ner and Secretary Hull also attend
ed the conference.
From all l can learn the White
House get-together was not alto
gether harmonious. Both the Ma
lority and Minority leaders frankly
told Mr.. Roosevelt that he could
not hope to get action at this time
on a neutrality bill that would give
him the power to favor certain bel
ligerent nations at the expense OF
other belligerents. Leader McNary
and Senator Borah pointedly told
him that in their opinion what he
asked for would inevitably drag us
into the next war. Vice-President
Garner frankly informed the Presi-
dent that he did not have enough
votes to- put it over, to which the
President replied that, the respon-
sibility for not enacting neutrality
legislation would have to rest on
the Senate" "Of course the respon-
sibility is on the Senate" Borah is
quoted as having replied where
else could it rest? 1t is perfectly
proper that it should be there. We
are not operating under Hitler"
The President announced that he
will call a special session OF Con-
gress to consider neutrality legis-
lation in the event a crisis should
arise in Europe or Asia. That is as
it should be. Under the Constitu-
tiCn the Congress is charged with
formulating our foreign policy. 1t
is the Presidents duty to carry that
policy into effect. If a crisis arises
Congress should be in session.
Colleagues inform me that they
received more letters from cCnsti-
tuents with reference to the neu-
trality question than on any mea-
sure that has been before Congress
in the past two years. On the other
hand, 1 received very few letters,
no doubt due to the fact that l
have fully explained my position en-
neutrality in my weekly letters and
the folks back home knew exactly
where I stood.
The Misunderstanding Bill
Ere this letter appears in print
the Senate will probably have dis
posed of the Presidents 2 billion
800 million dollar lending program.
LAS reported by the committee the
amount was reduced to 2 billion
400 million dollars. Provision has
been written into the bill to pro-
hibit government competition with
private business. The measure pro-
VldeS that none of the money shall
be used for building, establishing
any business or enterprise which is
or will be in substantial COMPETE
ton with any existing private en-
terprise. Loans for hospitals are
exempted. The measure will prob
ably have hard Shedding in the
House where the members are
rapidly becoming economy minded.
The Silver SellOut
On the monetary issue the Presi-
dent won a debatable victory. Ad.
ministration leaders in the Senate
finally succeeded in securing an.
proval of the conference report, re-
storing his power to devalue the
dollar to so per cent of its pre-new
deal gold content for another two
years, and continued the stabiliza-
ton fund.
But the entire controversy was
vitiated by a pitiable surrender
first Of one side and then the other
to the demands Of the silver bloc
which enabled that bloc to obtain q
legal price Of II cents an ounce
for domesticated silver, at a time
when the commodity brings only
about half that amount in the
world market.
This sellcut to the silverites has