Evening star., 1939-08-06
Growth Of Coalition
Against New Deal
Marked Session
Motives Were Mixed,
With Third Term High
In List of Issues
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
An embittered political prelude to
1910, seven months of spreading and
spectacularly successful rebellion
against the Roosevelt administration
such was the session of Congress
just ended.
It was, too, in large part, session
of legislative stagnation. In the
main, it found the administration
forces possessed of sufficient COM
mittee power to advance legislation.
On the other hand, it found that
when this legislation reached the
floor of the House and Senate, a
coalition of Republicans and insur-
gent Democrats was grimly waiting
with enough votes to cripple or,
more and more frequently toward
the close, kill the proposals outright.
Thus it was largely a stalemate, and,
for the President, session of frus-
tration.
In the light of six preceding years
of crushing Roosevelt majorities, the
growth of this victorious coalition
was the most notable development of
the session. Never did it have uni
fed organization. On the fringes,
some its members alternated be-
tween voting for and against the
administration. But it, nevertheless,
operated with relentless efficiency
when the roll was called.
Major Blow at Close.
Its outstanding triumph was that
at the end of the session it dealt a
major blow to the Roosevelt eco
nomic philosophy, by two successful
House votes which killed proposal
that in its original form called for
$3,860,000 900 of Federal loans for
assertedly self -liquidating projects.
In addition, it fought to standstill
the administrations proposal to re-
wise the Neutrality Act, surrounded
the dispensation of relief money
with highly restrictive requirements,
and cut the total of administration
requested relief appropriations.
The coalition consisted of three
elements: A Republican member
ship widely increased by the elec-
tions of 1888; Democratic group
which, wholly out of sympathy with
the administration, voted consist
emily against it, and another group
of Democrats which tended increas-
ingly to position of outright oppo-
sition.
Obviously, the motives that lay
behind individual votes were mixed
For some, the objective was to stop
Roosevelt" and make certain there
would be no third term. With others,
this was combined with growing
repugnance toward administration
legislation, especially the spending
bills.
Widening Breach in Party.
But the roots Of the revolt hardly
lay in the specific legislation that
came before Congress. Instead, they
tunneled back through the last two
or three years and the widening
breach in the Democratic party.
Anti administration Democrats
came to Washington last January
determined to prevent a third term
for the President, and, beyond that,
to wrest from him the power to name
next years Democratic nominee.
Thus the session, In its political
aspects, became a continuation Of
the battle that began several years
ago between the New Dealers and
their Democratic foes for control
of the party.
The revolt was directed princi-
pally at the administration fiscal
policies, but as the session ended it
was eating away at such administra-
ton measures as the Wagner Labor
Relations Act and the wage-hour
law. Extensive studies were made
In both instances, but the critics of
the two acts acknowledged they
lacked the power to amend them at
this session, and put off until next
year battle over these laws. How
ever, in the House, where the revolt
was most marked, a special commit
tee investigation of the activities of
the National Labor Relations Board
was ordered.
Reorganization Powers.
Despite the strength of the Goa
lftion, the sessions record on the ad-
ministration side was hardly barren.
Mr.. Roosevelt received, in limited
form, power to reorganize the ex-
ecutive branch of the Government.
Congress backed him enthusiastic
cally on his proposals for gigantic
rearmament program, gave him more
funds than he asked for his farm
program and confirmed his major
appointments.
And. too, while the outstanding
event was the rejection of the lend
ing program, the session produced,
paradoxically, history's highest
peacetime appropriations figure
running above $13000,0O0,000 This
was two billions more than last
year. The national defense program
and farm items voted by the Senate
over the Presidents protest that
they should not be allowed without
new taxes, accounted for most of
the increase
In the coalitions endeavor to pre-
vent third term, cheering victory
came to it, and especially to the anti
administration Democrats fighting
for party control, in the passage of
the Hatch bill banning political ac-
tivity by all Federal employees except
few right at the top.
The session ended as it began, with
most minds on 1910. Republican
members. who had become for the
first time since the New Deal began
a force in the legislative process,
were jubilant at their accomplish
ments and future prospects. The
Democratic breach was wider and
the administration foes had obvi-
ously gained powerful recruits.
Roosevelt supporters were predict