Evening star., 1940-04-25

and the amend
m ents to the David Lawrence.
Wagner labor law-turn wholly on
the question of fair deal for the
citizen. But intimations are being
given publicly that the administra-
tion is trying to prevent action in
the Senate by persuading its sup
porterS to squelch the measures in
committee, or, failing this, the Presi-
dent is expected to veto the bills
Senator Barkley, majority leader,
says he wants the bill vetoed if
passed by the Senate.
The tactics being followed by the
administration supporters are trans
parently obstructive. Thus, if the
Walter-Logan bill as passed by the
House is not satisfactory, the normal
course would be to rewrite it in the
Senate and send the bill to con-
ference. But the administration,
while conceding that the objectives
OF the measure are sound, prefers
to kill the bill altogether.
More Than Year for Study"
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has been going on for several
months. The first contention has
been that time was needed for
further study and particularly to
wait for the report of a special COM
mittee appointed by the administra-
ton itself a year ago. But, as
Senator Hatch, Democrat, of New
Mexico, who has taken up the
cudgels in the Senate for the bill,
points out, the administration has
had more than a year in which to
"study" the bill.
Another barrage against the Wal
ter-Logan bill released lately is the
favorite old argument that nobody
understands it." Laymen who read
it are said to have difficulty in
knowing what it means. But legis-
lation designed to perfect court pro-
cedure, or, in this instance, the rules
of conduct of governmental commits
sions, are not written in words of
one syllable because lawmaking
traditionally must use technical
terms in describing procedural
problems.
Likewise if failure of laymen to
understand piece of proposed
legislation ever had been the
criterion, the New Deal would never
have been able to get the Public
Utiling Holding Company Act, the
Securities and Exchange Act or the
administrative provisions of it's
various tax laws through Congress.
An Amusing Argument.
The most amusing argument being
made against the Walter-Logan bill
is that it makes work for lawyers. "
Coming as this does from admins
tration supporters it has furnished
the only bit of comic relief in the
whole legislative session. For if
there is one administration which
has swelled the pockets of the law
yers, accountants and technical ex-
perts and thus increased the ex-
penSes of doing business in America,
it is the New Deal and its legis-
lation.
Take the case of the Securities
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requires registration prospectus
for every loan above 100000 The
general opinion among underwriters
is that anybody who can get by
with a cost of less than $4,000 for
lawyers fees and other expenses is
an exception to the rule. Ten per
cent is a big penalty or tribute to
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of capital and that's the reason why
more jobs aren't being created.
1t is curious, too, that the New
Dealers should be worrying about
lawyers making fees when it is
noticeable that many of those who
have been occupying posts in the
administration are regularly moving
into the various private companies
indirectly controlled by government
tai commissions and collecting big
fees for SO doing. A congressional
investigation of what has been hap
pening lately to the personnel of
the New Deal and their relation
ship to trusteeships and other lucra-
tive positions outside the Govern
ment, but related to practice before
governmental commissions and
bureaus, would be very Illuminating
Checks Bureaucratic Power.
The Walter-Logan bill is really
feared by the radicals here. 1t is
the first sign of fair deal that
has been written into a proposed
piece of legislation in long while
Naturally it will cramp the style OF
the bureaucrats and will provide a
check against arbitrary power. The
theory that a citizen should find
redress in court or that sensible
procedure should safeguard his
rights seems to have been forgotten
by certain New Deal agencies in
their zeal to exercise governmental
power in accordance with individual
caprice or economic bias.
The public can understand the
difference between a raw deal and
q fair deal. It's simple issue to
explain. The language of the Wal
ter-Logan bill itself will not be de-
bated on the stump, but only the
record of abuse and prejudice which
has cast such a disheartening blot
on the record of those who call
themselves liberals" Now there
is regrettably to be added some of
the old tactics of the reactionaries
In killing legislation in the Senate
committees rather than facing 1t
openly and amending it in the
public interest.
The Republican party can draw on
this simple issue many independent
voters to it's banner this year in
the congressional elections and de-
feat several Senators and Repre-
sentatives who will have gone on
record as opposed to fair deal and
a 1alr hearing for the citizen. Presi-
oehtial vetoes often have become
campaign issues before. It would
pe surprising if the administration
leaders misjudged the temper OF
pubic opinion after the 3-to-1 vote