The Wilmington morning star., 1940-09-13
In Washington

WASHINGTON - Because it
hasn't been able to decide whether
the antitrust laws help Or hinder
it's defense program, the admins
tration has finally managed to get
right on top Of a box of political
dynamite.
1t got there by letting the wires
between the defense commission
and the antitrust division get
snarled up over the huge oil mono
poly lawsuit which the head of the
antitrust division, Thurman Ar
mold, drew up.
Arnold was prepared to file the
suit on July Is. AS a matter OF
routine, he sent it over to the de-
tense commission for clearance be-
fore filing; back came a memor-
andum saying the commission
feared national defense might be
jeopardized if the suit were filed,
and asking that it be held up. It
has been held up eve since.
Various things make the situa-
ton politically dangerous.
For one thing, independent oil
men are showering in their pro
tests. So, for that matter, are
members of Congress-50 con
gressmen and % senators, to date,
have complained over the delay.
For another thing, the fact thai
the defense commission has
number of big oil men serving as
advisers might provide someone
with a convenient handle for a pc
litical attack on the administration.
INVESTIGATION
URGED
In addition to all this, m OF the
best New Dealers in either House
Congressman John Coffee of Wash.
ington-has formally moved for a
congressional Investigation into the
whole business.
1T comes with mighty poor
grace for the administration tc
protect the biggest monopoly in
America, at a time when it is
about to draft men into the army
at $50 a month";" says Coffee. Its
time. this thing was fought
through. How a we pretend to
be enforcing free competition and
protecting the little fellow if, when
we move against a huge mono
poly, this cry of national defense
is used as a screen"
Coffee's resolution, now awaiting
action in the rules committee,
would provide for a committee OF
five to discover whether the anti
trust laws have been fully enforced
in connection with the oil indus
try, and also whether there has
been any interference with such
enforcement, and if so, who has
been responsible.
Arnold's lawsuit vas to h a v e
been directed against the % major
oil companies of the United States.
Its aims, as Arnold outlined them,
were to prevent price fixing, to re.
store unrestricted competition
among retail oil dealers, and to
provide a free market for the in.
dependent refiners and for n e W
enterprises in the industry.
Plan was to accomplish this by
forcing the big companies to divest
themselves of pipe lines, tankers
and marketing facilities.
Defense commission argument is
that this attack on pipe lines, would
be a tough thing to launch at a
time when the country needs even
more pipe lines than it has, as a
defense measure; Arnold's is that
the present situation keeps the in
dependent from operating except
in the immediate vicinity of his
production field.
A full-dress row over this oil
litigation would be bad political
medicine, in the middle of a presi-
dental campaign, especially since
the accusation would be made that
the defense commissions oil ad.
visers had thrown a wrench into
the proceedings. That really
doesn't seem to be. the case. The
defense commissioner who held the
SUN up was Leon Henderson, OF
tho original brain trust. A