Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-10-31
Roosevelt
Blamed for
d. 800
Union Riffs
Lewis Power in UNIV
Laid TO Government
BY WEsTBROOK PEGLER

BY wEsTBROOK PEGLER
THE patriotic uproar over the
Lewis strike in the so-called
captive mines of the steel COM
panies has completely obscured
the real issue, which has nothing
TO do with national defense and
existed even before Hitler re-
ceived the o. X. from Joseph
Stain to start the war.
President Roosevelt's position
in the fight is that of an evasivs
opportunist who is patrioteering
at the expense Of a funda-
mental principle.
The fact is that John L. Lewis
Is a dictator over a great mass
of workers, so empowered by
the policy OF the New Deal
which flouts the rights OF the
individual worker and the masses
of workers.
Under that policy Lewis has
been given power that no man
or group of private individuals
should be allowed to possess.
IN THE present case Lewis is
L not a public official and his
United Mine Workers Union is
not a government agency.
He is a private citizen who
rules despotically private as
ISOLATION which has enjoyed a
liberal political subsidy from the
government underline adHinis--
tration of the Wagner Act, the
more recent decisions OF the SUI
preme Court and the policy OF
the labor department and the
department Of justice toward
unions.
Unions are supposed TO be
voluntary associations and even
Frances Perkins and Mrs. Roose-
welt. within the last year, have
made reluctant admissions that
such associations, or unions,
should be conducted on the
voluntary, or open shop. basis.
Lewis is trying 10 compel men
to join his union who prefer not
to join and TO compel the gov
eminent TO compel the employ
ers TO compel these men to &C.
cept membership and pay dues.
or taxes, 10 private taxing
authority which is a political
power with ambitions 10 become
a political party and which does
not consult the members on the
disbursement of their money.
IT ISN'T Lewis money and he
Il has no moral nor political
right 10 use IL for political pur-
poses. but President Roosevelt
himself was a party 10 a -yiela--
ton Of the workers rights and
of morals when he permitted
Lewis TO contribute. whether as
a gift or as a loan 100000 out
of the mine workers treasury
TO one of his presidential cam
paign funds.
The President surely knows
enough about the practical real
tiles of the mine workers 10
have known at that time that
the men were not consulted and
he certainly must have been
aware that il even one miner
in the entire organization. per-
haps Republican. objected 10
this use of his own minute frac-
ton Of that $500, 900, the deal
was tainted.
Even If there had been no
war. and thus no national emer-
gency the Lewis rule of the
mine workers still would have
been wrong and the national
government would have been
guilty, and was guilty. of
wrong in permitting Lewis 10
operate his union as he does.
EVILS is not the only profess
~ sional unioneer and poll
tician Of dictatorial method
whose power has been enhanced
under this government. but he
is probably the boldest outside
the ranks of the Communist.
who crerly-ant- fortunately.
now find a motive TO help arm
the country against Moscow's
enemy.
Practically all of the big boss
unioneers enjoy, potentially, the
same powers that Lewis is now
employing against the national
security in the interests of his
own political ambition and il is
the fault of President Roosevelt,
first, and of the subordinate
New Dealers having 10 do with
union affairs, miScalled labor"
relations, that sound remedial
laws have not been passed which
would have guaranteed the
workers right not 10 unionize.
When this right is established
by law. and several such laws
have been proposed and stopped
by the administration. there will
be no strikes either in war in
dustries or in tho legitimate
works Of peaceful commerce for
the purpose Of compelling them
TO submit 10 the will of the
ruthless unionecr.
There is no question of tho