Evening star., 1943-10-27

national com David Lawrence.
mitments or obligations on the part
OF this country, tWo-thirds vote
* necessary for ratification.
While the Senate is debating this
week the problems of war and peace
and declaring that it cannot know
what the commitments of the peace
era are likely to be, valuable time
is being used that could be devoted
to the passage of a constitutional
amendment making necessary a
majority vote of both houses to
ratify peace treaty.
The idea of action by the Senate
alone is relic Of the days when
the Upper House was chosen by the
State Legislatures. Now, however,
with popular election of United
States Senators, there is no reason
why the House of Representatives
should not be given a voice in the
making Of treaty.
fT0pOSal is NOT New.
The proposal is not new. 1t has
been advanced again and again by
different sponsors at varying in
tervals in our history.
The opportunity of a minority to
defeat and Illustrate the foreign pol
lev actually desired by a majority
of the elected representatives of the
American people, including the
President Of the United States, is
so palpahle that it can affect the
destinies of the Nation in a very
vital sense. Thus the isolationist
policy followed by America after the
World War was imposed by the votes
OF minority who prevented the
collaboration of the United States
In the League of Nations.
Senator OMahoney of Wyoming,
Democrat, one of the progressive
members of the Upper House. de-
clared recently in public address
that only by malign and perversc
trick Of fate was an amendment
offered by James Madison in the
constitutional convention excepting
treaties of peace from the two
thirds rule. although it had been
adopted without objection on Sep
tember 7, 1887, eliminated the next
day"
Mr.. O'Mahoney says it was the
two-thirds rule which, under Presi-
cent Wilson, "defeated the over
Whelming majority of the people of
America by preventing our adher-
ence to the League Of Nations" and
1t was the two-thirds rule which,
in 1885, prevented our becoming a
party to the World Court"
The Wyoming Senator points out
that President Cleveland and Taft
and Theodore Roosevelt were en-
barassed by the tWo-thirGS rule in
failing to get treaties ratified. The
Covenant of the League o. Nations
was approved by the Senate by a
vote of 40 to 50, seven votes short
Of the necessary tWo-thirds. The
World Court, supported by 50 Sen-
ntors against 36, failed by seven
votes to get the necessary two
thirds vote in the Senate.
Victory of II Senators.
The rejection of the League Of
Nations" said Mr.. OMahoney, was
the victory of II Senators over 78.
These II concentrated their efforts
upon seducing the Republican ma
jority to attach reservations which
they fondly hoped would kill the
treaty, and then, when the reserva-
tions had been attached, they voted
solidly against their handiwork.
Surely it cannot now be said
that anything was gained by the
defeat of the League Covenant
The argument against it was tnat
the United States should isolate
itself. that it could stay at peace
though all the rest of the world
were engulfed in the flames of var
We know now that that was i'm
possible
i undertake to say that l0,500000
young men of America are under
arms today fighting in a global war
on every continent and on every
sea because this rule has prevented
America from taking the position
Of world leadership which destiny
had thrust upon it. Because of the
rule we we're unable to achieve
peace by peaceful means and we
have ben driven to war.
The abolition OF the two-thirds
rule would reopen the door to peace
and would re-establish a desirable
mutual confidence between the ex-
ecutive and the Senate in the con-
duct of our foreign affairs"
The people Of Great Britain and
Canada and other democracies have
no such obstacle. They can act by
majority vote of their respective
parliaments in making treaties. The
submission of constitutional
amendment now is of the utmost
importance to making of treaty
that can assure the maintenance OF
peace in the era of delicate inter-
national relations that lies ahead.
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