The Wilmington morning star., 1943-07-22
BY WESTBROOK PEGLER


NEW YORK-The rider in an appropriation
act by which Congress has tried to shake
loose from the payroll three political house
pets of the new deal may be bill of at
tander, as President Roosevelt has said, but
if Congress has erred in this matter, the
motives of those who voted were purely
patriotic This was protest. voiced in ex-
asperation against the persistent sympathy
of the new deal for communists and fellow
travellers, who have burroWed into the very
walls of government in Washington and in
the bureaus out through the country.
1t was also a general rebuke to the defiant
impudence of many men and women who
have fatty expressed or convnclngly 1ndl-
Gated their hatred of the economic system,
meaning capitalism, on which the American
government is based and the only system
under which those freedoms can exist which
we are supposed to be presenting, with our
compliments to all the other peoples of the
world with the notable exception of our Rus
sian comrades in arms, who have other pref
erences.
The Dies committee has been blackguardec
and derided for years. 1t is true that It's
methods under Martin Dies have been irregu
lar, unconventional and unpleasant approach
ing at times the cynicism of that memorable
exploit of Hugo Black by which that vicarious
nightrider established his moral and civic
fitness for a place on the Supreme Court
according to new deal standards.
Nevertheless Dies has put the finger on
many a covert mutineer on our ship of state
and that fact, more than his methods, has
been the cause of the uproar against him.
Dies has accumulated an enormous file OF
information on thousands of individuals, IN
cludng Nazis, Fascist sand bigots OF one
kind and another but including also many
friends and political proteges OF the new deal
who have identified themselves with COM
munist organizations. In the course OF his
inquiries he has had very little cooperation
from the departments and bureaus OF the
government and, at one stage of the game,
was openly opposed by Mrs. Roosevelt Whc
took it upon herself to rebuke this committee
of Congress by entertaining some OF the lndl-
viduals under investigation at lunch IN the
White House.
Now Congress is not pro-communlSt. Even
the majority of the new dealers are just as
hostile to communists as to the Nazis OF the
late anti-Amercan bund and they have been
imposed upon for years by the executive
branch of the government in its partialty tc
individuals including some who answer all
the specifications and lack only the pohucal
label. The men who make up the two houses
of Congress are not fools and, like the news
papermen and others who have learned their
way around Washington, they know what goes
on They have seen special pets OF the new
deal party bounce from bureau to bureau and,
finally, they just got good and sore and hopped
on three individuals whom they have 1dentl-
fled, rightly or wrongly, but to their own
strong conviction as felloWtravelers.
In attacking this action as usurpation of
the executive funcion the President may be
legally correct but, remembering h own
,s1rpation Of the legislative function IN the
case of the salary limitation within the last
year. it is easier to believe that the erect
is more offensive to him than the quality OF
the act. The effect is to publlc1ze TO the
people the strong affection of the new deal
| for people who see little good in and less
hone for the preservation of the form OF gov
ernrnent which was intrusted to Mr.. Roose-
velt in 1882 and who have tried to junk or
alter it and with considerable success to date.
Mr. Roosevelt may be able to keep on the
payrols the three relatively unimportant and
harmless individuals who were singled out
for the special attention Of Congress but the
country of course will wonder why he is
so devoted to them when he has a choice
from so many Americans whose ideas are
strictly orthodox and whose associations are
| above suspicion.
| 7 would agree with those who say that COM
munism is not dangerous in the United States
if the communists had to stand alone. But
| in apprasing communism as menace 1t
must be kept in mind that they do not stand
alone but have always received important
aid and comfort from the new deal admin
istration. That makes great difference as
Congress knows, and even among those rep
resentatives and senators who regard Martin
Dies as an unintelligent and clumsy country
boy as many of them do, there are not many
who doubt the evidence which he has ac-
cumulated.
If this action does amount to a bill of at
tainder which President Roosevelt defined as
legislative edict of punishment without legal
proceedings, it should be rescinded for the
peace of mind Of the country the desired
effect having been obtained anyway.
But while in that mood, Congress should
repeal also those other bills of attainder by
which the owners of property may lose pos
session OF the government if only some in
dlvldual kicks up row amounting to labor
dispute. Those owners are punished and for
the otfense OF another at that by legislative
eolc. and without legal proceedings, aren't