The Daily Alaska empire. [volume] (Juneau, Alaska) 1926-1964, 1944-07-27
They Can't Be Wrong
Washington POST

Popular demands for modernization of Congress
must be haywire according to Representative Clarence
Cannon they have been approved by the
men and women who in Congress. From the
First Congress down to the present session. he says,
e743 legislators have considered proposals for stream
lining Congress and rejected them OF course 9743
congressman, he concluded can't be wrong. News
paper men and members of Congress assembled to
discuss reform of that body's procedure the other
night laughed this statement 1t had the ring OF an
ironic joke the speaker left doubt he was in
dead earnest. His fantastic statement must be at
tributed to recklessness rather than jest
In flat contradiction of this pretense that Congress
is unanimously opposed to modernizatlon OF It's
machinery four of the eight legislators on the discus
sion panel came out positively in favor of reform
proposals fifth was for limited changes Only three
assumed that Congress meet its obligations in the
postwar with the present duplication OF commtte'
work. the lack of expert assistance and pauclty OF
leadership Mr. Cannon neglected also to inform MS
listeners when members of the House have ever had
real opportunity to pass Judgment upon that bodys
obsolete rules 1t is true of course that many pro-
posals bring the rules into line with modern leg
slative practice have been introduced But they nave
been bottled up in the Rules Committee and the rank
and file have had opportunity to vote for or against
them 1t should be obvious to the reactonary chair
man of the House Appropriations Committee that
denial of the right to vote on proposed reforms is
scarcely equivalent to their unanimous rejection.
The most cogent argument against modernizing
Congress
that the movement to reduce the number OF COM
ttees and strengthen congressional leadership is
part parcel of the modern passion for centrazed
management" The best way to fight this centraliza-
ton mania says is to preserve decentralization IN
Congress 1t to that the reverse is true One
reason why power is transferred SO freely to the
executive branch is because Congress functions SO
cumsily National policy making powers tend to slip
through its fingers because policy can be formulated
so much more readily by executive action In our
opinion Congress must put aside the trlValties IN
which it now becomes entangled and enhance It's
ability to legisate promptly and effectively II our
system is to survive as anything more
than an empty symbol of democracy. Not even Con-
gess can control centralized strength in the executive
branch by decentralized weakness in its own
On the whole we surmise that the majority OF
the editors and legislators left this unique discussion
with renewed determination to work for more ef-
ficient Congress The significant fact is that the
movement now has powerful support in the ranks OF
Congress itself In the end the persuasive arguments
of men like Senators Maloney and LaFoette, Con-
gressnen Monroney, Dirksen, Kefauver and others
may be expected to make a deep impression on tner
colleagues who are alert to the problems OF twen-
tieth century democracy.