Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1944-08-09
The Rehabilitation Bills


which Congress must make in the
near future with regard to the
character and scope OF the Govern
ments participation in the shift
from a war to peace economy.
The change. of course, will not
come overnight. In all probability
we will be fighting Japan after the
defeat of Germany. but no one
doubts that the end of the war in
Europe will be followed almost i'm
mediately by profound economic
dislocations in this country. Some
adequate governmental machinery
must be ready to guide and cushion
the partial return of industry to
peacetima operation that will follow
the collapse of the Hitler regime.
At the moment, two rehabilitation
measures are pending in the Senate
the so-called conservative" bill
sponsored by Senator George and
the liberal bill. which has as its
principal sponsors Senators Truman.
Murray and Kilgore. The main diff
ferences between the measures, as
might be expected, follow the IA
mlllar lines OF divergence between
those who would give to the Federal
Government the broadcast freedom
and power in dealing with the Ma
tons economic problems and those
who distrust the overwhelming
reach Of Federal authority and who
believe that the handling of these
problems should be left to the States
wherever possible.
Senator George is supported bv
most Of his Southern colleagues and
also by an influential body Of
Republicans. Originally, Senator
George was sponsoring a bill dealing
only with unemployment insurance.
1t contemplated some liberalization
OF the existing law, but the admins
tratlon was left to the States and
the various State standards would
nave been controlling in the appro-
pirate Jurisdictions. Now, however
the Georgia Senator, possibly to
meet the challenge implicit in the
Murray-Klgore bill, is preparing a
substitute measure which is more
comprehensive, but which still NAV
properly be described as conserva-
tive and which accords full respect
to the theory of State responsibility.
The Murray-Kilgore bin has strong
New Deal and labor support. It
would project powerful Federal
bureaucracy at least two years into
the postwar period and it~sets ot,t q
programFof unemployment benefits
travel payments and vocational
training OUTLAWS which might well
run into many billions of dollars
In some respects it seems entirely
unreasonable. Under its provisions,
Tor instance, an unemployed worker
could receive maximum unemploy-
ment payment of $35 a week for two
years after the end of the war.
Critics of the bill say this might
easily encourage deliberate idleness
ana the answer of the Sponsors is
that the measure requires the bene-
hclaries to accept suitable" EMPLOY
ment If it is available. But the
ollls definition of suitable emplov-
ment is open to serious abuses. AS
an example, an unemployed person
could refuse to take a Job without
FORGETTING his unemployment COM
pensation if the Job paid less than
the union wage rate in the locality.
This means that in places like Wash
lngton, where the prevailing wage
rates In such lines as the building
trades are generally we'll under the
union rates, men could refuse to
work for wages that have been &C
ceptable in the past and still be
maintained in idleness for two years
or more at public expense. Perhaps
this would not happen, but
the possibility is there, and a pro-
vision which seems designed To
force all wages up to the highest
union levels certainly has no place
in bill of this kind.
But the Murray-Kilgore bill, aside
from objections such as these, has
its commendable features. It seeks
a solution of what is going to be a
most critical economic problem in
spirit of boldness and with imagi-
nation. There is nothing of the
TOO little and too late" philosophy
in it. 1t is not a bill to be brushed
aside because some OF its provisions
may be unwise or because some of
its hackers are selfish or unorthodox
Both measures, no doubt, will be
thoroughly explored in debate, and
the law which finally energies from
Congress probably will retain some
provisions-the best, we may hope
of each bill.
japan and the War