Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1944-09-06
BEHIND
The NEWS
BY Paul
MaIIon

lSS 10 81 reputation OF All
pressure advice by the House
upon tho postwar unemploy-
ment relief problem, drew
Scant public attention natur-
ally. in view of what is going
on i'm Europe.
Only lean, unSearchlng press
reports recounted the rejection
not only of the CIO S35 a week
idea, but of the Senate conn.,
promise and BaTuCh as we'll
and indeed. the whole whooped-
up notion of the necessity Of
federal relief and this I'm the
face OF an imminent election.
The House action said fatty
There il six billion dollars
in the state unemployment in
Surance funds. and this should
he enough TO care for the situa-
tiOn--if not the next Congress
can handle il in January"
THE feat was made possible
Il because Democratic House
ways and means Chairman
Doughton was angry, very
angry. He was angry first al
the Senate because il had
passed the George bill, whereas
all taxation legislation should
be conceived by his committee.
He could hardly soc anything
good in the Senate bill. and his
attitude permeatcd the whole
House with a desire to put the
Senate IN lis place.
This was all done by teller
votes Individually anonymouS(
so the action cannot be held
against any Individual congress-
man IN the election: also con-
greSSmon may III a n G their
minds without individual identi-
fication when the compromise
between the u o u g h { o n and
George bills finally come from
the present conference of the
two houses.
But with these reservations,
the House Democratic leader
ship turned It's back on its vice
presidential candidate, Senator
Truman, who promoted the Go
S35 week bill Git had no word
from Mr.. Roosevelt who per-
siStently and coyly remained out
of the argument despite Go
efforts 10 get him 10 speak,
These congressman are mostly
from small towns. the vastly
Sprinkled middle class commu-
mites Of the country The por-
ton of their orthern and
city brethren who opposed
them, number no more than 81
orr any vote. which shows why
Go will never be popular politi-
cally IN this country. or its assoc
clated COMMUNISM. The CIOers
are really only a minority in
their own labor union minority.
THE Go, Of course. failp d
L everywhere with its PROPOSE
ton, IN the Senate as we'll as
the House. because every one
could sec it was lust a plain.
greedy grab There was never
a better Simile for It's failure
than that of the dog that saw
a bone as large as he in the
water. but upon his own SUBJ
merSion in leap for it, found
il was only his own shadow.
For instance. ontanas
Democratic S enator Murray,
originally had joined in with
Senator George in this CONVEX
sion matter, proposing a maxi
mum allowance for the highly
paid war workers. They could
have got that then.
But organized labor began an
attack on Murray, although he
had always been strong labor
man. incidentally, AFL backed
the Go in this matter, even
though not conspicuously) The
peculiar newspaper PM sharply
denounced Murray. So he turned
around and joined in the Muir
ray-Kilgore bill, setting up the
unemployment rate 10 $50. This
shocked both the country and
Congress-, because il was SO a
week more than would be al
lowed soldiers
IN VARIOUS other bills the
L Go congressman tried TO get
away from their original mis-
take and give the veterans the
same or A little more than their
own war workers. but no one
can remember anything but
that S35 original proposal. which
might have established that
figure as a national minimum
wage because few workers who
could remain idle two years for
that amount would care 10 work
for less. The workers will now
get about SIS a week maximum
average IN the state unemploN-
mcnt insurance laws for much
less than two vcarSO
Even the war workers them
selves Laughed AZ the CIO
proposition. Tor some years
they generally have been max
ing more money than ever in
their lives. and they could not
possibly spend it all. because Of
rationing and the shortage Of
goods. Also they have been
buying bonds which now may
be caShcd at any bank.
Yet even the George bill