Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1944-01-13
NEWS
BEHIND
THE NEWS
ByPauI
MaIIon

W ana pIl OF 0NNE itNNt lilt re-
acton 10 Nh Roosevelt $ many
sided new legislative program
sounded partisanly Squeaky or
deya~tatlncly quiet
For instance. the President
proposes 20 got The power TO
draft people into industry 20
prevent strikes But there al
ready is law supposed 10 pre-
Vent strikes directly. the Smith
Connally act providing cool
rrG-on period; government
seizure and penalties
OUnIon LEADERS shouted a few
months back this was FaSclStlc
robbery of their right 10 StrlkeD
rTIy UCw INV which M now
wants rs not one 10 draft
strikers INTO the army or make
them work hui 10 allow hlm 10
dr8ft every one. women rs 10
son as well "a, men rs 10 60
INTO any work he chooses by
proclamation Thus the prOho-
>itIon is 10 punish All for the
SINS OF the labor unions.
TuEN again. this AuStln-
L WadSWorth bill was pro-
posed q few years ago strictly
as a manpower shortage meas
ure But the President did not
mention = manpoWer shortage
as a justification tor attempting
10 revive II
His manpoWeriSt McNutt tes-
tilted TO CouEre on draft
fathers some months ago that
ne expected 10 be "oyer the
hump on the then crucial prob
rom ny The end ~ last year.
Senate committee chairman
Truman said only few days
AGO he expected the opposite
condition unemployment 10
develop before the end Of l94f
A. any rate, manpOWcr neCcS-
stiles have been getting less and
las erHf44eFt Publicity S+Ree
the draft threat was used so Of
lectlNelY 10 crowd people INTO
defense industries and other re-
lated steps developed and the
President did not seek 10 Justify
ms d aft extremity on that
ground
But even more porpleNlnC he
tied his appeal for thus measure
10 a condition that Congress do
all of several other things or
else forget his recommendation,
and som Q Of these conditions
they VIII never lulfill
THE Senate practically re-
L iectcd immediately his first
condition a tax bill five times
-Al,,s i!la-GnG--..it--l ,9as&--
So what ne proposed cannot
be enacted. and the whole thesis
he advanced therefore falls. as
he knew II must fall when he
chose the words Of his recon-
mendauonS.
one New Deal senator pri.
vatelv thin ks Mr. Roosevelt
Nearned most 10 tell the army
and navy people that he would
han q o. labor properly The
method Of doing II, in a message
10 Congress for legislation ne
cannot expect 10 got. viii not
draw many 20 accept this con
Clusion whole although II may
contain some truth
IN THE other hand the ants
~ New Dealers say /. was Just
a fourth term pohtIcal platform
designed 10 enlist the popular
appeal Of the country against
strikes Dwhilo the Republicans
were meeting i'm Chicago. That
IT was luSt smart politics.
This explanation has many
defects also. especially as 10 use
u ard smart be Ideas
might t-@~-+fll- +ff4f..ai4l en- l4a+4-
face 10 the 10000. 600 already
drafted and enlisted but how
VIII tho other 100000 900 or 50
react politically At being made
subject 20 industrial draft by
proclamation
More important, both radi-
Gals Of the New Deal stripe
cleft labor as well as rlGhn and
conservatives are against the
proposal and no votes are
likely 10 be made IN those
groups Thereby what u docs
do politically IS 10 place Mr..
Roosevelt IN a more popular
rhetorical position regarding
union strikes without forcing
HIM to DO anything
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