Evening star., 1945-03-16
Justice Unit Scored
On Corrupt Elections
Department Won't Enforce Laws
Against Own Party, Says Writer
Bv David laurence

By Dapid Laurence
Although the Senate Committee IN
vestigating Campaign Expenditures
wrote 250-page report, 1t did not put
Its finger on the real reason why Ameri-
can political elections are corrupt.
That reason Is the failure of the
prosecuting arm of the Government to
enforce the law against members Of Its
own political party.
So long as the Justice Department Is
responsible to a successful candidate
for the presidency, no questions will ever
be pursued which touch the supporters
Of that candidacy.
The Senate committee has reported,
for instance, that existing statutes are
construed by the Justice Department to
mean that labor unions are banned from
making contributions during campaign
but that they can expend out Of their
treasures any amount they please which
has been accumulated before q cam
paign or during a campaign.
Fine Distinction Drawn.
A fine distinction is being drawn by
the Justice Department between "con-
tributions' and expenditures" some
thing that somehow never emerged
until labor unions wanted to spend their
dues to carry on political campaigns.
Yet the Congress, in the Smith Con-
nally law, specifically added labor unions
to the scope of the Federal Corrupt
Practices Act, putting them on a parity
with corporations and banks. Does
any one believe that If the corporations
in the last campaign had spent out of
their treasures money to advance the
candidacy of a Republican and there
had been no ban on labor union con-
tributions, the Justice Department
would have found no basis for prosecu-
ton?
The answer Is that corporations know
the laws will be enforced against them
and it is doubtful whether any such
expenditures were made by them. In
dividuals prominent in business did con-
tribute, as the law permits, out Of their
own pockets.
The Justice Department ought to be
made a separate and independent
agency of the Government, Just as is
the Office of the controller general,
where the executive in charge is ap-
pointed for term of Is years and is
subject to removal only by Congress.
The Justice Department is related to
the judicial branch of the Government,
which, under the original concept of
rn,,cfif,,tiov, 70 n in
dependent of the executive or legislative
branches. Law enforcement, broadly
speaking, is a presidential function, to
be sure, but Congress may by statute
delegate to commissions or boards or
departments special enforcement tasks.
Other Law Agencies.
Thus, while the general public may
not realize it, all the law enforcement
activities of the Federal Government
have not by any means been vested by
Congress in the Justice Department.
Even detective agencies exist in other
departments because of desire to have
a staff familiar with the enforcement
problems related to particular laws.
There is no reason, therefore, why
Congress should not intrust to special
agency responsible only to the legislative
branch of the Government or else to
the courts the task of enforcing laws
relating to elections and campaign ex-
penditures.
There would be fewer violations Of law
and fewer bubbles and circumventions
if the political parties and groups knew
that the election laws would really be
enforced. Often, too, becauseeit Is not
politically desirable to proceed against
the supporters of the party in power,
the opposition party likewise derives a
certain immunity.
1t certainly is honical to see the
American Government attempting to
advise liberated countries in Europe how
to handle so-called free elections when
the election laws of the United States
are so flagrantly flouted.
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