Evening star., 1945-01-03

|Work-or-Fight
|LawBig|ssue
Leaders Split on
Proposal for 4Fs
Offered by Byrnes

A developing controversy over
work-or-fig legislation enliv-
ened the Capitol Hill atmosphere
today as the Seventy ninth Con-
gress met for its first session.
The recommendations of War Mo-
bilization Director Byrnes on fuller
utilization of manpower already had
brought strongly divergent opinions
from legislators.
President Roosevelt set the stage
for the discussion at his press con-
ference yesterday, when he indi-
catd he favors Mr.. Byrnes' pro-
posed work-or- fight order to men
rejected by the armed forces as
physically unfit. But it is up to
Congress to mold legislation to this
effect, he said.
Plan to Come Up Friday.
The Byrnes suggestion that 4,000,-
900 ATS be made subject to assign
ment to limited military service or
war plant jobs will be considered
Friday by the House Military Affairs
Committee. At the same time, the
committee will decide whether to
hold hearings on universal service
Legislation empowering the Govern
ment to tell men and women they
must take war jobs.
OF the Byrnes manpower propos-
ais, Senator George, Democrat, Of
Georgia said he saw no need for such
legislation. Senator Vandenberg,
Republican, of Michigan, chairman
of the Republican conference. said
| if the President asks for work-or-
fight legislation he'll probably get it.
Senator Taft, Republican, of Ohio
doubted that much increase in war
plant employment would result.
Senator Kilgore, Democrat, Of
West Virginia and Representative
Andrews. Republican, of New York
pondered the same question-how
much to pay the drafted 4-F in a
war plant. The $50 drafted soldier
gets or the $3.50 to $500 or more the
man at the next bench gets? Said
Mr.. Kilgore:
I'm afraid they wouldn't get
much production out of those s50-a-
month men,
/ Short Offers Remedy.
Representative Short, Republican,
OF Missouri threw in barb that the
/ administration stop all strikes of
able bodied men in war plants as the
No. l answer to a greater labor SUD-
ply"
There was some argument in
Congress also over the Byrnes sug-
gestion that the War Labor Board
be given authority to enforce its
orders without resorting to Govern
ment seizure of plants. His pro-
posals for enactment of postwar tax
changes also got cool reception in
some quarters.
Chairman McCarran OF the Sen
ate Judiciary Committee said it was
all right to talk of giving the War
Labor Board authority to enforce its
decisions, but before Congress did
that, he added, it would want to be
; sure that the WLB rulings COM
piled with the law Congress had
laid down.
i Senator George put it another
way.
Il am willing to vote the WLB
full authority to enforce its orders
If the orders are made subject to
real review by the courts" he said.
In the past, the administration
has contended the boards orders
are advisory, not subject to court
review.
4 General Revision Out.
\ AS tor postwar taxes, Senator
George, who heads the Senate
Finance Committee, ,had this to
say:
Anything in the nature of a
general revision of our revenue
laws is out of the question now"
;. Whether the President would deal
!. directly with these issues in his
message on the state of the Union
Saturday remained problematical.
Mr.. Roosevelt told his news confer
ence he was in substantial agree
ment with Mr. Byrnes' report, and
, in response to a question, said there
, was nothing in it with which he
, differed.
He said he favored in principle
the. Byrnes tax proposals which are
, designed to ease business into the
reconversion period.
Most members thought the Presi-
! dent would devote most of his at
. tention to foreign affairs in the
annual message.
Galleries Crowded.
Crowded galleries watched the
!, Senate go through the formality OF
: swearing in % of the 80 Senators
: reelected or newly elected this year
e fCoe CONrnrCC r---