Evening star., 1946-07-10
Little Accomplished
Since Price Bill Veto
Campaign to Force Congress to
Change Stand Seen Failing
Bv David Laurence

By David Laurence
Very little has been accomplished
since President Truman vetoed the
price control bill-very little to change
the situation that existed before.
When the Senate voted this week tc
retain the Wherry amendment where
by meat livestock and poultry are
exempted from price controls, the men,
bers said all over again what they had
said before. Apparently the organized
campaign by Government agencies and
labor unions to get Congress to dispose
OF the Wherry amendment has not
succeeded. The Senators have been
watching the rapid flow of livestock
into markets at reasonable prices in the
last few days without any Government
controls. Predictions of dire catastrophe
have not materialized.
What is more important. however, IS
that the President is being proved
wrong in his tactics. He is not likely to
veto another bill, and it looks now as
II the measure which will be presented
to him will contain some of the OBJ
jectionable features to which he re-
ferred in his veto message. What was
the good of veto then?
1t is a source of much wonder here
abouts that the President, who was
member of the United States Senate.
misconstrued the majority will of that
body and endeavored by means of
veto to force a change, especially on
matters which are so closely related to
the home constituencies and the votes
in the regions affected.
Same Pressure Exists.
Thus, Senators from livestock raising
States are not likely to vote any diff
ferently now than they did two months
ago. The same pressure to get rid of
black markets and let prices be fixed
as result of supply and demand exists
now-in fact, it Is perhaps even more
intense today than before the veto
because the country has had an actual
experience with markets without Gov
ernment controls or subsidies.
When the Speaker of the House of
Representatives and the ma ajority leader
of the Senate both tell President that
the bill before him is the best that can
be obtained and when both these ad-
visers are leaders of a Presidents own
party, there must be strong reasons TO
disregard and even discard their advice
Mr.. Truman is in an especially weak
position when he asks Congress to write
another bill, because he is asking
tired leadership to seek the passage of
bill which that leadership has vir-
tually no hope of passing. Nothing is
more discouraging to congressional
leaders than to attempt to oblige a
President who doesn't want to accept
advice on situation on Capitol Hill
with which they are more familiar than
he Is
Most Of the debate on the price con-
troll bill thus far has been in the Senate,
but when the reconstructed measure
gets through the upper house it will
again have to be considered by the
lower house. While there Is some pros
pect that the legislation may be COM
pleted before the end of this week and
considered by the House next week,
the chances are that the attitude of
the White House toward the new
measure will be known by the time the
Senate completes action
Period Of Uncertainty.
Meanwhile, many producers have
been holding off in the setting of prices
until they could find out what the Con-
gress would do. The period of uncer-
tainty is injurious to the economic life
of the country and it has some inter-
national repercussions as well Hence
the sooner Congress acts and the Presi-
dent makes known his views. the better
the opportunity for business to settle
down to production.
Were it not for the veto Of the OPA
bill. it is believed that the first of July
would have ushered in a period of
rapidly increasing production. Settle
ment of some of the major strikes had
cleared the air somewhat and industry
was ready to go ahead when the OPA
was knocked out by the President S
failure to sign the measure which Con-
gress had submitted to him.
Mr. Truman's action was surprise
to the Nation and to Congress and it
is not likely that the President will
again go against the advice Of his
leaders For to do SO would be to sub
ject the country once more to economic
disturbances which can be avoided.
When the new bill is passed-and II
is now said the President will sigr
almost anything he receives from Con-
gress-the plan is for both houses tt
| adjourn. This in itself tends to remove
many uncertainties which often caus'
| businessmen to hesitate. Once Con
gress completes pending legislation o.
abandons attempts to pass certain cur
| rent measures, the country can have {
| breathing spell.
Decentralization riphtR reSerpstl