Detroit evening times., 1946-01-21
BEHIND
The NEWS
By Paul
MaNon

WASHINDION' a n Il
W Confide ential canvasSerS
have found Congress in almost
total disagreement as 10 wnat
will be done about strikes and
the unions.
Twenty Of the men, best
placed TO know. gave 20 diff
fering private predictions.
Many said from the first the
steel strike would be settled,
then autos, then the big
Others; whereupon interest
would die, while Congress
argued without decision until
after their election next No
Vember.
Others did not believe Con-
greSS could longer duck the
problem and expected various
union-curbing enactmentS. But
Mr.. Truman had told his lead
ers privately he would veto
anything which might be called
an anti-union law.
Surely nothing opposed by
the unions could get two-thirds
majority necessary TO pass over
such A veto. The confused and
confusing predictions, in the
last analysis. therefore, APP
pearcd to add up to just about
the same total -- nothing, or
little-or-nothing.
A NICE, neat hole in the wall
n is quite evidently being dug.
through which all may escape
A commentator or two started
it with toothpicks, but behind
them some congressman are
ready with drills.
This is a proposal to cut the
Truman fact-fnding bill down
to fact-fnding alone.
IL would he stripped of its
power of subpoena, To which
General Motors objects, and
the cOOling-Of period of 80
days before strikes, TO which
the union objects.
Just pass a law letting the
President appoint commits
SiOnS To find facts.
Such legislation simply pro-
poses what already has been
done. Without legislation, Mr..
Truman has established pre-
ciScly that kind of fact-fnding.
General Motors walked out
on it.
The steel union planned a
strike against it (the fact-find-
ing report was due Feb. 10 and
the strike was called for Jan.
Ia, delaying only for direct
negotiations, which Mr.. Truman
took into the White House be-
fore his fact-finding commission
could report.
TliE question raised by such
L permanent fact-fnding law
is:
Would any one ever show up
for the hearings? To handle
the problem that way would be
like waving back a windstorm
with a feather.
If congressional leaders try
TO push their boys through this
hole, there will of course be
trouble. The labor committees
of both houses are closely con-
trolled by the unions. Nothing
can escape them which is OPP
posed by the unions, or nothing
ever has.
On the open Senate and
House floors, however, their
bill would be open to amend
ment by the attachment Of
every possible solution every
congressman has proposed.
The problem of Mr.. Tru-
mans leaders will then be to
prevent any important action,
and they are likely to wind
up with conflicting bills from
the two houses.
THE plain fundamentals are
Il these:
The unions have developed
their strike technique TO the
point where they can tie up the
nation any night. A Simulta-
neous strike in telephones, tele-
graph and radio alone would
nearly do il.
Add electrical power house
workers. and you can see what
four unions could do to the
country Add not the big rail-
roads 6Gt the teamSters who
merely handle all freight in the
cities. elevator operators and
bus drivers, and you have the
obliterative possibilities of
general strike from only a few
unions.
| have mentioned only a few
OF the strikes which have al
ready been called in this cam
paign, but not yet Simulta-
neouSly
In this campaign. the unions.
by rather clever timing of local
strikes to keep pressure on the
White House first buses. then