Evening star., 1947-03-16
New House Leader Shows Finesse
Youthful Haeck Handles Party Reins Expery During First Few Tests
But More Exacng Tasks Are Ahead axes Labor and Loans

election to the Republican National
Committee recently, commented:
"The first words ever uttered by
a child born in Indiana are, I am
not candidate for any Office, but
will accept if pressed" Mr.. Hal
leck took to politics early in life.
Today. he makes it practice to-
keep in touch with all the Re-
publican members of the House
visiting as many Of them as he can
when off the floor, and keeping
them constantly informed of what
is going on.
He is emphatic in saying that
the legislation which Is now be-
ginning to roll out of the Repub-
lican production machine is the
product of the best thought in the
party-through the congressional
committees. There is no man In
the White House or on Capitol
Hill to tell the Republicans in the
House what they must do. 1t is
this very fact, he insists, that makes
for close cooperation among the
Republicans, once the type of legis-
lation has been decided upon. 1t
is the antithesis of the rubber stamp
Legislation, transmitted to Congress
from the late President Roosevelt,
he says.
Mr.. Halleck was opposed for the
majority leadership by two Ohioans,
Representative Clarence Brown and
Representative Thomas A. jenkins,
and by Representative Everett M.
Dirksen of Illinois. All OF these
gentlemen are being given their
day in the sun, however, and up
to date there has been no evidence
of maneuvering against the House
leadership.
Has Been Criticized.
This is not to say, however, that
no brickbats are thrown privately
at Mr.. Halleck. Personal feelings
and ambitions have been stepped
upon by the Indiana Representa-
tive, and critics are ready to break
into the open if occasion arises.
One charge made against him, be-
fore he became leader, was that
Halleck was too much of a play
boy, and another, that he was likely
to fly off the deep end, in pas
sion, at critical moment.
The new majority leader is for
tunate in that he has many warm
personal friends among the Demo-
cratic opposition in the House. In
deed, he is likely to be able to count
on a material Democratic vote in
support of some of the controversial
legislation that is still to be re-
ported-particularly the labor bill
whenever it may be ready. When
the Democrats came back to Wash
ington after losing the consres-
sional elections last November, some
of them expressed hope that
Charlie" Halleck would become the
majority leader, since the office
had to go to Republican.
With considerable acumen Mr..
Halleck is avoiding stirring up Bit
ter political partisanship in the
House-he Is not going back into
past history, for example, to slap
the Roosevelt administration and
the Democrats in general. He Is
seeking to get needed legislation
through the House and to be in a
position If it becomes necessary
to pass that legislation over a
presidential veto. This does not
mean that Halleck fails to attack
vigorously when some Democratic
proposal, with which he disagrees,
comes into the debate. 1t merely
means that he does not 60 out of
his way to revive the past and
drive Democrats into a solid oppo-
sition.
When Mr.. Halleck was first
elected to the House-he was chosen
at a by-election in 1885 to fill a
vacancy caused by the death of
Representative Landis-he was the
only Republican in Congress from
Indiana. This put him in the spot
(see LINCOLN, Page C-5)