Evening star., 1947-01-04
White House Pressure
Seen in Royburn Move
New House Minority Leader Ac.
cedes to Southern Draft
By Doris FIeeson

By Doris FteeSon
The White House Is credited with In
fiuencing Speaker Sam Rayburn's sur
prise acceptance of the House minority
leadership.
Mr.. Rayburn had publicly declared
he was for the reelection of John w.
Mccormack Of Massachusetts,; he had
given private assurances to the same
effect and had so written to Mr.. Nc
Cormack. He was still saying it until
few hours before he acceded to the
Southern draft"
The White House strategists, however.
looked over the scene and took note
of the cold fact that a more or less
fluid bloc of about 140 Southern and
border-State Congress members rule the
House roost ON the Democratic side.
Comparatively the seven members from
Mr.. McCormacks New England do not
loom very large. It was agreed that from
the standpoint Of White House cooper
alton it would be wiser this time to
heed the complaining Southerners.
Bloc Has Seniority.
The Southern House bloc has always
wanted one of its own as their head
man and with rare exceptions they have
had their way. OF five Speakers since
1880, when the Democrats regained con-
troll of the House, four we're Southerners:
Garner of Texas, Byrns of Tennessee.
Bankhead of Alabama, and Rayburn of
Texas. Only one, Rainey of Illinois,
a well-loved veteran of years of service,
was chosen from the North.
The Southerners not only have the
largest solid core geographically, but
because of the South's habit of keeping
its politicos in Office they have att
tanned the seniority that gives them
power, influence and experience. More
conservative usually than the Southern
Senators, they have always been rather
snifhsh about their big-city Democratic
colleagues.
They have contended-often with con.
siderable justice-that the big-city ma.
chine members of the House took 1t as
political plum, we're not interested In
the work there and took their voting
orders strictly from the bosses at home.
Well-placed telephone calls, for example,
to New York and Chicago have fire.
quently meant handful of votes to the
Speaker on critical issues. Many city
members, especially those from New
York, have appalling records of absen-
teeisn1.
McCormack's Stand.
Mr.. Mccormack is not considered
machine representative nor subject to
these criticisms, but they are factors
that worked against him.
Mr.. Mccormack has always insisted
he thought Mr.. Rayburn should have
the leadership If he wanted it. Mr..
McCormacks friends think he has been
somewhat shabbily treated and are
rather jealousy watching to see what
will be done for him. He might be whip,
though it has not yet been offered to
him or any one else, Mr.. Rayburn
having said privately he expected to
delay decision for a time.
The New Deal versus conservative
angle cannot be drawn in this case. Mr..
Rayburn has been entirely loyal to the
administration. That he will probably
follow 1t also in its increasing conser-
vatism may irk the New Dealers.
" They are already irked, however, by
President Truman His increasing habit
of anticipating Republican issues-his
proclamation ending the war, George
Aliens resignation and proposals to
pare down the RFC, his committee to
purge Communists from the Govern
ment, etc.-is giving them pain. Their
story is that all the White House forward,
passes are now being aimed directly into
the hands Of the opposition.
released by the Bell Syndicate, Inc)