Evening star., 1948-06-17
The Political Mil
Records to Be Issue-Both
Of Trumun and Congress
President as Well as Lawmakers HAS
Some Fairly Large Blunders
D., Cn.1J :sroIn
By Gould Lincoln

SoAhS oAA ~ A~AA O.
By Gould Lincoln
President Truman, having labeled the Elsnt-
ieth Congress "the worst" in all history, lnsists
as he returns from his "nonpoliticai swing
across the country-for which the taxpayers
paid-that he has now made the issue Tor tne
coming national election campaign.
Mr.. Truman Is entirely correct that the lssue
will be the record of the Congress. He might
have added however, that his own record Will
be equally the issue. His record as adminis-
traitor of the affairs of the Nation has SONS
fairly large holes in it. What he has been aoie
to accomplish has been with the aid OF the
Congress. He has to thank, in the first place.
the Republican chairman of the Senate For
egn Relations Committee for the stronger for
egn policy which finally succeeded the timld
stand which had previously been taken toward
Russia. And he has to thank the Congress for
backing up Senator Vandenberg.
He has to thank the Republican Congress,
too, for the Taft-Hartley Labor Act, under
whose provisions he has been able to deal with
Tar greater success than previously with labor
management disputes Mr.. Truman vetoed this
measure when it came to him, despite the fact
that more Democratic members of Congress
supported 1T than were against it. 1t was Mr..
Truman's gesture to keep with him the labor
vote But even labor, to whom he was cater
ing, had little use for him, charging that he
had not really exerted his influence to prevent
the overriding of the veto.
Called High Tax Harry"
Mr.. Truman mixed with Congress over tax
reduction. He was against it and twice he
vetoed bills to lower personal income taxes.
Finally the Congress was able this year to put
through bill and make it stick notwithstand-
Inv t1,a nrae
him the sobriquet High Tax Harry"
The issue as between Mr.. Truman and Con-
gress was already in existence before the Pres
ident set foot in the presidential train which
has taken him about the country and before
he opened his mouth on that trip. His name
calling has not made the issue. The people,
with their ballots. will decide whether the
Eghtieth Congress is the worst" in history, or
whether. as some of the Republicans have re-
taliated, Mr.. Truman Is the worst" President
who has ever sat in the White House
Mr.. Truman's new look"-his off the cuff
remarks which he has been scattering hither
and yon as he has travelled - has won him
few encomiums. His comments on good old
joe Stain, whom he pictured as the prisoner
of a group of Communists, unable to live up
to his promises at least gave the country a
good laugh.
The real issue which the American voters
must decide is whether they want Mr.. Truman
and his socialistic program which he insists
Congress should enact into law Mr.. Truman
has blossomed forth In his three-four years in
the White House as the greatest advocate OF
them all for Big Government He would have
Congress expend billions of dollars more each
year to foster new schemes which would place
the total power over the lives of Americans in
Washington bureaus.
Demanded Price Fixing.
He has demanded that this country 90 back
to Government price fixing and rather RASH
ly has extended this to Government control
of wages in selected cases. All this years after
the conclusion of the shooting war If Mr. Tr1I-
man had had greater leadership to offer, the
country would have been further advanced to-
day-with less chance OF imitation catching up
with it.
The dfficulty has been that Mr.. Truman
started playing politics with the country,s
economy almost Immediately. He encouraged
labor to demand increases in wages after the
close of the war-on the mistaken theory that
1t was possible to increase greatly labor
costs and not increase prices.
His present talks have been largely dems-
gogic in his effort to align various groups of
people in the country against others He has,
to be sure, to think of the threat which the
radical Henry Wallace and his new party
create for him in the coming election He has
had, too, to think of winning his own presi-
Dental nomination in the July Democratic
National Convention.
The President has been right in his in
sistence upon the upbuilding of the armed
forces-through seective draft-and In his
long-distance preparedness program through
universal military training. Even here. how
ever, there remains hope that Congress will
give him the draft.