Evening star., 1949-12-17
Concerted Drive
On Congress for
Home Rule SET
5 Civic Groups Plan to
Get Discharge Petition
In House First Day

III IlOuSc FHSt 10y
Members of Congress, returning
to Washington in January, will be
met by a o-ordinated drive of
civic groups for passage of home
rule legislation for the District, it
was revealed yesterday.
Strategy for the coming session
Of Congress was outlined at a
meeting yesterday of representa-
tiyes from local and national Or
9anizations making up the Gen.
tfal Suffrage Committee.
{ THAT strategy, at the moment,
hinges on the plan for collecting
the signatures of 218 House Mem
bers on discharge petition that
would bring the Senate-passed
Kefauver home rule bill onto the
House floor without action of the
House District Committee.
Z AS outlined for the meeting by
Tilford E. Dudley of the CIO Po-
litical Action Committee, the plan
calls for mobilization of all lobby
ing groups for the petition before
the opening of Congress on jan
uary 3.
Big Attack First Day.
On that day, said Mr.. Dudley,
when there are no committee
meetings scheduled, and when the
House session will have no official
business before it, the big attack
will be made. He explained the
petition must be signed on the
floor of the House and that the
opening session will be an ideal
time for collecting maximum
number of signatures.
! Mr.. Dudley called on "all the
people who possibly can, to see
their Congressman before that
January session"
The bill, introduced by Senator
Kefauver, Democrat of Tennessee,
passed the Senate during the last
session of Congress. Subsequently
1t was tabled by the House Dis
trict Committee.
Sturgis Warner of the Home
Rule Committee, who served as
chairman of yesterdays meeting,
explained that, if the bill can be
brought onto the House floor, it's
passage is believed assured.
Office Set Up.
To coordinate the efforts of
the lobbying groups. he said, a
special Office has been set up by
the Central Suffrage Conference,
at 308 Pennsylvania avenue Sc.
Our job" said Mr.. Warner.
"is to present the problem to the
Congressman in such a way that
he will realize the citizens of Wash
ington as a whole are behind this
bill. The home rule headquarters
should be looked on as a special
task force where all the various
organizations in the District in
terested in home rule can pool
their efforts" 20 -~
The Office, he said is under the
direction of Mrs. Marshall Horn
blower. To raise funds for it's
operation and the printing Of
necessary information, Mr.. WarnerI
called for contributions from the
various member groups.
The meeting was addressed by
Representative Auchincloss, Re-
publican, of New Jersey a mem
ber of the House District Com
mittee, and the author of a home
rule bill that failed of passage in
the 80th Congress. I
Suggests Alternative Plan
Mr.. Auchincloss warned the
group the plan for a discharge
petition lis not easy to accomp-
lish."
There are many good Con-
gressmen," he said, who support
home rule, but who do not be-
lieve in signing such petitions.
Mr.. Auchincloss suggested two al
tentative plans. First he pointed
out the Rules Committee, on it's
own motion, could bring the bill
to the House floor. Second, he
said. it might be possible to sub
NIT compromise bill to the Dis
trict Committee and that this
could be amended later on the
House floor.
Mr.. Auchincloss added:
"The most important thing
now is to secure the active in
terest of the President of the
United States.
IF he would come out in his
message to Congress in January
on the home rule question, it
would amount to mandate to his
leadership in Congress to see that
action is taken"
Honored at the meeting was
Mrs. John C. McClintock, retir-
ing president of the Washington
League of Women Voters. who
was presented with commemo-
rative parchment in recognition
of her efforts for home rule.
Kiwanians TO Entertain