St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1949-04-22
Humphrey Spunks
SenGfe Republicans.
Writer Claims
BY Blair Moody
OF The Washington Bureau,
Detroit News

VI Inc washington bureau
Detroit News
Washington, April 8 - Demo-
cratic leaders in the Senate,
who've absorbed a pretty rough
going-over lately, have found a
pinch-hitter who can hammer the
whole Republican side OF the aisle
into silence.
It happened Thursday, and had
more than a dash Of the IMAM
bites dog" flavor. 1t also seemed
prophetic Of a chance in the bal
ance Of Senate debate. For weeks,
all through the civil rights row, all
through the Marshall Plan ''slow-
down." the upper hand has gen
orally been held by Republicans.
Majority Leader Lucas is so
full Of verbal needles, flicked
across the aisle by Minority
Leader Wherry, that he must feel
q little like a porcupine. Senator
ConaIly of Texas, the foreign af-
fairs chairman, gets caught off
base by q quick question and in
scrambling back usually manages
to offend the questioner whose
vote he is trying to influence. Re-
pubHcans Vandenberg, Knowland
and Lodge have repeatedly had to
gallop to his rescue.
But nobody had to rescue
Democratic Senator Hubert
Humphrey, the Minnesota fresh
man, when q whole bevy Of Re
publican IsOIatiOnIsts took after
him. Within a few minutes he
was taking after them. And be-
fore a hot hours debate was
over, even some Of the Republi-
cans were laughing openly over
what Humphrey had done TO
their isOIatiOnist colleagues.
The exchange was started by
Senator Jenner (Rep) Indiana, a
Wrulent critic of the Marshall
Plan, the Atlantic Pact and the
British Labor Government. Jenner
waved before the Senator q letter
sent out by Americans for Demo-
cratic action. He said he was EN-
ragged" to learn that ADA is plan
ming a trip to England for young
men this summer to study the
progress" of the British govern
ment. He repeated his complaint
that the British are furnishing
"toupees" under their medical
health program, and added: I'VE
suckers in this country are paying
for such damn foolishness."
Humphrey, who, 10 national
chairman of ADA, asked whether
Jenner did not feel Americans
should be informed about what is
happening elsewhere in the world,
Even in the Labor Government
of Britain"
What are you trying to do"
Jenner shouted, put me on the
spot with labor?" The word de
mocratic" in the ADA letter
seemed to irritate the Indianian.
He said the United States Is a
representative republic" but is
fast getting to be a democracy
because we are getting to be a
government of gangs"
DO you feel a democratic
government Is a government Of
gangs?" Humphrey asked him.
Ant-Marshall Plan Republicans
drifted into the chamber and sat
in a phalanx across the aisle from
Humphrey. Here, clearly, was the
place to take care Of this young
man." as Jenner called him.
Instead, Humphrey clearly
took care" of them. He launched
into an attack on everything the
COP isoIationists had been argu-
ing for for a fortnight. He lectured
them for not realizing that Am
erican aid to Europe is a keynote
of our drive for peace. He quoted
scriptures and said II it would
help bring peace the United States
should do not less, but more.
He ridicuIed the argument, often
advanced by isolationists, that the
Marshall Plan Is financing Soc
ialism" and should be slashed be-
cause 1t Is increasing production.
That, said Humphrey, is precisely
what 1t was intended to do. Now
that it is succeeding, the isolation
lists are complaining that foreign
products will compete with Ameri-
can products. Because ECA is do
ing well, it should be decimated.
Publicity Chairman
Praises Organizations
For Cooperation
Part Of the success Of the an