Evening star., 1950-04-09
7wo Fighting Irishn1en' in Budget Strife
Appropriations Boss
And CAB Chairman
Differ on Fund Need
By Frederick R. Nicely

4
parallel characteristics who
should and would be close friends
If they would stop fighting each
other long enough to get acquaint-
ed. And if they will, serious
situation now developing in the
airline industry could be liqui-
dated promptly. With the COM
bined limitless energy and ability
OF these two successful citizens,
working as partners instead OF
pursuing opposite courses in the
sincere belief his is the correct
one. Americas air transportation
system, urgently in need of eco
nomic stabilization, would come
closer to reaching that long
sought goal in the succeeding
months than at any time since
it became problem nearly two
decades ago.
These fighting Irishmen are
John James Rooney and Joseph
James O'Connell, jr.
j. J. Rooney represents more
than 100000 residents of Kings
County, Brooklyn, N. Y, in the
House of Representatives and is
a powerful figure on the powerful
House Appropriations Committee.
j. j. O'Connell is chairman of
the powerful Civil Aeronautics
Board which. though only II
years old and the youngest and
smallest Of Federal independent
regulatory establishments, holds
life or death authority over the
$500 million airline industry and
It's 10000 officers and employees.
Disagree on Budget
These two are in sharp and
seemingly irreconcilable disagree
ment over how the Civil Aeronau-
tics Board should be operated for
the coming fiscal year, for the
best interests of the airline indus
try. the taxpayers and the people
VINO fly.
Mr.. Rooney says the CAB can
DO more and better work with less
appropriations if it will establish
modern and efficient methods. :"
Mr.. O'Connell says to do the Job
the way it needs to be done. he
should have about 100 more en-
ployes and a budget of about IS
million. He asked for that, but
they cut $669,0O0 from that re-
quest and approved $4,323,0 900.
The House subcommittee in
charge of CABS appropriations.
with Mr.. Rooney as chairman.
unanimously concluded that
amount was much too much and
chopped of s923,0OO. The full
Appropriations Committee went
along with that, so there is
now before the House. in
the omnibus appropriation bill
a recommendation of $3,400,-
O0O for the CAB-more than
a million and half less
IMAM CAB figured it had to have
to cope with the expanding in
dustry, and a decrease of $220. 500
below the current appropriation.
A head-on collision involving
these two and their respective
resolute beliefs. occurred in the
executive session of the House
Appropriations subcommittee on
FEBRUARY Is and at the end of the
hearing the following day the
TWO were even further apart. De-
tails OF this clash appear in the
printed record which the full Ap-
preparations Committee recon-
mended that House members read
Tor a thorough understandings
OF the deplorable situations exist
ing in this important agency
the CAB.
Required Reading
The volume Instantly became
a best seller and copies are hard
to get. They were snatched up by
two classes of people-those who
like to read a play-by-play ac-
count OF any Federal agency
official so audacious as to slug It
out with an Appropriations Com
mittee chairman-as j. j. O'Con-
nell did with j. j. Rooney-and
people long in Government who
from experience or observation
have concluded such examples of
free speech do not always Prove
profitable. So, as in the case of
one such old and prominent
agency, the book is being routed
through all important offices as
required reading on the theme,
What not to say and how not to
act before appropriations COM
mittees when justifying budget
estimates"
But everybody in Government
is not endowed with the fascinat-
ing combat qualities of Rooney
and O'Connell. In addition, they
possess sharp, shrewd legal minds,
and each can out-stubborn a mule.
They glow with charm and per-
sonality and are popular with
n-combatants. Each is a DEM
ocrat;; they are natives and still
citizens of the State of New York.
They were born in November
Rooney in 1908; O'Connell in
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