The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1950-09-14
Sen. Douglas Sees
Flaws In Mccurran
Anti-Red Bill

Washington (LPA) - The reai
danger to. this country from the
Communists lies, not in their pro.
paganda, but in potential sabotage
and espionage" Sen. Paul Douglas
Cd, Ill., told the Senate in a de-
tailed and persuasive speech at
tacking the McCarran anti-Com-
munist bill.
Douglas spoke on Friday after
noon to nearly-empty chamber
but McCarran bill opponents hope
the four-hour speech will be read
lin the Congressional Record. Two
major Douglas speeches earlier in
this session-one on the basing
point bill and the other on the ma
tural gas bill-are credited with
building up the public pressure
which led to vetoes of these two
measures by President Truman
The President has already said he'd
veto the McCarran BILL. but pre-
|liminary vote-counts indicate that
unless some Senators change their
minds, the veto will be over-ridden
and the measure become law.
"The need for preventive action
Douglas said, "is- real and should
not be ignored. Our major problem,
as | see it, is how to prevent sabot-
age and spying while at the same
time to protect not only the demo-
cratic rights but the practical nec-
essity for free discussion"
There are four big faults with
the McCarran bill, on which the
Senate vote comes Sept. IL. 'It is
so clumsy in operation, and will
create such protracted delays
Douglas pointed out, "that it will
be ineffective in OBTAINING or ex-
posing Communists or in protect
ing the country against sabotage
and espionage" The McCarran bill
doesn't give the Justice Dept the
tools to deal with the quicksilver
changes" that Communists could
undertake, and "the poor depart
ment will be forced to chase an
ever disappearing group" in a
Somewhat ludicrous chase"
The McCarran bill, Douglas in
sisted, can lead to indiseriminate
smearing of innocent persons, can
be used to label innocent and basic
ally patriotic organizations Tin
cluding unions) as Communist
fronts" and could mete out heavy
punishments to innocent persons
on the ground that they have "sub-
stantially contributed" to estab-
fishing totalitarian dictatorship.
I The fundamental problem which
the Congress and the country has
to face up to-a new one in Ameri-
can history, Douglas pointed out
is that the Communist party re-
fuses to follow the "rules of the
game"
"On every count" Douglas as
serted, "the Communist party and
it's members violate every rule
which a political party should OBJ
serve in democracy. They will use
the political machinery of free
elections only so long as it suits
them; namely, while they are in a
hopeless minority, but would re-
sort to revolution if they could
get power that way. Although
claiming full civil liberties for
themselves, they would suppress
the civil liberties of others were
they ever to take power.
"Professing to be an American
party, they are in reality Russian
dominated and operate in the inter
ests of that country rather than
ours. They not only carry on poli-l
tical agitation but are also organ
lied to carry on spying and sabot-
age which would weaken our mili-l
bary resistance to aggressions prac-
ticed by Russia and her satellite
puppet states.
"The communists as such arel
not ethically entitled toI
the democratic rights which they
claim. For no one can demand as a
right for himself that which he is
not willing to grant to others. 1t is |
indeed solely for democracy to
decide for itself what steps are
best and most prudent in dealing
with the communists"
Sen. Douglas said that the new
bill proposed by Sen. Harley Kill
gore Cd, w. Va.) and group off
liberal Democrats including him
self meets this test. 1t provides, he
,old the Senate, important addi-
,ional projections against the real
dangers to the nations security, |
espionage and sabotage, and clause
carefully designed to protect es-
sential freedoms in the operation
If these security procedures.