Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1951-03-21
Labor Denounces Congress,
Says 1t Has Failed People With
Inadequate Economic Curbs'
Green Tells Rally Laws
Have Been 'Lurded' to
Aid Big Business
By Jones Y. Newton

Organized labor today turned
It's guns on Congress, saying it
was to blame for the defense pro-
gram controversy because it gave
the Nation inadequate economic
controls laws.
AFL President William Green
told a Nation wide rally of AF'L,
CIO and rail unions officials that
Congress had failed the people. ;"
I'm adopting the Defense Pro-
duction Act last year." Mr.. Green
said, Congress went out of its
way to lard the law with special
privilege for business interests.
Under the law. which expires
June 80. it is virtually impossible
to stabilize the cost of living"
Earlier the union officials pre-
dicted that the defense program
was going on the rocks" and
called for new deal' that would
remove the program from big
business" domination.
Intimidation Charged.
"In Difference to the real estate
lobby" Mr.. Green continued,
Congress acted to decontrol
rents. In obedience to the finan-
cial interests of the Nation, it
adopted tax laws that soak the
poor and spare the rich"
Mr.. Green said "the administra-
ton became intimidated by the
reactionary coalition that rules
the roost in Congress. Apparently,
it decided to appease Congress
in order to get some co-opera-
ton from Congress.
This policy of appeasement
-. . resulted in the appointment
of big business executives to al
most every significant position in
the defense agencies.
THE results speak for them
selves. Not a single recommenda-
ton by labor representatives in
the defense program was adopted.
Our views were either ignored,
or the exact opposite of our
proposals was put in affect.
Johnston Talks With Truman.
eve decided, therefore, to take
a dramatic step. We voted
unanimously for the withdrawal
of labor representatives from any
defense agencies in which they
were serving. We felt that this
was the only way we could eff
fectively impress upon the Ameri-
can people the shocking failures
and gross inequities of defense
policies
George Meany, AFL secretary
treasurer. told the rally that if liv-
ing costs are to be stabilized "the
first step is to scrap entirely the
present price control system"
IF you're going to have price
controls you've got to have some
thing like the OPA," Mr.. Meany
continued. eve want a complete
new deal that will set up some
thing that will get prices back to
where they were a year ago and
keep them there
Independent Vote Hinted.
Mr.. Meany limited that the la
Dor vote will be independent in
next years national elections. Re
ferring to labor's bitter criticism
of defense program policies, he
said:
We've got to look for a cure.
Perhaps this won't be decided on
until November, 1852. This may
be the start of a long-range po-
litical campaign. The major part
of the job must be done back
home. We must convince the
people here in Washington in the
only way they can be convinced
by votes-that the whole (de-
fense) program is wrong"
James B. Carey, CLIO secretary
treasurer, told the labor rally that
hypocrisy and shameful gouging
of the American people are be-
coming more and more of COM
monplace under the present big
business rule of our Government. .
He said that business interests
are gorging themselves with prof
its and at the same time trying
to suppress the labor union move
ment.
Mr.. Carey produced figures in
(See LABOR, Page A-2)