The Farmville herald and farmer-leader. (Farmville, Va.) 1934-1957, 1957-01-01
Leaders Of Effort
I 0 Lin it d G b a t e
Striving F or FEPC

+ XXI and a vote against amend
nent is a yQse against civil rights
leg.sl alton those who think they
Gan be against rules7 change and
for civil rights are deserving them
Belyes,' Douglas said>
THE only thing we could pass
WITHOUT filibusterF' said Ives.
would be minimum: legislation,
without practical effect" But he
refused to say what would be in
cluded in the scope OF minimum
legislation.
Aiming For FEPC
But in answer to a question
about FEPC. Ives saia that what
he and Sen Hubert Humphrey
tD-Mlnn) with Douglas the
big Democratic ramrod for civil
rights legislation in the senate
have in mind is an FEPC bill.
Both Douglas and Ives attempt
ed to convey the impression that
their principal interest was not in
the passage of an .FEPC-ba
civil rights program, buC merely
in the repeal of Rule XXI, on
grounds that with the rude the
Senate cannot run itself -
Under questioning, however,
they conceded that the para
mount immediate issue before
the Senate which is dependent on
the outcome of the Rule XXI
fight is the civil rights question
that is, said Ives, the para
mount issue before the country to-
day but the principal involved
here goes deeper under this rule
the Senate can't run itself; that's
the real issue here
But Douglas said frankly that
If we do not change the rules Of
the Senate, it will be impossible to
get any meaningful civil rights
legislation through the Senate.
With the state of public opinion
or articulate public opinion being
what it is in the South. senators
from that area, no matter what
their internal opinions may be,
must resist civil rights legisla-
tioR
Have secret Allies"
He added that in addition to q
basic resistance force of % South
erners, they viii have enough Sc
eret allies to block cloture."
Ives explained that some sena-
tiers. although supposedly fayoring
civil rights legislation, would not
70 along with any move tending
ITO limit debate. This. he said. was
particularly true Of senators from
smaller states - he cited, as an
example, Sen. Styles Bridges r.
NH. chairman Of the Republic
can Policy Committee in the Sem
ate and a civil rights advocate
bLlt an unwavering hacker Of I'M
limited debate.
Ives said the ability of the civil
rights advocates TO break the fill
buster which undoubtedly would
greet their legislation with defeat
Of the rules change would de-
pend upon the physical stamina
Of the non filibustering senators.
1T would mean that they would
have to stay in constant touch
with the floor, THAT they'd have to
be available to answer quorum
calls"
New Day Begins,
This is true because one>2 quo
rum failed to answer a roIlca|l a
nev~ legislative day would begin
The only limitation, in the absence
Tof cloture. existing on Senate de-
bate Is that senator may make
only two speeches in one leglsla-
tive day-if a new legislative day
were declared upon each absence
of a quorum, it would expand the
opportunity of Southern senators
to relieve each other on the floor.
The two senators would not say
how many votes they think they
have III support OF their effort to
change the rules ~ they agreed
they would have more than the
Fl which supported a similar move
bv sen. Clinton p. Anderson. ID
NM.1 in 1853. but how many
more they would not say.
docs MacyS tell Climbers
DOUGLAS asked. not coming re
tort
Sen. Ives said he had received
some ENCOURAGEMENT" from the
White House .for what he is doing,
, but was quick To say that the en-
enlargement came neither. from
+ President Eisenhower nor from
Nixon. He said that as matter
4 of fact he would resent" any eff
fort by the President to dictate
+ what the Senate should do - and
added that hid thought such a
move bv Mr.. Eisenhower would be
damaging to the program as IL
unl,sd .build llp resistance and re-
+ sentiment for the head Of one
branch Of government to tell an
other branch what it ought to
do"
Ruling Unknown
He said he did not know how
Nixon would rule on the issue be-
fore him whether the Senate Is
a continuing BODY and It's rules
therefore in continuing effect o.
t4 o4io,, ..to ,,rOcae1 II