Clouds on the Hill

The big Democratic victories last November, said the President at his press conference last week, had sadly led him to believe that the people were not "too much concerned about inflation. But I think they have changed their minds." Ike's sidelong glance at one of the darkest moments of his Administration betrayed not at all the fact that White House staffers are wearing earsplitting grins behind closed doors, marveling at the too-good-to-last Administration success with the Democratic 86th Congress. Not only had the balanced budget carried the day, but in the U.S. Senate, spawning ground for 1960 Democratic presidential hopefuls. Democrats were fighting Democrats with increasing ferocity.

Latest to rise in attack on the leadership of Texan Lyndon Johnson was Louisiana's Russell Long, son of Huey and nephew of Earl. Long had helped Senate liberals sweat through the Senate a proposed tax-cut program (repeal of the 4% forgiveness on dividends, repeal of Korean war excise taxes on travel, telephones, etc.), calculated to impress the voters and embarrass the Administration. Then, before Long's very eyes, the long arms of Lyndon Johnson and House Speaker Sam Rayburn reached into the meeting of Senate-House conferees to compromise away all that had been fought for, and simply extend the taxes for another year.

"The people of this nation made a very serious decision last November," shouted Long. "They did not expect us to simply sit here and vote for the Eisenhower program . . . However, we are told when we consider these bills that in order to make the bills vetoproof, we must pare them down ... to the point where they have about one-quarter of the significance we intended. As a result the bills are 90% Eisenhower bills and 10% Democratic amendments."

In the end, the Senate endorsed tax extension, 57-35. But it was a perilous victory for Johnson: all 35 nay votes were cast by Democrats. Analyzing the vote, restive Pennsylvania Democrat Joe Clark (TIME, July 6) pointed out that a majority of Johnson's Democratic troops were not following him, that he was having his way only through a coalition of Republicans and Southern Democrats. Clark then began to circulate a secret tally sheet of seven recent key votes, showing that a heavy majority of Democrats supported liberal amendments, only to see them abandoned or defeated in conference committee by the conservative coalition. There was no immediate challenge to Johnson's leadership, but storm clouds were gathering.

Under the clouds last week: P: The Congress appropriated $6 billion in three bills--for the Agriculture, Commerce, State and Justice departments--shaving off $162 million from the President's requests. ("They say we are budget busters and big spenders," raged House Speaker Rayburn in a rare public outburst, "and all the time we are cutting down on their bills. I don't understand it.") In the $4.6 billion farm-appropriation bill, both houses voted a ceiling on individual farm subsidies to put a stop to subsidy millionaires, but in the final maneuvering it was raised from $50,000 per farmer to $50,000 per crop. P: The Senate overrode a favorite project of Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bill Fulbright (and the State Department): putting the Foreign Aid Development Loan Fund on a five-year basis by the device of borrowing $1 billion annually from the Treasury. In mid-debate. South Dakota Republican Francis Case casually made a point of order: Wasn't this provision circumventing the Appropriations Committee, which should approve all such spending schemes? Republican Leader Ev Dirksen deftly used Case's objection to block the measure. Finally Dirksen reached a compromise with Majority Leader Johnson, and a substitute amendment was effortlessly pushed through, essentially the way the Administration wanted it. It provided $2 billion for development loans over the next two years--with a hooker: the Appropriations Committee must render its approval again next year. For President Eisenhower, whose previous support of long-range economic development had been overbalanced by his yearning to get a balanced budget, it was another bouquet from the boys on Capitol Hill. For Arkansan Fulbright, it was a major blow. For Johnson it was another doubtful, cloud-seeding victory.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.