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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 6, 1912)
The Commoner,, WILLIAM J. BRYAN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR VOL. 12, NO. 35 Lincoln, Nebraska, September 6, 1912 Whole Number 607 671 New Commoner Readers from One Community A Fine Tribute to The Commoner as Political Literature E. B. Moore, Editor "The Journal," Anamosa, Iowa Enclosed find list of 071 subscribe. Please send The Commoner to these parties until after the election. I would like to havo tho paper started to them this week. Four years ago, during tho national campaign, I sent 500 copies of The Commoner to the voters of Jones county. There is nothing equal to it as a campaign document in the way of educating voters who are open to conviction. It is away ahead of tho campaign literature sent out indiscriminately. Sixteen pages each week of such good political matter going into the hands of thoughtful readers is bound to havo beneficial results. This campaign of education four years ago brought great results in Jones county. If every county in Iowa followed the same plan of education and bucked it up with the proper organization to get out tho vote election day, Iowa would bo carried overwhelmingly for Wilson. As a member of tho democratic state com mittee, I shall use my best endeavor to got other counties to adopt tlio plan. PRESIDENT TAFT'S VETOES President Taft has used the veto power with & freedom that has seldom been known. Tho veto is in itself a mild reflection upon repre sentative government a relic of monarchical unwillingness to recognize the capacity of tho people for self government. Kings when they could no longer resist tho demand of the people for a voice in their own government, yiolded grudgingly and, yielding, sought to bolster up their declining power by reserving a veto. This reserve power of veto, however, is used with decreasing frequency in monarchical countries. It is only on rare occasions that a king of tho present day would dare to interpose a veto to anything that the people really desired. Even the veto preserved to colonial governors over a subject people is more nominal than real, and is only employed on extraordinary occasions and Is ever the source of discontent. In the estab lishment of our government, we went a step farther and qualified the veto of the executive. It is not final or conclusive. It merely delays action, compels reconsideration and sometimes requires the concurrence of a large percentage of the legislative body. It usually requires two thirds of both houses to override the executive .veto that is the rule in the federal government and in most of the states, although in some of the states a bare majority is sufficient. Most of our presidents have recognized that the veto power is intended for exceptional cases only and have used it sparingly and only when convinced that the measure vetoed violated some constitutional prbvislon. President Taft, how ever, has deemed it. his duty to put his judg ment against the judgment of congress wher- CONTENTS PRESIDENT TAFT'S VETOES THE END OP AN ERA ROOSEVELT'S MISREPRESENTATIONS THAT "STEP TOWARD SOCIALISM" THE LETTERS THAT STARTED THE TROUBLE THE MOTHER OF , TRUSTS "J "CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS AND P NE W CLUBS ! SUGGESTIONS P6R CLUB ORGANI- I NATIONS ' "IT IS TO THE DEMOCRATS Ift. CON-J 6RESS THAT "WE MUST LOOK FOR ANY EARLY FINANCIAL LEGISLATION" ; HOME DEPARTMENT . NEWS ;OFvTHE WEEK WASHINGTON NEWS M ;' r ever he and congress did not agree, and that, too, when the senate being republican, no measure of a purely partisan nature could reach him. To make tho case against his vetoes even stronger it may bo added that several of them have blocked legislation since it has be come apparent that his administration is un satisfactory to tho whole of tho democratic party and to more than half of the republican party. One of his early vetoes was tho one which ho used to delay Arizona's entrance into tho sister hood of states. The peoplo of that territory had by an overwhelming majority Indorsed a con stitution, written by their representatives, con taining a provision for the recall of officials, including judges. President Taft is very much opposed to the recall of judges, so much so that he would not permit Arizona to come Into tho union with that provision In its constitution. To meet his objection a bill was drawn requiring the people of Arizona to vote on this specific proposition thus giving them the right to accept it or reject it on its merits. Every state In the union has the right to do this; It can frame its constitution to suit itself, and amend it as it likes, providing, of course, that its provisions do not violate tho federal constitution. Oregon had already adopted the same provision that Arizona had and California has since adopted that provision. Tho supreme court has, since Mr. Taft's veto was written, refused to consider objections to the initiative and referendum adopted in several states, thus confirming tho right of tho states to act independently on such subjects. But the president, knowing that Arizona not only could restore the recall pro vision as soon as it became a state but would do It, went to the extent of vetoing the bill that had passed the senate and the house by an almost unanimous vote and forced tho Intro duction of another hill requiring the elimination of tho recall provision as a condition precedent to admission. It is probably the first instance in which a president put his personal opinion upon an immaterial question for his veto, while delaying, could not prevent the restora tion of the recall provision againct the opinion of both houses and against the wishes of tho people of a territory about to become a state. Such an act 'upon tho part of a king would be likely to result in the withdrawal of tho veto power, an d"5 Resident Taft's use of tho veto has stimulated more discussion than wo have had heretofore as to the wisdom of permitting an executive veto. The president also vetoed a bill abolishing the interstate corhmerce court an act for which no reasonably excuse can be given. We have an interstate commerce commission and we have a supremo court to which litigants can appeal. It was thought worth while to establish a special court for cases growing out of Interstate com merce but the court, either because of its per sonnel or for some other reason, has proven a great disappointment and congress refiocts an overwhelming public sentiment In demanding its abolition. Tho president, however, sets his judgment against this demand and tho court must remain until its opponents can secure a two-thirds majority in both houses or until another executive enters the White House. Tho president also used tho voto to prevent the establishment of a fixed torm for persons in tho civil service. While, as tho head of the administration and tho one in chargo of tht work done by tho civil service force, ho can present a stronger claim to a hearing in mat ters relating to government employes, still the representatives of the peoplo In congress are tho ones who must finally determine whothor tho official torm of government employes should be definite or indefinite in duration and the president might havo trusted the people to cor rect tho mistake through their representatives if a change in the tenure was found to bo a mis take. Tho president's tariff vetoes, however, will cause more widespread criticism than the others because they affect Immediately a larger num ber and that effect can bo more easily estimated in dollars. He has seen fit to take the side of the tax eater against tho tax payor; he has laid forcible hands on congress and restrained it from rescuing the people from grievous and long-borne burdens. He began his campaign for the presidential nomination by proclaiming himself a tariff re former. While adhering to the protective prin ciple, ho admitted tho necessity for a revision of the tariff in the interest of consumers using tho word revision before it had been made far cical by the Interpretation given to it by his friends and supporters. In tho campaign of 1908, his platform boldly demanded revision and hedged the word about with other words that could not but convey the impression that the revision was to be downward. The party prom ised "unequivocally" to call a special session "immediately." If the party intended an In crease in the tariff or an immaterial reduction why would it bo in such haste for a special ses sion? And why would It have fortified its promise with the word "unequivocally?" No fair-minded man could read the platform pledge without recognizing In It a pledge of reduction at least a pledge that was meant to be so accepted whether intended to bo kept or not. Mr. Taft evidently knew of the insincerity back of the platform pledge for he studiously avoided an Interpretation of that pledge. When asked whether the revision was to be up or down, ha said that somo of the schedules ought to be lowered and some raised, and, when still further pressed for an answer, he said that the revision would PROBABLY bo downward. When con gress met the beneficiaries of the tariff pro- Q