1947: United States

A summary of the legislative, judicial and political events of 1947 in the United States is presented below. Detailed articles on other aspects of the national scene and on the United States in world affairs appear under separate headings.

CONGRESS: REGULAR SESSION

New Congress.

The first session of the 80th Congress convened on Jan. 3, 1947. For the first time in fourteen years the Republicans were in the majority, with 51 Republicans to 45 Democrats in the Senate, and with 245 Republicans against 187 Democrats in the House. Joseph W. Martin Jr. of Massachusetts was elected the 45th Speaker of the House by a strict party-line vote of 244 to 182 over the former Speaker, Sam Rayburn of Texas, who accepted the House minority leadership. Among the other new key men in the House were Charles A. Halleck of Indiana, majority floor leader; John Taber of New York, chairman of the Appropriations Committee; and Fred A. Hartley, of New Jersey, chairman of the Labor Committee. On the Senate side, the new leaders included Robert A. Taft of Ohio, chairman of the Republican Committee of Policy and also the important Labor and Public Welfare Committee; Arthur H. Vandenberg of Michigan, president pro tempore, and chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee; Wallace H. White Jr. of Maine, head of the Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee and majority floor leader, replacing Alben W. Barkley of Kentucky; and Kenneth S. Wherry of Nebraska, majority whip. For the first time in history, television was used to record the opening proceedings.

Bilbo Dispute.

Before the Senate could get down to business, a contest arose over the attempt to seat Theodore G. Bilbo, a Democrat of Mississippi, who was accused of intimidating Negroes from voting and of violating the law in his dealings with war contractors. Bilbo, who was said to be a sick man, gave his consent to have the question of seating him pigeon-holed for at least two months pending a hearing, and he returned home for a new cancer operation. When the debate over Bilbo's seating was in progress, the southern Democrats, raising the banner of states' rights, began a filibuster which delayed the swearing in of 36 new and re-elected senators. A compromise between the two factions was reached, however, which allowed Bilbo to receive his pay and allowances as a senator, even though he was not an active member. It was agreed that his credentials should remain without prejudice and without action until the Senate should decide the case. But the case was never fully decided, as Bilbo died of cancer of the mouth in a New Orleans hospital on August 21, at the age of 69.

Major Issues Before Congress.

The new Congress was faced with many serious problems which touched on virtually all phases of the nation's international and national policy. Among the important issues which had to be decided were reduction of income taxes, curtailment of government spending, investigation of wartime activities of government agencies and of war contracts, merger of the Army and Navy, universal military training, revision of the Wagner Labor Act, termination of the Administration's special wartime powers, relaxation of the immigration laws to admit some of Europe's homeless, appropriations for international relief on a country-by-country basis, creation of a new peacetime tariff policy, limitation on presidential tenure of office, and consideration of a new line of succession in the event of the death of both the President and the Vice-President.

Termination of Emergency Laws.

Just before the convening of Congress, President Truman announced the formal termination of the period of hostilities in World War II. Since the state of emergency declared by President Roosevelt on Sept. 8, 1939, the nation had operated under hundreds of special laws designed to speed the victory and, later, reconversion to peacetime activities. On New Year's Eve, President Truman's proclamation abrogated twenty of the government's wartime powers immediately and thirty-three within the following six months. But nearly 500 other wartime laws still remained in effect. However, the most striking result of the President's action was the ending of the government's right to seize strike-bound plants, under the Smith-Connally Act of 1943, and a reduction of $1,500,000,000 in excise war taxes, effective July 1, 1947.

President's Messages.

The new Congress took little action on any of the proposed legislation, however, while awaiting President Truman's message on the State of the Union, which was delivered to a joint session on January 6. In 7,000 words the President declared that industry must hold price lines and labor must not ask wage increases that would boost prices. He insisted that there should be compulsory arbitration of disputes over existing contracts. He asked that legislation be enacted which would outlaw jurisdictional strikes and secondary boycotts. He called for the strengthening of federal mediation machinery, and recommended that Congress set up a commission to study other aspects of preventing industry-wide strikes.

Other features of the message favored the reduction of the national debt and the continuance of the wartime excise tax, although no mention was made of an income tax cut. The President suggested new legislation to curb the concentration of industrial power and the aiding of new enterprises. He asked for the enactment of a bill which should provide 500,000 public low-rental units in the next four years. He favored additional relief for farmers by providing outlets for farm surpluses. The President favored the merging of the armed forces in a single department of national defense, and urged the establishment of universal military training. He did not recommend a veterans' bonus program. Congress was also asked to enact legislation to strengthen federal action to protect rights which may be jeopardized by racial and religious bigotry.

In the field of foreign affairs, President Truman declared that the United States must take the lead in the making of peace treaties. Referring to the relationship between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, he proclaimed that despite many differences, the fundamental interests of the two countries were the same. He pleaded for an early peace, high production, and collective security. He called for legislation permitting the entry of more displaced persons into the United States. He further insisted that world trade must be made as free as possible. On the subject of atomic energy, the President declared that peacetime uses of such energy must be pushed and effective international control speeded.

The speech as a whole was not hailed as a triumph for the President, although the consensus seemed to be that the President's tone of approach was admirable, especially as he pleaded for co-operation between the legislative and executive branches. It was the first time in twenty-seven years that a President had faced a Congress controlled in both branches by political opponents. The Republicans criticized the message because it offered no blueprint for the legislative structure Congress would be expected to erect; and the Democrats praised the speech as one within the constitutional concept of a report on the state of the union with general recommendations for improvement.

Two days after this major speech, President Truman sent his 30,000-word 'Economic Report of the President' to Congress, and two days later he sent his budget message to Capitol Hill. This last filled a volume of 1,626 pages, and weighed 6 pounds 4 ounces. The State of the Union message, the economic report, and the budget message charted an economic course for the nation at home and abroad.

The President, in his budget message, recommended appropriations of 37½ billion dollars for the fiscal year 1947-1948. The items were broken down as follows: national defense, $11,300,000,000; veterans' services, $7,300,000,000; interest on public debt, $5,000,000,000; international affairs, $3,500,000,000; social welfare, $1,700,000,000; and all others, $8,700,000,000. He also urged that tax rates be kept at their current levels and that the special wartime excise levies be continued indefinitely. The Republicans thought the budget recommendations too high by three to eight billion dollars and asked for a 20 per cent reduction in income tax levies.

Outlook for Co-operation.