2002 Congressional Record-Senate Senate
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2002 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-SENATE FEBRUARY 16 SENATE State the equal protection of the laws, and to punish the crime of lynching. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, l938 The VICE PRESIDENT. A cloture motion on the pending (Legislative day of Wednesday, January 5, 1938) bill having been filed, which motion is to be voted on, under the rule, at 1 o'clock today, by virtue of an order of the Senate The Senate met at 12 o'clock meridian on the expiration agreed to yesterday, the time from now until 1 o'clock will of the recess. be controlled one-half by the Senator from New York [Mr. THE JOURNAL WAGNER] and one-half by the Senator from Texas [Mr. CoN On request of Mr. BARKLEY, and by unanimous consent, NALLY]. the reading of the Journal of the proceedings of the calen Mr. WAGNER. Mr. President, I propose, in opening, to dar day Tuesday, February 15, 1938, was dispensed with, and make a very brief statement and then to yield the remainder the Journal was approved. of the time allotted to the proponents of the pending bill to MESSAGE FROM THE HOUSE the senior Senator from Kentucky· [Mr. BARKLEY] to conclude A message from the House of Representatives, by Mr. the debate. Calloway, one of its reading clerks, announced that the I need hardly remind the Senate that we are still in the House had passed without amendment the following bills of legislative day of January 5, 1938. For almost the entire the Senate: period of the present session, covering about 6 calendar S. 628. An act to provide for the construction and equip weeks, the antilynching bill has been the unfinished busi ment of a building for the experiment station of the Bureau ness of the Senate. Almost 3 weeks ago, a motion to limit of Mines at Salt Lake City, Utah; and debate failed of approval. Today, after 3 more weeks of S. 2383. An act to amend the act authorizing the Attor discussion, we are far from a vote on the bill or on any ney General to compromise suits on certain contracts of amendment thereto. Yet, not by the farthest stretch of the insurance. imagination can it be said that this measure has not been The message also announced that the House had passed exhaustively discussed from every conceivable standpoint. the following bills, in which it requested the concurrence of The situation before the Senate is very plain. We are in the Senate: the midst of an acknowledged filibuster. When, as here, a H. R. 9361. An act to maintain unimpaired the capital comparatively small group of Senators are determined that of the Commodity Credit Corporation at $100,000,000, and a question shall not be brought to a vote and are willing to for other purposes; and exercise all their rights under the Senate's rules, as they have H. R. 9379. An act to authorize the Secretary of the· been doing in this instance, it is very difficult to obtain a Treasury to cancel obligations of the Reconstruction Finance vote within the Senate rules short of invoking cloture. That Corporation incUrred in supplying funds for relief at the was apparent 3 weeks ago; today, any shadow of doubt on authorization or direction of Congress, and for other pur that score has been removed. poses. Mr. President, this bill is here by unanimous consent, CALL OF THE ROLL given toward the close of the last session. All during these Mr. LEWIS. I suggest the absence of a quorum and ask weeks of filibustering, the proponents of the measure have for a roll call. been willing at any time to submit any question to a vote, The VICE PRESIDENT. The clerk will call the roll. whether upon an amendment or upon final passage of the The Chief Clerk called the roll, and the following Senators bill. That vote we are entitled to have and, Mr. President, answered to their names: we are determined to secure it. Adams Ccpeland Johnson, Calif. Pepper It is a curious argument indeed that this filibuster is justi Andrews Davis Johnson, Colo. Pope Ashurst Dieterich King Radcliffe fied on the ground that unlimited debate is essential to Austin Donahey La Follette Reynolds democracy. If the demonstration of unlimited debate which Bailey Duffy Lee Russell we have experienced here is any illustration, then democracy Bankhead Ellender Lewis Schwartz Barkley Frazier Lodge Schwellenbach is indeed imperiled. The cause of democracy is subverted, Berry George Logan Sheppard not advanced, by this demonstration of its utter inability to Bilbo Gerry Lonergan Shipstead function. Bone Gibson McAdoo Smith Borah Gillette McGill Thomas, Okla. The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law Bridges Glass McKellar Thomas, Utah of the land. It was adopted, among other reasons, in order Brown, Mich. Green McNary Townsend Bulkley Guffey Maloney Truman to establish justice, promote the general welfare, and secure Bulow Hale Miller Tydings the blessings of liberty for our people. The free and appro Burke Harrison Milton Vandenberg Byrd Hatch Minton VanNuys priate enjoyment of the various fundamental civil rights Byrnes Hayden Murray Wagner embodied in the amendments to the Constitution are the Capper Herring Neely Walsh very basis of any democratic form of government, local or Caraway Hill Norris Wheeler Chavez Hitchcock Nye otherwise. Foremost among these fundamental guaranties Clark Holt O'Mahoney is that all persons be accorded the equal protection Connally Hughes Overton of the laws and due process of law. It is the high purpose Mr. LEWIS. I announce that the · Senator from Oregon of this bill to make a reality of these fundamental guaran [Mr. REAMES] is detained from the Senate because of illness. ties in a situati-on where notoriously they have been naught The Senator from New Hampshire [Mr. BROWN] is absent but shameful mockeries. We seek to insure that every on important public business. man, however humble and whatever his race or creed, The junior Senator from Nevada [Mr. McCARRANJ and the shall be given a fair trial by his peers when accused of senior Senator from Nevada [Mr. PITTMAN] are detained on crime. official business in their State. As I have repeatedly said, this bill need never be invoked The Senator from New Jersey [Mr. SMATHERS] is necessarily if the States do their duty under the Federal Constitution. detained. It applies only where the omcers or subdivisions of the States The Senator from Minnesota [Mr. LUNDEEN] is detained on have failed in that duty. business pertaining to his State in one of the Government de Every Senator has expressed his horror of lynching. The partments. overwhelming majority of Senators favor this legislation. I The VICE PRESIDENT. Eighty-nine Senators have an plead with each and every one of them to vote for cloture, swered to their names. A quorum is present. so that the debate may be brought to a prompt conclusion. PREVENTION OF AND PUNISHMENT FOR LYNCHING In the present circumstances, a vote against cloture is bound The Senate resumed the consideration of the bill (H. R. to be regarded as a vote against the bill, whatever the 1507) to assure to persons within the jurisdiction of every reservations or protestations of Senators may be. 1938 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD-SENATE 2003 I plead also with those who are opposed to the measure That is what Mr. Krock says. Hejs not a southerner. He not to let their opposition take the form of frustrating the is not a partisan. He is not standing here representing the people's constitutional right to declare their will on this forces of darkness and of sectionalism. That is Mr. Krock's important public question through their elected representa reply. A constituent of the Senator from New York makes tives. reply to his Senator here on the floor. There can be no question that the fullest possible con Mr. President, I quote from another great publicist and sideration has been given to this bill. I plead with all columnist, Mr. Walter Lippmann, of New York. What does Senators: Whatever your views on the merits of the bill may he say about the bill? I hold in my hand an article by Mr. be, let us have an opportunity to vote. Only in that way Lippmann, published on February 1. What does Mr. Lipp will we vindicate the essential principle of representative mann say in the article? He says that this so-called fili government. buster is not only a popular filibuster throughout the coun The VICE PRESIDENT. The Chair understands the Sen try, but that it is a justified filibuster. Is Mr. Lippmann a ator from New York to yield the balance of his time to the narrow southerner? Is he actuated by prejudice and ani Senator from Kentucky [Mr. BARKLEY]. mosity? Mr. WAGNER. I do. Mr. President, these articles show that the debate on this Mr. CONNALLY. Mr. President-- bill has not been futile, but has resulted in arousing the The VICE PRESIDENT. The Senator from Texas. people of America to a consciousness that this bill is a mere Mr. CONNALLY. How much time have I available? piece of hypocrisy, and is a mere snare set to catch the The VICE PRESIDENT. The Senator from Texas has 26 unsuspecting colored votes, at the expense of oppressing the minutes. States and ousting their jurisdiction in a field which under Mr. CONNALLY. I thank the Chair. the Constitution has been theirs, and theirs alone, since Mr. President, the question upon which the Senate is to the Constitution itself was adopted, and since the fourteenth vote today is not the passage of the bill as such, but is the amendment was adopted.