Atlanta Daily World

Home Rule For District Of
Columbia Believed Near
By MICHAEL KRAFT

WASHINGTON (UPI)-A determined group of congressmen is confident that, aided by the civil rights issue, this will be the year to disassociate residents of the nation's capital from lunatics and criminals.

Supporters of home rule for the District of Columbia predict the award of statehood to Hawaii and Alaska will also help prod Congress into giving Washington residents the right to run their own affairs - a right they point out is also denied to the insane and residents of penitentiaries.

Although the Senate passed a home rule bill last April, for the fifth time in 12 years, the legislation has remained bottled up in the southern-dominated House District Affairs Committee.

Thus, hopes for congressional action on home rule center around a petition to discharge the bill from the committee and bring it directly to the House floor.

RAYBURN'S STATEMENT
AIDES

An "all out drive is underway to obtain the needed 219 signatures. Following a recent strategy meeting by the bi-partisan steering committee members said, efforts to obtain the approximately 80 remaining signatures were being aided by speaker Sam Rayburn's recent statement on civil rights.

The Texan reversed his long standing coolness to discharge petitions by inviting civil rights supporters to sign one if they want House actions.

Rep. John F. Baldwin, Jr., Ariz said "those who now see their way clear to sign the petition can no longer argue that they have a general policy against signing petitions."

Another leader for home rule, Rep. Stewart Udall D-Ariz declared that "none of us have home rule constituencies but most of us have civil rights support.

He predicted there would be a fairly close correlation between signers of the two petitions.

53 PER CENT NEGROES

Supporters acknowledge, however, that the civil rights was not an entirely unmixed blessing, pointing out that the civil rights aspects of home rule are "a hand grenade" for southern congressmen.

But supporters claim they were forced to try the petition method by southerners who control the district committee and oppose home rule because 53 per cent of Washington's population is Negro.

The home rule bill passed by the Senate, introduced by Sen. Wayne Morse D-Ore provides for a city council and elected executive.

The administration bill before the House committee would have the executive appointed by the President with actions subject to final White House veto.