The President's News Conference

TRANSFER OF THE DIVISION OF COOPERATIVE MARKETING

THE PRESIDENT. At the recommendation of both the Farm Board and the Department of Agriculture, I am issuing an Executive order [No. 5200] today to transfer the Division of Cooperative Marketing from the Department to the Farm Board, as a matter of facilitating the Board's work.

JOHN MCNAB AND THE STUDY ON LAW ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION AND MACHINERY

John McNab of San Francisco, has accepted the joint request of the Attorney General, Secretary Mellon, Mr. Wickersham, and myself to study and to formulate, in cooperation with those Departments and the Law Enforcement Commission, the changes in Federal administration and the judicial machinery which we will recommend to Congress for the more efficient enforcement of the laws under the 18th amendment. I told you before, I think, on several occasions that the general lines of reorganization of the administrative side are to centralize the administrative authority in one place, so that the Department of Justice covers all questions of investigation and enforcement. And Mr. McNab and his staff, in cooperation with the Government agencies, will also study the methods for expediting judicious procedure in these questions.

These proposals have to do solely with questions of administrative procedure and do not cover any question of change in the laws themselves. It is expected that we will be able to make definite recommendations to Congress on its assembly in December.

I have been in hopes that Congress would appoint a joint commission, which I recommended last June, so that in cooperation with other administrative agencies we could have the bills formulated at an earlier [p.309] date than will be possible if the whole matter will have to be recanvassed by committees of Congress after the opening of the session. However, that rests with them.

This is all I have this morning.