Minutes of a cabinet meeting, on discussions with the Center Party, the draft of the enabling act, rumors of French interference, and the activities of the SA

MINUTES OF THE CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS Monday, 20 March 1933, 11:15 a.m., at the Reich Chancellery
[Pages 3, 7]
1. Enabling act—The Reich Chancellor reported on the conference he had just completed with representatives of the Center party. He continued (to say)" that he based the necessity of the Enabling Act on this conference and that the representatives of the Center appreciated the necessity of such a law. The representatives of the Center had requested that a small committee be organized which would be informed, regularly, of measures taken by the Reich government on the basis of the Enabling Act. In their opinion, if this request were granted, the Center would
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doubtless ratify the Enabling Act. A ratification of the Enabling Act by the Center would mean increased prestige abroad.
The conference with the Center representatives would be continued on Wednesday.
The Reich Foreign Minister proposed a note concerning the arrangement to be agreed to by the representatives of the Center.
The Reich Minister for the Interior then expounded the contents of the attached draft of a law for the relief of the need of the people and the State. He pursued that, in his opinion, it would be most purposeful to introduce the draft as the initial proposal to the Reichstag. It would be best if the party leaders within the Reichstag would give their indorsement.
Changes in the standing rules of the Reichstag are also necessary. An explicit rule must be made that the unexcused absent delegates be considered present. It would probably be possible to ratify the Enabling Act on Thursday in all three readings.
The Deputy of the Reich Chancellor and Reich "Commissioner for Land Prussia continued (to say) that a new "Staatsgrundgesetz" [State basic Law] must be created which would be free of exaggerated parliamentarism. Maybe the Reich Chancellor in his statement of policy, could make such statements.
The Reich Chancellor continued he had just explained to the representatives of the Center, that the Reichstag could be constituted as a national assembly [Nationalversammlung] if the preparation for a new Reich constitution were complete.
The Reich Minister for Economics and Reich Minister for Food and Agriculture continued that a paragraph describing the Reichstag to be a national assembly might be inserted into the draft of the Enabling Act.
Reich Minister Goering continued that he had examined this question. However, he held this suggestion to be unadvisable.
The Reich Cabinet voted for the draft of a law for the relief of the need of the people and the State in the attached composition. *
5. Outside the Order of the Day: Announcements of Reich Minister Goering. Reich Minister Goering announced that he had been obliged to take Major General von Bredow's (retired) passport away from him. Von Bredow had been in Paris recently and had given as justification for his trip the visit to Ambassador Koester. Reich Minister Goering had learned that von Bredow had received recommendations from the French ambassador and the Belgian minister in Berlin, for general staff officers of the
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French and Belgian armies. Rumors had been circulating from circles close to Bredow that it was hoped—in opposition to Hitler's cabinet—that the German-French problem would be solved peaceably. Obviously, these circles wanted to overthrow Hitler's cabinet by means of foreign policy difficulties.
The Reich Minister continued that he had received no reports of these plans. In his opinion, they must be vigorously opposed.
Reich Minister Goering also announced that he had ordered SA-groups on the Polish border to be cautious. He had directed SA-groups not to show themselves in uniform.
The Reich Foreign Minister recommended the SA be cautious, especially in Danzig.
In addition, he pointed out that Communists in SA uniforms were being caught continuously. These stool pigeons had to be hanged. Justice had to find 'means and ways to make possible such an exemplary punishment for Communist stool pigeons.