US Presidency
1944

America's own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for all our citizens. For unless there is security here at home there can not be lasting peace in the world. One of the great American industrialists of our day, a man who has rendered yeoman service to his country in this crisis, recently emphasized the grave dangers of rightist reaction in this nation. Any recreation business men share that concern. Indeed, if such reaction should develop, if history were to repeat itself and we were to return to the so-called normalcy of the 19February, 1899, then it is certain that even though we shall have conquered our enemies on the battlefields abroad, we shall have yielded to the spirit of fascism here at home. I ask the Congress to explore the means for implementing this economic bill of rights, for it is definitely the responsibility of the Congress so to do, and the country knows it.