Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1920-10-01
(PoliticaI Advertising.)
REPUBLICAN, COLUMN
MORE THAN TWO BILLION DOL
LARS SAVED BY REPURLI-
CAN CONGRESS.
(By Congressman Guy U. Hardy, OF
COlorado.l

IL is Iresn even IN the memory or
many that on the eve of the last eiec-
tion President Wilson sent out a
strong request for the country to
give him Democratic Congress.
The country rather emphatically
declined to follow the Presidents
request.
1t is Just beginning to dawn upon
some what a fortunate thing 1t was
that the county declined--that the
present congress is Republican.
Several good reasons might be cit
ed-but take the question Of appro-
priations. That ought to be suffi-
cient
We havo no budget system. This
Congress passed q budget bill which
would have been mighty good start
IL that direction, but President Will
son vetoed tho bill
AT the present time the Congress
makes up it's appropriations from
Book of Estimates furnished by the
different heads of departments of
the government. 1t is a big book of
4 thousand pages made up of the
estimates furnished by the cabinet
members and their subordinates.
This is backed up by the personal
appearance before the appropriations
committee of the various heads of
departments.
These estimates are supposed to be
the actual needs of the government.
In twenty years before these esti-
mates have been cut down only to-
tai of about 100000.
Well, you remember that the DEM
ocratic congress-the 65th-got into
q tangle at its close and failed to
pass the necessary appropriation bills.
This caused President Wilson to
call the 66th Congress in special ses-
sion on May 10, 1919.
When Congress met it found that
the Democratic House of the 65th
Congress had passed the necessary
bills, but that they failed Of passage
in the Senate. The Democratic
House adjourned on March 4th and
the new Republican Congress came
on tho job May 18th, SO much time
had not elapsed.
The Democratic House had passed
the bills at total of $3,767 1915, ,974,-
73. The new Republican Congress
passed the same bills, but cut the to-
tai appropriation down to s2,S28,-
283,532.76.
That was a clean saving Of $685.
92,451.97. This was for the fiscal
year ending June 80, 1920. And the
government seemed to get along
pretty well.
When the Congress met in regular
session it had the Book OF Estimates
for the fiscal year ending June 80.
1921, to consider.
This book and subsequent esti-
- 49, I~1 -.
L I$6,334,312.929.46.
After months of consideration,
during which the committee spent
departments for money, this Con-
only $4,859, ,89O,3 ,327.30.
Here was a clean saving of ST.
474, ,428, ,602.16.
That was a total saving of S3,414,-
115, ,144.13 for the two sessions.
No doubt some worthy enterprises
were cut out or cut down low. but
the leaders of this Congress felt that
this was no time for reckless expen-
ditures and the bills were cut to the
bone. This may we'll be called
porkless Congf ess.
The public debt today is about q
billions. There is little doubt in the
minds of those familiar with appro-
priations in Congress that Ii Presi-
dent Wilson had been given the
Democratic congress he asked for
that the public debt today would
be fully 26 billions of dollars.
Surely this two billion dollars
and more-saving will make any
thinking citizen-any taxpaying citi-
zen-be he Democrat or Republican
fairly well satisfied with the re-
suits of the last election.