The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1932-10-28
PRESIDENT HOOVER AT DETROIT

(FrOm minneapolis TrlDune)
1t was a whitening, blasting assault on one of the most vuI
nerable sectors in the Democratic line that Mr.. Hoover made at
Detroit Saturday night. Behind all of Governor Rooseve's glib
promises of economy, behind all his shallow indictments of the
administrations fiscal policies, behind all of his superficial carp
ings and criticisms. there looms the towering record of the Dem
ocratc mouse OF representatives, and it stands today as the
partys monument to recklessness, obstructonism and the brfm-
ming pork barrel Mr.. Hoover knows that record, he knows that
the Democratic candidate has never disavowed it, and he struck
accordingly at the pivotal point where Governor Roosevelt has
not even attempted to close up the gaping holes. The attack was
clean and sure, because Mr. Hoover was certain of his ground,
and the result was devastating.
The Presidents Detroit address was by all odds his most
militant and vigorous thrust into opposition territory. He
plainly aroused by the "misstatements of facts" and the con-
clusions amazingly removed from truth" which had emanated
from the Democratic camp. Hr. Hoover did not mince words,
he did not insnuate, he did not deliver glancing blows. His
attack was as direct as blunt, and as merci1ess as an attack
could be that was inspired, not by personal animus spite, but
by a relentless insistence on the plain, unvarnished truth.
Save possibly when he discusses the tariff, Mr.. Roosevelt
is never more inconsistent, more careless with the facts, and
more hopelessly at sea than when he deals with the subject of
federal finances and economy. 1t was glaringly apparent that at
Pittsburgh, where Mr.. Roosevelt was attempting to indict the
Republican party for its extravaganza, he could not bring him.
self to tell the whole truth about the increase in federal expendi-
lures between 1927 and 1881. That these expenditures were almost
wholly for the relief of the depression, that ss15y5ooOoo repre-
sented an emergency relief outlay, was apparently not of the
slightest Importance to the Democratic candidate.
Mr.. Roosevelt hints cheerfully of a billion dollar reduction
in the ordinary, routine expenditures which would take place
under his administration, but carefully avoids explaining by what
series of major operations that reduction would be made. He
talks darkly of an administration conspiracy to conceal and mis-
represent the fiscal facts when he knows that the record of act
ual federal expenditures and receipts is made available to the
public eyerv day in the and that n O such concealment "
Misrepresentation is possible. He pays lip service to the ideal
of economy while negecting to make practical application of
that ideal in his administration of New York state, and he taunts
with the charge of extravaganza an administration which staunch-
ly resisted every effort of his own party to foist expenditures of
sS,5OOOOO,OOO upon the nation at the last session on congress.
Mr.. Roosevelt could speak with infinitely more conviction
and sincerity on economy, and he could attribute all the countrys
fiscal difficulties to the Hoover administration with far less en-
barrassment, if he had practiced economy as governor of New
York, or if he had taken occasion to disapprove the utterly rash
and prodiga1 policies pursued last winter and spring by the Dem
ocratic house of representatives. That he approves most or all
of those policies, in the absence of any word to the contrary, is
a fair assumption, and that he would be ably abetted in the pur-
suit of those policies by Mr.. Garner, in case of a Democratic
victory, is entirely reasonable to suppose.
The house record, as it was cited by Mr.. Hoover on Satur-
day night, offers an overwhelming body of proof that the Dem
ocratic party was definitely committed in practice to almost
everything that Governor Roosevelt is pleased to condemn in
theory only. The President called the roll at Detroit and up
bobbed the Gascue omnibus pension bill. the patchwork revenue
bill, the rubber dollar" price fixing bill, the shamefully mutt
lated economy bill, the GarnerRainey 81 200,00O,O0O pork barrel
bill, the Patman ST. 0OO OO 600 fiat money bill and other meas
ures that sprang from an opportunistic, spendthrift, improvident
Democratic house. e = =