Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-05-28
Pork Barrel "Relief. "

President Hoover has labeled the
Garner 81, 100, 100000 "relief BILL" now
introduced in the House, ''the most
gigantic pork barrel ever proposed to
the American Congress" And a pork
barrel bill it is, and so it will remain in
the minds of the American people. Con-
tanned in the Garner bill is a proposal
to expend 5000, OOO,0 900 on public works.
There are $500 projects Of various kinds
1900 of them are new post Office
buildings scattered throughout the
country.
At a time when the country IS de-
manding in no uncertain manner a
balancing of the Governments budget
SO that financial stability may be main
tanned and real return to business be
begun; at a time when the Congress is
seeking to frame revenue bill which
will raise more than billion dollars of
additional revenue from the people, and
at a time when the Congress Is at
work on an economy program" part
of which cuts the wages of the Gov
eminent workers, along comes this
proposal of Speaker Garner. It Is OBJ
vious, as the President points out, that
huge appropriations of funds from the
Treasury, no matter how raised, will
have to be made to build these post
Offices all over the country and for
construction work for other depart
ments.
How it is possible to balance the bud
get and at the same time impose this
new burden on the Federal Treasury
is something that Mr.. Garner will have
to tell the American people. 1t is true
that he proposes to borrow the money
through bond issue. But the money
will have to paid by the taxpayers.
That is the only way in which bonds
can be retired upon maturity. The
prospect of paying more and more taxes
to care for these bonds and for the in
terest they bear is not likely to appeal
to the imagination of the American
people, who are about to feel greatly
added tax burdens in the effort to bal
ance the budget
The President has correctly said that
We cannot spend ourselves out of debt.
Yet that Is what Mr.. Garner and those
who support huge public works pro-
grams are proposing. 1t cannot be
done. In defense of his bill and public
works program, the Speaker repeats
statements made by President Hoover
back in 1923, showing that the Chief
Executive then approved of a great
construction plan. But Mr.. Garner
forgets or wilfully ignores the differ
ence between the condition of the
United States Treasury and business in
this country in 1928 and the condition
which exists today. It is one thing to
engage on big public works program
when the country has plenty of money.
1t is very different thing when the
Treasury deficit is certain to be more
than $4,000. 100000.
The Garner bill is indefensible. Ap-
parently an adroit attempt has been
made to line up the people of all the
communities throughout the country
where little slice of the pork" is to
be consumed. But when the people
generally understand, in all those COM
munities, that they are the ones who
will have to foot the bill for these i'm
provements, many Of which are entirely
unnecessary, they are likely to agree
with President Hoover that this meas
ure, after all, is just raid" on the
Federal Treasury and, through the
Treasury, on the pocketbooks Of the
American people.
Pork barrel is the label attached
to the Garner bill. Nothing that the
Speaker and the supporters of his
measure can say will erase that label.