The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1936-01-23


Deals lavish spending, and that when
this spending ceases there will be a
consequent shrinking of the national
income. The same spending program
which has created a measure of arti-
fetal recovery has at the same time
resulted in a definite drag on real re-
covery, since it tends to impair the
Nations credit and create uncertainty
in the public mind.
New Deal Insincerity
The assertion of Democratic lead
ers that new taxation is unnecessary
is as insincere as it is ridiculous. It
is being made for purely political
purposes, just as the Democratic plat
form of 1882 was made to run on and
not to stand on. The fact is that new
and increased taxes are inevitable un-
less we are going to turn to the is
suance of printing-press money, which
by initiating prices to the sky and thus
destroying purchasing power, would
still be taxation in another and more
destructive form.
Taxes are naturally unpopular. No
one likes to pay them, and the Demo-
Gratis don't care to antagonize the vo-
tiers just before election. They want
to continue playing Santa Claus and
forget all about taxes-at least for
the time being. Possibly in the COM
ing campaign we may find them using
the slogan Billions for expenditures,
but no new taxes in payment thereof"
However, it will be just as false as
was the slogan "He kept US out of
war;" on which President Wilson cam
paigned for reelection in 1916, then
asking Congress to declare war on
Germany.
In this connection, it is significant
that Administration leaders have been
careful not to make definite promise
that there will be no new taxes levied
after the election. They know better
! than to do this, because that is when
the day for beginning to pay the piper
will come. Even if they did make such
promise, their word could not be
relied upon in view of their failure to
carry out the solemn pledges of their
1882 platform.
Extravaganza Run Riot
Many Democrats are insisting that
it would be unwise to balance the
Budget at the present time. This is
perhaps because of the fact that it
would be absolutely impossible to do
so at the present level Of expenditures,
which amount to nearly $4,000, 000,-
900 annually. New Deal extravaganza
has so run riot that it would necessi-
tate the doubling of the present tax
burden, and the people simply could
not stand the load. The Democrats
have apparently lost sight of the fact
that there are two sides to Budget
the income side and the expenditure
side-and that if they can't make
their revenues equal their expendi-
lures, they might try making their
expenditures equal their revenues.
We may expect the Democrats dur
ing the approaching election cam
paign to use every effort to convince
the people that they have been very
lenient in the matter of new taxes,
but such is not the case. Actually, the
New Deal Administration has imposed
heavy burdens on the taxpayers, par
ticularly on those of small means.
In his Albany speech of July 80,
1882, Candidate Roosevelt said:
sour party sees clearly that
not only must government income
meet prospective expenditures
but that this income must be OBJ
tanned on the principle of the
ability to pay. This is a declara-
ton in favor of graduated in
come, inheritance and profit
taxes; and against taxes on food
and clothing, whose burden is ac-
tually shifted to the consumer"
In spite of this declaration, one of
the first legislative enactments of the
Roosevelt Administration was the law
under which over a billion dollars in
processing taxes have been unconsti-
tutionally imposed on bread, meats,
cotton goods, and other necessities of
life. Regardless of the merits or de-
merits of the AAA program, it cannot
be denied that these processing taxes
bore most heavily upon those least
able to bear them, and that they have
resulted in an enormous increase in
the cost of living, while salaries and
wages remained the same. Fortunate
ly, the Supreme Court has now invali-
dated these Ubiquitous levies.
The Administration also has con-
tinued for three years beyond their
intended expiration date the socalled
nuisance taxes, which cost the tax
payers nearly $5O0,OOO,OOO annually.
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