Evening star., 1938-07-24

drowned out by
shouts that he is
seeking its repeal.
Indecent motives "A''" "A'"""'
are attributed to every one who dis
agrees even in the slightest with the
President and his New Dealers.
Republican criticism of the Social
Security Act has not been directed at
the objective of the act, Ito provide
a greater measure Of security for
American wage-earners and thereby
to enhance the welfare of the Nation
as a whole The point OF Republican
criticism has been that as drafted
the Social Security Act does not and
will not promote greater security for
wage-earners. Republicans in Con-
gress have warned that the heavy
taxes on pay rolls and pay envelopes
levied under the act would have
harmful effects, with inconsequential
benefits.
Contributed to Depression.
Truth in time will establish itself.
We have heard Mariner s. Eccles.
chairman Of the Board of Governors
OF the Federal Reserve System and an
ardent New Dealer, say that the with
drawal OF consuming power through
social security taxes is one Of the
major contributory causes OF the
Roosevelt depression.
Now We have the testimony of the
American Association for Social Sc
curity, published in its current bulletin
This organization for years has fought
Tor the promotion OF social security
and social insurance in the United
States Its executive secretary is
Abraham Epstein. frequently called the
father OF social security" In this
country. Its president Is Bishop
Francis j. Mcconnell of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. Among its direc-
tors are Mser. Francis J. Haas, dean
OF the School of Social Service
Catholic University; Rabbi Stephen S.
Wise. Mrs. Mary K Simkhovitch. the
well-known social worker and many
other socially persons. These
people are neither partisans nor re-
actionaries
Do they believe with President
Roosevelt that the successful opera
ton Of the Social Security Act is
the best proof that is was soundly
conceived? They do not. Indeed, the
American Association for Social Sc
curity f1nds that the act is neither
"soundly conceived nor that its op-
Grafton has been successful.
Created Greater Insecurity.
Instead of increasing purchasing
power. the association finds the act
has diminished it. Instead of giving
workers security the association finds
the act has created greater insecurity
for them. Instead of helping indus
trial workers. the association finds
that the acts chief result has been to
create new bureaucracy and gov
ernment jobs for tens of thousands
OF clerks.
Referring to New Deal claims of
the success achieved in the old-aae
insurance system, the association
asserts that search as we might
however. the success in this stupendous
national undertaking seems confined
to the issuance OF ABOUT $4,000, 900
social security numbers'-an activity
characterized by the association as
unprecedented, costly, irrelevant and
unnecessary"
The average lump-sum old-age pay
ment up to April, the association
found. was s29.80. although 4 New
York executive who worked land still
does) for seven corporations was re-
ported to have received sl,0Ol ct.
More significant, the association found,
was "the deepening insecurity stimu-
lated by this system" adding that
while the United States Treasury paid
S2.o35.82S TO old-age benefciares it
collected In taxes from workers and
employers for old-age insurance q
total of s577,45O,loo.
Since the employer contributions
are generally included in the price of
goods" the association bulletin added
1T means thEt for every dollar spent
IN old-age insurance payments to in
crease the purchasing power of work.
ers, Sl97 of sorely-needed purchasing
power were withdrawn from them and
spent for other purposes"
$I97 In Taxes for Each 81 Spent.
In other words, social security taxes
took sl97 away from workers for
every 81 given to them That is the
New Deals idea of the more abundant
life for workers!
Space is lacking to give other con-
clusions reached by the association
except for a word about unemployment
insurance. Pointing out that the
average benefit paid to the unemployed
totaled only $l5.46 per month"; ire
spective of whether the unemployed
person was single or had 4 family
with many dependents, the association
made this observation:
The evidence Is sufficient to indi-
cate that not only has the opera ton
Of the unemployment insurance laws
so far not proved that these laws
have been soundly conceived, but, on
the contrary, it definitely points to the
fact that these laws are not succeeding
in providing even as little protection
as the totally inadequate home relief"
Let the President and his New Deal
satellites cease their ballyhoo and
answer the non-paltisan findings of
the American Association for Social
Security.