The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1940-11-21
Where Are We Goinq
To Get The Money?


Cor the benefit of those of our
readers who like to keep posted in
regard to governmental matters. we
reprint a bulletin put odt b. the
American Taxpayers Association
under date of September L. 1t
discusses the growing national debt
and the need for national defense,
gives facts regarding national In
come and taxation. |. asks the very
pertinent question: Where are the
additional billions to come from9'
Because every citizen is interested
in the answer, is the reason for re-
printing this bulletin.-The Editor.)
The United States is nov en-
barked on the greatest preparedness
program III peacetime history. No.
body has yet given even an app.oxi-
mate estimate of wha. the cost will
be. Conservatively, the minimum
expenditure for this national de-
Tense program will be at least S25,-
to S30,000,000 600 But
this IS only the beginning. 1t will
be necessary to maintain the Army,
the Navy, the Air Force ano other
defense units when they have been
created. What is that going to cost
The first step to provide the mon
ey for this program was the pass
age of the Defense Tax Bill which
became law on June a5 last. That
measure extended the Federal Debt
limit to $4,000, 100000. it also pro-
vides for approximately sl,000000,-
900 of new taxes annually during
the next five years. Congress is
now working on new Excess
Profits Tax measure. This Bill il
variously estimated to produce
amounts ranging from 5000. 900, 900
to S450,000,000 per annum. If the
yield is S200,000.000 year. that will
run the country less than a week.
For the last eight years we have
been running behind S10.000000 a
day. With the additional defense
appropriations, we will be running
behind about s20,000,000 daily.
New High in Government Costs
For the fiscal year which began
on July |, actual appropriations and
contract authorizations for national
defense, enacted and pending. to-
tailed more than Is billions OF
dollars. The ordinary expenses of
running the government are about
8 billion dollars per annum now. In
authorizing the expenditure IF these
billions Of dollars, Congress has
performed but half its task. The
question still remains, "Whera are
VIC going to get tie money with
which to finance this program
II President is reported TO have
said that this was c minor detail. :
w thoroughly disagree win that
expression; it is Of major impe4-
lance.
The financial security of the Ma
ton is the first requisite to real mil
itary security. Contrast our present
unWholesome state of national fl
nances with the situation that ex-
listed in 1916 when we were also en-
barking upon d preparedness pro-
gram At that time we had a Ma
tional Debt Of only la billions of
dollars, as contrasted with our pres
ent total Of nearly SO billions. There
Is not a Senator or Congressman in
Washington who thinks that our an
aual budget for the next few years
will be less than Is billion dollars
year, It seems appropriate 70
again ask, Where are we going to
get this. money!"
Tax Rates Are Now Confiscatory
We now take as much as So cents
out of every dollar of income re-
celved by the wealthy and up to n
cents out of every dollar they leave
at death. If we absolutely con-
flScated the balance. the additional
revenue which would be obtained
would be but drop in the bucket
compared to what will actually be
required. We are now taxing cor
porations up to 200 per cent under
the regular Income Tax, when is
nearly double the rate In effac- dur
ing the last war The pending tax
bill adds an additional per cent
to the normal tax. and excess profits
taxes running up to SO per cent, in
addition
It is idle to cry out soak the rich.
soak the corporations. soak the in
come taxpayers Official Treas
ury statistics are most revealing on
this point They show that tile net
income Of every individual income
taxpayer on Federal rolls in 1898
--latest date Of available. totals was
less than ,0O0.00000O They also
show that the net income u all
corporations for the same wear Was
about S6,000,000.000 Therefore. If
you take every dollar Of net income
of every individual income taxpayer
and every corporation for the year
1888 you would have but a very lit
tie more than enough to meet the
annual budget requirements today
That is the situation THAI con-
fronts US. Who's going to pay and
how are they going to pay Il Il
perfectly clear that we must econo-
mize in some direction. The people
are being asked to tighten up their
belt" and get along with less ia
order to pay for national defense
and there is no reason why those
departments of the government
which are not connected with the
defense program should not be re-
quired to do likewise.
10th Amendment Caused All This
II. L