The Wilmington morning star., 1940-10-29
ROOSEVELT DENIES
DEFENSE PROGRAM
HAS STRUCK SNAG
Continued From Page One)

no better than some Of his others
then the boys might as well be OF
the transports.
Mr.. Roosevelt, citing the con
gr%essional record, contended tina
the record Of republican leader
ship. in both international a n {
military affairs, was one Of II
mildly, weakness and short-slgnt
edness."
"Same Record"
ut is the same record OF u
mildly, weakness and short-slght
edness which governed the polio!
of the confused, reactionary gov
ernments in France and England
before the war;" he continued. .
Declaring that falsifications, /
repeated over and over, were like
" to create a sense OF fear ane
doubt in the minds of some Amer
leans. Mr. Roosevelt had this t.
saw as to the state Of the nationa
defenses:
To-day our navy is at a peal
of efficiency and fighting strength
Ship or ship, and man for man
it is as powerful and efficient as
any that ever sailed the seas II
the history of the world.
."Our army and Jul air force:
are now at the highest level they
have ever been in peacetime. Blu
in the light of existing dangers
they are not grea. enough for the
absolute safety of America"
The President said he proposed
to "iadict'' the republican leaders
''who now disparage our de
lenses" with what they them
selves said in the days before thi:
election year about how adequate
our defenses already were"
Recalls Statements
To Rep. Fish of New York, rank
ing republican member of the
house foreign affairs committee,
he attributed the 1888 Statement
that I'VE have the largest n {
most powerful navy we ever had
except for two years after the
World war, and the greatest all
forces we ever had and a match
for any nation"
He said former President Hoo
yer had complained" the same
year that 1--WE shall be expending
nine-hundred million dollars more
than any nation on earth. We are
leading in the arms race
Furthermore, Mr.. Roosevelt
continued, Senator Vandenberg (R
-Mich) had opposed what the sena'
tor called a "~super-super navy
bill'' in 1888 with the declaration
that the United States already hao
IAN incomparably efficient navy
The plain fact is" the Presi.
dent said, that when the naval
expansion bill (of 1917 was sub
mitted to the congress the repub'
lican leaders jumped in to fight
it."
Among these republican leaders,
he said, we're Senator McNary Of
Oregon, the present republican
candidate for vice president; Sena'
tor Nye (R-N.D.) and Rep. Fish.
Congressional Record
At various times in recent years,
Mr.. Roosevelt declared, republi'
cans in congress had lined up as
follows:
Republican senators had voted
IL to 4 against a bill for $102, 000,
900 to buy certain strategic de-
tense materials which we did not
have in the United States"
Senate republicans voted II to 8
against increasing the authorized
number of planes in the navy.
House republicans voted IA to
in favor of reducing appropria'
tons for the army air corps.
Also, he contended, Republican
campaign orators and leaders
were now yelling me too" re
garding help to Britain but las
fall they had their chance to vote
to give aid to Britain and other
democracies-and they turned il
down."
He referred, the President said,
to the administrators bill 20 re-
peal the embargo against ship.
.ment Of arms and munitions tc
nations at war. The act - was
passed by democratic votes over
the opposition Of the republican
leaders, Mr.. Roosevelt said. He
named among them Senators Nc
Nary, Vandenberg, Nye and John
son (R-Calif); Rep. Martin Of Mas
sachusetts, the house republican
leader and republican nationa.
charm, Rep. Bruce Barton, re-
publican senatorial candidate ir
New York, and Rep. Fish.
At another point he referred to
Senator Taft Of Ohio-''the run.
ner-up this year for the republi.
can presidential nomination. as
having said in February this year
that 1.-THE increase of the m y
and navy over the tremendous ap.
preparations of the current year
seems to be unnecessary if we are
concerned solely with defense"
Mr.. Roosevelt said the republi.
can leaders had performed a IRE.
markable somersault."
"On the radio these republican
orators swing through the air with