Evening star., 1941-04-29
Defense Tax Plans
Indicate Fiscal
Realism, Says Byrd
Senator, in Forum,
Hits Reckless Spending
In Other Fields

NoI4Oljol IlnNIO L VI uIIl, dII dIlSCu ",
The Star.
The talk was broadcast over {
national hook-up of the Nationa
BroadcaSting Co., and was heard 10.
cally over Station WMAL.
The text of the speech follows:
In this hour of national peril, What
is the supreme obligation of ar
American citizen to his country-tC
this country that has given to gener-
ations of Americans in the past, and
I pray God, will give to all future
generations, more peace, more hap
pineSs, more contentment than have
ever before been enjoyed by the cltl-
zenS of any great nation. Our su-
preme obligation today is to prepare
this country to be so inVincible and
so strong as to overWhelm any attack
that may be made upon it, and at
the same time to continue to give
aid in greater and greater amount
to Great Britain.
This is the job we have set our
hands to do. 1t is a colossal task.
Before it is successfully accom-
pished, it will require the united
sacrifice of a united people. And
upon our success or failure depends
not only the future security of free
and democratic people everywhere,
but also the future preservation OF
organized government as we know 1t
and desire 1t.
AS our financial contribution to
this emergency, we here in the
United States are Immediately faced
with truly gigantic public eXpendl-
lures. Already S40,000,000000 has
been appropriated by your Congress
for our own defense and for aid to
England, and we continue to appro-
pirate more and more as time goes
on. AS we authorize military eX-
penditures in such colossal amounts,
your Federal Government continues
non-defense spending on the same
extravagant standard as has char
acterized the New Deal spending
policy of the past eight years.
There is now before the Congress
of the United States a new tax bill,
in which you and all citizens OF
America have a greater interest than
in any previous tax legislation, as
this provides for the imposition OF
new and additional taxes such as
the American people have never be-
fore experienced. The United States
Treasury has asked for tax leglSla-
ton to provide 3l2 billions In new
tax collections. This is to be added
to the existing tax levies, which are
at present yielding s9000,000 600.
making a total levy of 1212 billions
to be paid by the American taXpay-
ers to the Federal Government
alone in the coming year.
Tax Levy Nearly Doubled.
The magnitude of this tax levy is
emphasized when we recall that this
Is nearly twice as much as were the
peak tax collections for the last
World War, when 6l2 billions were
collected in 1920 Except in 1920,
and the present fiscal year, this tax
levy will be more than twice as much
as any levy in any other yearly
period of our history. But this IS
not by any means all that the tax
PAYERS must pay in the form OF
taxes in the coming year. To this
1914 billions of Federal taxes must
be added $4,000 100000 of State taxes
and another 5la billions Of local
taxes. So next year, we, the Amerl-
can taxpayers, must pay our propor-
tionate shares of tax bills aggregat-
ing s22 100000 This is one
fourth of all the wages, the earnings
of corporations, the dividends, royal
ties. rents, interest and individual
gross incomes of all OF our citizens
one fourth of all the elements OF
national income.
This $4,000, 100000 overall tax
bill means an average collection Oh
nearly 5000 in the coming year from
every man, woman and child in
America. At this rate, the average
family OF four must pay $500 IN
taxes. after paying their own hV-
ing expenses and other Obligations.
To state it another way, this S22,-
600 900, 900 annual tax levy is more
than twice the total yearly val
ue OF all the products of agri-
sllture. including the products OF
the forests and the products of the
mines. That is to say, it is more
than twice the value of all the new
wealth that comes each year from
the soil, under the ground and from
the forests. And even with TINS
staggering burden of taxation, your
Federal Government in the next
year will be able to pay only one
half of it's probable expenditures.
That Is, for every dollar collected
m taxes another dollar will be ADDED
10 the public debt
We all recognize that taxes IN
the main must come from produc-
tive business. The Government
NAV coniscate the property OF the
wealthy and deplete all reserves OF
wealth but this will pay only a
fractional part of our present eX-
nenditures. In the final analysis,
taxes will be paid, as the President
once expressed it "out OF the sweat
and toll of every man who laoors'
THAT is to say, taxes mainly must
be paid out of business transactions
and operations, placing burden
directly upon every one who buys
and every one who sells, either oy
direct or hidden taxes.
Praises Morgenthau Stand.
7 congratulate and commend Sec
retary Morgenthau for advocating
this increase in taxation. In the
situation that confronts us, 1t Is
imperative to increase the Federal
revenue as a check to the evils OF
uncontrolled imitation and to avoid
the possibility of an inSolvent Gov
ernment. burdened by debt beyond
the ability of the people to finance.
The new taxes will be e,rlevous
burden to bear. The heavy hand
of Uncle Sam will reach into every
home, into every business, into the
pockets of every American who buys
or sells. 1t will add to the cost of
every ones living. but it is a sacri-
fee that we must make. While
spending great sums for national
defense. when employment and