The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1944-02-03
STRAIGHT TALK NEEDED

mission.
STRAIGHT TALK NEEDED
1t is reported that Mr.. B. M. Baruch
does not intend in his Forthcoming re-
port to lay down a blueprint for saw
ing the country but to present simply
and clearly the few basic things that
must be done to convert from war
economy to a peace economy without
devastating unemployment.
But, that is the same thing. If he
does that and his recommendations
are followed, it will amount to saving
the country. Because, unless someone
in whose wisdom the people have con-
fidence does point these things out
they are not going to be done. The
truth is that there is no one except Mr.
Baruch in position to save a situation
admittedly grave. No one with his
capacity and prestige is working on
the subject. Asked by the Administra-
ton to make the study, no one else has
his opportunity to speak out with force
and effect. The need is very great
AS one thoughtful man said the
other day, we are moving toward the
gigantic crisis of the postwar period
as unprepared for the peace problems
as, at Pearl Harbor, we were unpre-
pared for war. Mr.. Leon Henderson,
certainly not one to minimize New
Deal capacity, says we are the only
country in the world without a post
war economic program. On the one
hand, we have persons within the Ad-
ministration, such as Vice-President
Wallace, fcverishly declaring that
there is no need to bother about the
size Of the national debt; and that the
national income after the war will be
great enough to take care of every
thing. At the same time he indicts
businessmen as greedy and makes
speeches to meetings of the CLIO cal
culated to influence labor against in
dustry generally and their employers
particularly.
On the other hand both within and
without the Administration there are
pessimists who insist that an uncon-
trolled and ruinous initiation cannot
now be averted; that debt of $50
billions, which will be what we will
have when peace comes, is crushing
burden; that there must inevitably en-
sue reputation and a period of eco
monte chaos. Mr.. John w. Hanes, who
belongs to neither Of these schools,
but whose distinguished service as
Under Secretary of the Treasury and
experience entitlc his Judgment
to respect, asserts that our fiscal pol
icy is as unsound morally as it is I'M
sound economically. at is" said Mr..
Hanes, "the vascillating, compromis-
ing, fearful, one policy-today. another
tomorrow kind of affair characteris-
tic of the vote-hungry, ward heeling
politician. The basis of our present
tax policy is not moral-it is politi-
CAL"
To the truth of Mr.. Hancs' indict-
ment only those responsible for our
policy and the more abiect Admins
tration adherents take exception.
Men whose opinions should have most
weight agree upon two things: CD the
utter inadequacy and unsoundness Of
our tax program; GU that our ability
to swing 250-billion- dollars debt and
avert terrific unemployment after
peace comes. depends entirely upon
how completely and how swiftly the
productive capacity Of the nation can
be rcstorfed to civilian use--an1 then,
how well that can be sustained
1t ought to be too clear to argue
dbOuJ GldC CIlS vital ODJCClINc CdllnOG
possibly be attained without a tax
policy that will permit and encourage
industry to convert, expand and per
form. We not only have no such policy
now but we have a policy, as Mr..
HancS points out, under which CONVEX
sion, expansion and performance are
just not possible And Mr. Hcnder-
son also is right though there are
lot Of people oXuding more or less
weird thoughts on the subject, we have
no postwar economic program. More
over, unless we get one from Mr..
Balruch, it is quite plain that we are
not going to get one at all. Certainly,
none Will be forthcoming from either
the White House or the Treasury In
the first, absorption in International
problems and military strategy is too
great to allow anything save superb
cial attention to domestic problems. In
the second, the utter incapacity to
evolve a program has been too con-
Clusivcly demonstrated.