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4525768
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Kent County Republican Picnic, June 8. 1961
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4525768
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Kent County Republican Picnic, June 8. 1961
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Gerald R. Ford Congressional Papers
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Federal budget
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1961-06-30
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1961
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1961-06-01
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The original documents are located in Box D15, folder "Kent County Republican Picnic,
June 8. 1961" of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Digitized from Box D15 of The Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
Gerald B. Ford, Jr., (R-Mich), in a statement at Kent County Republican Picnic
said, "Any peril in international affairs that confronts America is not attributable
to any military inferiority but can be directly Loid to the inept donduct of American
foreign relations and the ineffective formulation of diplomatic policy by the Admini-
stration. To date the new Administration offers new spending proposals as a sub-
stitute for affirmative and effective action."
Mr. Ford continued his statement 88 follows:
Since Jenuary 20, 1961, the present Administration has proposed
increased spending totaling almost $12 billion more than that recomended
on January 16th by President Eisenhower. Most of this staggering increase
has been for non-defense purposes and has necessitated a record peace-time
increase in our debt ceiling to $298 billion. In urging this added
spending without recommending a out-back in any existing programs, the
Kennedy Administration has criticised virtually every aspect of our
American way of life as being "neglected", "disturbing", "Inadequate", or
"in peril".
The President's consistent solution in meeting his cited problems
has been to suggest spending today and perhaps paying tomorrow. Now
we are told that it will probably be necessary to spend $3 to $5 billion
more for defense purposes, again presumably without cutback in any
of the non-defense proposals. Apparently the Federal Government is to
have "bureaucracy as usual" on a growing scale at home while we are
spending over increasing billions for defense throughout the world.
There is no question that any defense effort that is necessary to
our security should be made; and there is no question that expenditures
required for National Defense can and should be met out of current revenues
and the American people would willingly pay the price. The willingness and
determination on the part of the American people are there; the only thing
lacking is decisive leadership to delineste our problems and define our
purposes. The President owes it to the American people to tell us how
these somewhat conflicting and competing military and non-nilitary programs
will be simultaneously accomplished without destroying confidence in the
value of the dollar, an even which would serve Mr. Khrushchev's purpose
better than almost any other possible occurrence.
The President should tell the American people what has occurred in
recent months that was not previously foreseen to require now that billions
of dollars more be added to the $43 billion already being spent for our
security. The American people would also like to have these questions
answered: Has the Kennedy compaign tactic of downgrading America to
second class status been so convincing that Hr. Khrushchev has been en-
couraged to new boldness? Has our bungling in Cuba encouraged Mr. Khrushchev
to think we will bungle in Berlin? Is the fact that Mr. Acheson is reported
to be an influential Adviser-Without-Portfolio to the President on foreign
affairs on encouragement to Hr. thrushchev to think that America will return
to a policy of appeasement? Does Mr. Khrushchev think that we will offer
him a tractor deal too? Does Mr. Khrushchev plan to strike before Hr.
Kennedy completes his on-the-job training in National and world leadership?
The time is urgently at hand for the Kennedy Administration to realize
that the Red Imperialists will not stop their insidious schening or their
blustery belligerence because of an American threat of future spending. We
cannot deal with a July 1961 crisis by demands on the Treasury to finance
weapons to be available to US 3 years hence. Dollars contained in an
appropriations bill this year will not solve the problem of Laos this Summer
BERALD FORD LIBRARY
Gerald R. Ford, Jt., (continued)
Page 2
or the crisis of Borlin this Fail. What we need is a demonstration by the
Administration of steadfast purpose and confident determination to use the
tools at hand to meet the crisis at hand.
The Democratic promise during the compaign to get American moving must
not now be allowed to mean moving timidly away from Comunist challenge or
moving evasively away from our international commitments. The promise to
get America moving cannot be fulfilled if the only place we are moving is
through the front, back and side doors of the Treasury Department The
Administration must realize that the Free World will be confonted with
disaster if America follows a foreign policy of "reaction only" that is
restricted in direction to defensive maneuver in response to a relentless
Communist initiative. Also, in evaluating urgent National needs the Adminis-
tration must recognize that the only economic progress that will mean anything
to the American people is progress accomplished within the franework of fiscal
sanity.
The Kennedy Administration has an urgent obligation to deal frankly
and forthrightly in informing the American people as to our military
capability to meet the Communist threat anywhere in the world and our
fiscal capability to finance simultaneously the New Frontier on the home
front. If we cannot do both, we must recognize that fact and select the
course that will responsibly provide for dealing with the most urgent task
first.
LIBRARY