Press Release, Speech of President Harry S. Truman, Clarksburg, West Virginia

IMMEDIATE RELEASE IMMEDIATE RELEASE REMARKS OF THE PRESIDENT AT "NATIONAL CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA, ARCHIVES RECORDS OCTOBER 16, 1948, 9 A. M., c.s.t. Thank you very much for this wonderful reception. I am very glad to be here this morning, and I appreciate your cordial welcome. You know, I. have always had a warm spot in my heart for Clarksburg. I have been a student of the War Between the States. I remember that Stonewall Jackson was born here in Clarksburg. When he was about 17 years old he hitch- hicked or walked all the way to Washington. I guess he went by wagon, because those were horse-and-buggy days - except they didn't have any buggies. He went to see., the Secretary of War and sat in his outer office. In those days the Secretary of War made all the appointments to West Point. He went to the Secretary of War, and finally the Secretary sent Stonewall Jackson to West Point just to get rid of him. In the first yaar he was about 74th in a class of 76; the second year he rated about 45th in that same class; in the third year he was about 15th from the top; in the fourth year, 7th. from the top. And Robert E. Lee said, "If you just had another year you'd be at the. top of the class." I'm telling you that story because a man with persistent and hard work can accomplish wonders; and I think that the Democrats in this campaign, starting from the bottom before the Democratic convention, are now a winning team because the people are with them. We're on a crusade, a crusade of right against Republican money might. I've carried on this campaign because I believe that if the American people are told facts and the truth they will do the right thing. I have not tried to fool the people. You know where I stand on every issue before the country; and whether you like it or not, you know what I am for and what I am against. The Democrats never did believe in fooling the people. Nor will we ever exploit the people. I wish that were true of all political parties. I was shocked to be shown this morning a picture which I hold here in my hand. It is a picture of a leaflet signed by the Secretary of the Republican Finance Committee. They were sent to Republicans throughout West Virginia. These leaflets admit that the Republican 80th Congress passed a tax law this spring not to hélp the people, but to make it possible for wealthy Republicans to be able to make big contributions to the Republican Party. Let me read to you what it says: "Do you want more of this sort of constructive action?" Then, "Use your tax savings to make a substantial investment in a Republican victory." It was signed by the West Virginia Republican Finance Committee, and that is a photostatic copy of the thing; and I am going to explain to you what that means. I ask you, what kind of a Congress do we have when the Republicans pass laws so they can get big campaign contributions? I thought Congress was supposed to pass laws to serve the people and not the Republican Party or the Democratic Party or any other party. We run on principles - and there is a very decided dividing line between the Democratic and the Republican princi- ples. The Democrats believe in the people. They have always been for the people, ever since Thomas Jefferson organized the Democratic Party, and Andrew Jackson ran the monied interests out of the Government in the 1830s, and when Woodrow Wilson made the necessary reforms in the interests of the everyday people. The Democratic Party has always been for the people. The Republicans have always been for special interests, and this conclusively proves it. Look at what this law did to you, the people who work for a living - who don't have any big fortunes to fall back on. A married man with two children and an income of $2500 a year got a reduction of $78.40 a year - about $1.60 a week. And that's fine, but the Republicans didn't do anything to stop prices from going out of sight - and the rapid rise of the cost of living has already eaten up what savings that man got. The $1.60 didn't mean a thing to him. But what happens to the big wage-earner. The man with ten times the earning of the small wage-earner, he gets 40 - and I repeat, 40 - times the income tax reduction that the little fellow gets. A fellow, here, gets $100,000 a year; and if he has no children his saving under this tax bill is $16,724.62. That is in this Republican leaflet that is sent out because they want to get about $16,000 out of that $16, so they can purchase the elec- tion. That's what they want. Now, if that same man has two children he saves $16,658.44, and the Republicans want to get that $16,000 so they can continue to purchase the election. The Republican Party says: "We put that money in your pocket. Give some of it to us." OVER