White House Press Release, Remarks of President Harry S. Truman in Butte, Montana

224 IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 8, 1948 Remarks of the President at Butte, Montana, 8.45 p.m., m.s.t., June 8, 1948. Governor, Mr. Mayor, Mr. Chairman: You know what I think? I think it would be a fine thing if your band would play just one more piece before I have to speak. (The band played Sousa's Stars and Stripes Forever) Thank you very much. I think that one half the reason for this great crowd being here tonight is just to see and hear this good band. I understand that they went out to Hollywood and stole the show. I wish you would come back to Missouri some time and steal the show. I can't tell you how overwhelmed I am at the welcome you gave me this afternoon on the streets. In Kansas City, which is a suburb of my old home town, I have never had such a welcome. There are only two other places that I know of to compare with it; one was at Mexico City and at Rio de Janeiro, the capital of Brazil. I am indeed happy to be here tonight, to say a word or two to this great city in Montana, this city which made such a great contribution to the winning of two world wars. I have been here before on several occasions, On one occasion I was here as a candidate for Vice President of the United States. I had a wonderful reception. Of course it wasn't anything like this one because I was only a candidate for Vice President at that time. But I enjoyed the visit imnensely, and it evidently did some good. I am also happy to be here in the State of Senator Murray, and Congressman Mike Mansfield. Both these gentlemen are close personal NARA friends of mine. They both ably and capably represent Montana in the Congress of the United States, and I have confidence in both of them. I would like to discuss with you just for a little while some of the things with which this country is faced -- domestically, We have a bi-partisan foreign policy, and I hope that bi-partisan foreign policy will always continue. We are now the world's leader and we must have a foreign policy that is continuing. That is the reason it is necessary for our political fights to stop at the water's edge. But there are other things which I can discuss, and things in which you are vitally interested. When the World War ceased, when Japan folded up, everyone was afraid that things would go into a tail-spin -- that there would be no jobs and there might be a depression. On September 6, 1945, I sent a policy Message to the Congress of the United States and among other things I asked the Congress to make an extension of price control which would expire in 1946. And then again in January, 1946 I made the same request of that Con- gress. And again along in May I made the same request of that Congress, The price control was not extended until June 30, 1946, on the day on which it expired, and they sent me a bill that I couldn't sign. I had to veto it. It took thirty days for them to write another bill, which was almost as bad, and I had to sign that or get nothing, and I signed it. It didn't work. Prices immediately began to climb, and I immediately began to warn the Congress and the country what would happen if we couldn't control prices. And along in November, 1946, about 66-2/3 of the voters stayed at home, and you elected the present Congress. You elected the present Congress. I had a telegram just a little while ago from a group of laboring men out on the West Coast requesting me not to appoint a board to settle the dispute between them and their employers be- cause under the present labor law it was not to be to their advantage. I sent them a reply to that and told them that I am the President of the United States, and I am sworn to enforce the laws that are on the books of the United States, and I shall follow the law. They should have thought of that situation in November, 1946, when they weren't voting. (over)