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    "label": "Mobile County GOP Fund-Raising Dinner, Mobile, AL, August 22, 1966",
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    "id": "4525970",
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    "title": "Mobile County GOP Fund-Raising Dinner, Mobile, AL, August 22, 1966",
    "citationUrl": "https://catalog.archives.gov/id/4525970",
    "collections": [
        "Gerald R. Ford Congressional Papers",
        "Speeches"
    ],
    "subjects": [
        "Civil disobedience",
        "Vietnam War, 1961-1975"
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    "type": "document",
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    "ocrText": "The original documents are located in Box D20, folder \"Mobile County GOP Fund-Raising\nDinner, Mobile, AL, August 22, 1966\" of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary\nand Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.\nCopyright Notice\nThe copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of\nphotocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United\nStates of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.\nWorks prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public\ndomain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to\nremain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid\ncopyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.\nDigitized from Box D20 of The Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library\nCONGRESSMAN\nNEWS\nGERALD R. FORD\nHOUSE REPUBLICAN LEADER\nRELEASE\nFOR RELEASE AT 6:30 P.M.\nMONDAY, AUGUST 22, 1966\nSPEECH EXCERPTS--MOBILE COUNTY, ALA., GOP FUND-RAISING DINNER AT MOBILE.\nOur soldiers are performing brilliantly in Vietnam. But it is tragic that more\nand more of our young men are being sent to fight and perhaps to die there.\nIt is equally tragic that a few misguided Americans are blind and mistaken\nenough to wish for a Vietcong victory.\nI believe these individuals are nauseously wrong in their views, but they have\nevery right under our Constitution to speak out in protest against U.S. policy in\nVietnam. They have every right to demonstrate and to picket peacefully to dramatize\ntheir dissent from majority opinion.\nBut it is absolutely contemptible-and worse--for any American to interfere\nwith vigorous prosecution of the Vietnam War and to seek to impede the movement of\nU.S. troups and material to Vietnam.\nThe ruckus created by the jumpers and the screamers at last week's hearings of\nthe House Un-American Activities Committee tended to obscure the actual purpose of\nthe investigation.\nWhat is the objective of these hearings? To smear leftwing students who believe\nwe have no business in Vietnam? Not at all. The Committee is considering the need\nfor legislation to punish American citizens who give active support to the Vietcong.\nIf the Vietnam War were a declared war, our American fighting men would already\nbe protected from disloyal citizens who are aiding the enemy.\nBut we are living in a new era of undeclared wars. This is the pattern of\nCommunist aggression. We saw it in the Korean War. We see it now in Vietnam. We\nmay expect more such sneak aggression.\nBecause the Vietnam conflict is an undeclared war, are the American people to\nshrug their shoulders while Americans dedicated to victory for world communism\nactively support the enemy? Are we to blink it and smile tolerantly when wobbly-\nminded American socialists and Communists obstruct our efforts in a war Communist\nleaders cynically call a war of liberation?\nI say this nation is harboring a viper within its bosom in coddling those of\nits citizens intent on sabotaging this nation's war effort.\nThe Communists are playing a new and deadly serious game--the undeclared war.\nWithout sacrificing the precious rights which all Americans should enjoy, it's time\nwe ourselves made some new rules.\n(MORE)\n-2-\nIf present laws are adequate to deal with disloyal Americans during an undeclared\nwar, then why isn't the Johnson Administration enforcing them?\nI would hate to think that the life of even one of our boys in Vietnam was\nsacrificed on the altar of freedom as perverted by disloyal Americans determined to\ndeliver us all to the enemy.\n***\nRiots in the streets. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration made glorious\npromises to the poor and then failed to make good on them.\nAnd we have no less a figure than the Vice President of the United States\ntelling the poor that if he lived under slum conditions he might lead a pretty good\nrevolt himself.\nWhen the Johnson-Humphrey Administration promises more than it can deliver and\nwhen the No. 2 official in the land talks about leading a revolt, defiance of the\nlaw is encouraged.\nI say that disregard for law and order breeds anarchy. I say that such\ndeliberate and flagrant flouting of the law is inexcusable in a civilized society.\nIs this a Great Society?\nWhat touches off this madness? I believe it springs from the attitude that\nAmericans should only obey the laws that please them. It derives from the theory\nthat if your social objectives appear to be beyond the law then you are justified\nin breaking the law to obtain them. It stems from the feeling that if you've got\nmore than I have, I can take from you whatever I want. It's the old attitude of\nthe-world-owes-me-a-living gone wild.\nThere is an atmosphere of lawlessness in this country that is making a jungle\nof some of our big cities.\nIt is ironic that while the South is beginning to solve its race problems, the\nNorth is just beginning to discover it has some,\n***\nThe easiest and quickest way for you to clean up Vietnam, stop inflation, bring\ndown interest rates and protect the lives, rights and property of us all is to vote\nRepublicans in in November. I think the American people will demonstrate their\ngreat good sense on Election Day.\n###\nRe: HOUSE AMER. ACT. HRgs,\nCONGRESSMAN\nNEWS\nGERALD R. FORD\nHOUSE REPUBLICAN LEADER\nRELEASE\nFOR RELEASE AT -6:30 P.M.\nMONDAY, AUGUST 22, 1966\nSPEECH EXCERPTS--MOBILE COUNTY, ALA., GOP FUND-RAISING DINNER AT MOBILE.\nOur soldiers are performing brilliantly in Vietnam. But it is tragic that more\nand more of our young men are being sent to fight and perhaps to die. there.\nIt is equally tragic that a few misguided Americans are blind and mistaken\nenough to wish for a Vietcong victory.\nI believe these individuals are nauseously wrong in their views, but they have\nevery right under our Constitution to speak out in protest against U.S. policy in\nVietnam. They have every right to demonstrate and to picket peacefully to dramatize\ntheir dissent from majority opinion.\nBut it is absolutely contemptible-sand worse--for any American to interfere\nwith vigorous prosecution of the Vietnam War and to seek to impede the movement of\nU.S. troups and material to Vietnam.\nThe ruckus created by the jumpers and the screamers at last week's hearings of\nthe House Un-American Activities Committee tended to obseure the actual purpose of\nthe investigation.\nWhat is the objective of these hearings? To smear PT leftwing students who believe\nwe have no business in Vietnam? Not at all. The Committee is considering the need\nfor legislation to punish American citizens who give active support to the Vietcong.\nIf the Vietnam War were a declared war, our American fighting men would already\nbe protected from disloyal citizens who are aiding the enemy.\nBut we are living in a new era of undeclared wars. This is the pattern of\nCommunist aggression. We saw it in the Korean War. We see it now in Vietnam. We\nmay expect more such sneak aggression.\nBecause the Vietnam conflict is an undeclared war, are the American people to\nshrug their shoulders while Americans dedicated to victory for world communism\nactively support the enemy? Are we to blink it and smile tolerantly when wobbly-\nminded American socialists and Communists obstruct our efforts in a war Communist\nleaders cynically call a war of liberation?\nI say this nation is harboring a viper within its bosom in coddling those of\nits citizens intent on sabotaging this nation's war effort.\nThe Communists are playing a new and deadly serious game--the undeclared war.\nWithout sacrificing the precious rights which all Americans should enjoy, it's time\nwe ourselves made some new rules.\nLIBRARY\n(MORE)\n-2-\nIf present laws are adequate to deal with disloyal Americans during an undeclared\nwar, then why isn't the Johnson Administration enforcing them?\nI would hate to think that the life of even one of our boys in Vietnam was\nsacrificed on the altar of freedom as perverted by disloyal Americans determined to\ndeliver us all to the enemy.\n***\nRiots in the streets. The Johnson-Humphrey Administration made glorious\npromises to the poor and then failed to make good on them.\nAnd we have no less a figure than the Vice President of the United States\ntelling the poor that if he lived under slum conditions he might lead a pretty good\nrevolt himself.\nWhen the Johnson-Humphrey Administration promises more than it can deliver and\nwhen the No. 2 official in the land talks about leading a revolt, defiance of the\nlaw is encouraged.\nI say that disregard for law and order breeds anarchy. I say that such\ndeliberate and flagrant flouting of the law is inexcusable in a civilized society.\nIs this a Great Society?\nWhat touches off this madness? I believe it springs from the attitude that\nAmericans should only obey the laws that please them. It derives from the theory\nthat if your social objectives appear to be beyond the law then you are justified\nin breaking the law to obtain them. It stems from the feeling that if you've got\nmore than I have, I can take from you whatever I want. It's the old attitude of\nthe-world-owes-me-a-living gone wild.\nThere is an atmosphere of lawlessness in this country that is making a jungle\nof some of our big cities.\nIt is ironic that while the South is beginning to solve its race problems, the\nNorth is just beginning to discover it has some.\n***\nThe easiest and quickest way for you to clean up Vietnam, stop inflation, bring\ndown interest rates and protect the lives, rights and property of us all is to vote\nRepublicans in in November. I think the American people will demonstrate their\ngreat good sense on Election Day.\n###"
}