Press Release, Speech of President Harry S. Truman, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

HOLD FOR RELEASE HOLD FOR RELEASE HOLD FOR RELEASE October 14, 1948 CONFIDENTIAL: The following address of the President, to be delivered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this evening, Thursday, October 14, 1948, IS FOR RELEASE IN ALL REGULAR EDITIONS OF MORNING NEWSPAPERS of Friday, October 15, 1948. Radio release is at 8:40 p.m., Central Standard Time, today, October 14, 1948 -- or upon delivery if earlier. PLEASE USE CARE TO AVOID PREMATURE PUBLICATION OR RADIO THEME ANNOUNCEMENT. ARCHIVES AND NATIONAL SERVICE LIBRARY CHARLES G. ROSS Secretary to the President GOVERNMEN During the läst few weeks, I have been talking to people all over the country about the vital issues in this campaign. I hope you folks have been reading what I have been saying, because - unlike the Republican can- didate for President -- I have been saying exactly where I stand on those vital issues. I believe from the bottom of my heart that we are engaged in a great crusade to determine wether the powers of Government will be used for the benefit of all the people or for the benefit of a privileged few. Tonight I'm going to talk about something that ought not to be in politics at all, but the Republican candidate has brought it in. When he did this, he displayed a dangerous lack of understanding of the subject. At the same time, he clearly implied a belief that there should be přivate exploitation of a tremendous asset which belongs to the people of the United States. He bluncered into a subject which is of immediate concern to every person in the United States and in the whole world. That is atomic energy. This is a force which holds great danger of catastropke in the wrong hands. At the same time, it holds great promise of a better life in the right hands. Everyone must understand clearly what is involved. Atomic power is so overwhelming that most people have difficulty in seeing how it affects their daily lives. But the fact is, the future of everyone of us depends in large measure on whether atomic energy is used for good or evil. There are three fundamental facts about atomic energy that each of us should understand. First of all, the atomic bomb is the most terrible and devastating weapon that man has ever contrived. Second, because atomic energy is capable of destroying civilization, it must be controlled by international authority. And third, if properly controlled, atomic energy can enrich human life for all the generations to come. You remember how the atom bomb project began. We were fighting a great war. We knew that the Nazis were trying to construct atomic bombs. We drew on the world's scientists and our whole heritage of organized knowledge to win this race with death. This called for foresight. And it called for courage. It took foresight in 1940 to order the first research on atomic energy for military purposes. It took courage in 1942 to launch the atomic bomb project on a full scale. (OVER)