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(Harry Truman - explaining why the Republicans hadn't taken the White House in 20 years)

It's Presidents Day, in case you hadn't noticed. So today I thought I would put up a few Presidential address past, starting with this one delivered by President Truman during the annual Jefferson-Jackson Day Dinner in 1952. He gives an interesting rundown on why the Republicans hadn't taken the White House in over twenty years.

Pres. Truman: “ The Republicans are all set to try this White-is-Black technique. And this is the way it’ll work; first of all they try to make people believe that everything the government has done for the country is socialism. They will go to the people and say ‘did you see that Social Security check you received the other day? You thought that was good for you, didn’t you? Well that’s just too bad, that’s nothing in the world but Socialism. Did you see that new flood control dam the government is building over there for the protection of your property? Sorry. That’s awful Socialism too. They new hospital they’re building, that’s socialism. Price supports; more socialism for the farmers. Minimum wage laws – socialism for labor. Socialism is bad for you my friend, everybody knows that. And here you are, with your new car and your home and better opportunities for the kids and the television set. You’re just surrounded by Socialism.”

This was also the address where Truman announces his decision not to run again for President in 1952, ending months of speculation.

Still, Truman was known for his plain outspoken manner and telling it like it was. Politics has come a long way . . .not.

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(Korea: Police Action - swore up and down we'd be there a few weeks)

Our legacy of Foreign Policy misfires is long and involved and certainly not the exclusive property of the last twenty or so years. Although it does make you wonder how long we've been screwing up and has it always been this bad.

There was that matter of Korea and the Domino Theory of Communist takeovers in the Far East put forth by the Eisenhower Administration. There was also the matter of the Red Scare and how the Marshall Plan was a dismal failure guaranteed to make the U.S. a weaker superpower. There was the blame game where the United Nations was a dismal failure, also guaranteed to make the U.S. a weaker superpower and how we needed to divest ourselves of that body.

But nowhere in all the arguments, even going back to 1950, was there an alternative to what we were doing and doing badly.

Everybody agreed something was wrong and something needed to change drastically over how we were dealing with the rest of the world and both sides of the political aisle varied wildly over what the solution was. This exchange between Senators William Benton (D-Connecticut) and George Malone (R-Nevada) offer ample proof. The program was The American Forum Of The Air, broadcast on July 9, 1950 - the subject: "Do We Need A New Foreign Policy?". The ensuing shouting match said it all.

Sen. George Malone: “We have not yet had a definite Foreign Policy. I note that your subject today, do we need a new foreign policy? I say definitely we do, because we have never yet said and the President has not said in Korea whether or not the integrity of Korea is important to our ultimate safety. He (President Truman) has said he has got us in it on account of the United Nations and half of the world is not with us in the United Nations. Eastern Europe, Russia, Communist China. We better make up our minds just what our foreign policy is and let the American people know it and let the other nations know it. So we can come out. Now if he has any ideas at all, if he has any ideas, I say he ought to let us know what they are.”

Coming up on 60 years and the arguing doesn't look like it's ending anytime soon. Meanwhile, there's the body bags . . .

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(Harry Truman - laying it out in plain, understandable English)

Harry Truman never gave up on the idea of Universal Health Care. He brought up the subject in 1945 and he was present when the Medicare Bill was signed into law in 1965.

In 1952 he addressed a convention of the American Hospital Association and, even though his term of office would be up in a few months, he still campaigned for a decent system of health care for all Americans.

Pres. Truman: “This great free enterprise system of ours has made it possible for more Americans to have more things, more of the good things of life, than any people anywhere on earth or anywhere in the history of the world. Can it now also make it possible for every American to protect his health? I would not call such a goal socialism. I would call it a goal of enterprise. American free enterprise. Meeting the health needs of our people is one of the most important ways we can make our American promises come true. It’s also one of the mainstays of national defense. Only the strong can survive and only the healthy can be strong.”

After almost 60 years, it's still sounding like a good idea.

(Technical note: The original recording of this speech is completely trashed, with a thick coat of static going through the entire speech that goes from bad to worse. I have spent several hours with ProTools trying to pull some usable portions of this one hour speech out to make it as legible as possible, but some things were just impossible to do. Therefore, it might require some close listening in order to make out what's being said. Sadly, it's the only known recording of the speech, which was never broadcast - but it's an important document of great historic importance. And for that reason I'm including it in this post. Apologies in advance - G.S.)

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(Sen. Paul Douglas D-Ill. - Stuck in the middle of warring factions)

By 1949 Social Security had become hopelessly out of date, with no cost of living increases since before World War 2 and a system that had largely in place since 1935. While a general revamping and updating the system was before Congress, there was also a movement to make Social Security and Pensions private, one which appeared to be favored by management and certainly not favored by labor.

On October 6, 1949, the program America United featured a panel discussion on the Social Security and Pensions funding issue with Senator Paul Douglas (D-Ill), Emerson P. Schmidt of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, James B.Carey of the CIO and Lloyd Halvorsen of The Grange.

Douglas acknowledged that something needed to be done.

Sen. Paul Douglas: “I think the demand for private supplementary pensions has arisen because the public old-age pension and old-age insurance laws give very inadequate sums to aged people. For example; men who have been employed in private industry are only entitled to $26.00 a month, on the average, under the federal Social Security law. And with the additions for a wife the total for a man and wife is only brought to $40.00 a month. This was inadequate in 1935 with the 70% increase in the cost of living which has occurred since then, it is still more inadequate now. And it is this inadequacy of the public system, which in my judgment has forced the unions to demand a larger amount of private insurance.”

But the solutions were anything but unanimous.

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(Truman and The Congress Of Nope in 1947)

The 80th Congress, dubbed the "Do Nothing Congress" by President Truman was the result of a Republican majority from the 1946 mid-term elections. Pretty much bent on overturning legislation enacted during the FDR Administration, they managed to stifle almost all the bills Truman introduced during the 80th session of Congress from 1947-1949. This meant, of course Universal Health Care which had been on the books in various forms since 1941 as well as a number of economic packages needed to deal with the Recession of 1947.

Pres.Truman: “On several occasions during the past year I have reported to the Congress and to the Nation on our general economic situation. These reports have told of new high levels of production and employment. Farmers are producing 37% more than in 1929. Industry is producing 65% more. In terms of actual purchasing power, the average income of individuals after taxes has risen 39%. The rapid growth of our post-war activity has exceeded expectations, and has revealed anew the potentialities of our economy. In each of my reports however, I have had to warn of dangers that lie ahead. Today, inflation stands as an ominous threat to the prosperity we have achieved. We can no longer treat inflation with spiraling prices and living costs as some vague condition we may encounter in the future. We already have an alarming degree of inflation.

Continue reading »

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(Sen. John Sparkman - D-Alabama - I know what you're thinking!)

Before Blue Dogs arrived on the political scene, we had Dixiecrats. That bunch of Southern Senators who always seemed to break with the rest of their party and go off on tangents, mostly about Civil Rights legislation at the time.

One such Dixiecrat Senator was John_Sparkman who was vehemently opposed to the re-election of Harry Truman during the 1948 election based on his proposed Civil Rights Bills, pending in the Senate.

Here he is, explaining his position, during the Sunday interview program "Chicago University Roundtable" from June 13, 1948 - the subject was "The Southern Democrats and the Convention".

Sen.Sparkman: “In our primary that was held May 4th, with runoff on June 1st, we selected delegates to the Democratic Convention to be held in Philadelphia. All of those delegate, every one without exception, is pledged against Truman. Furthermore, we named our Democratic electors who are to cast Alabama’s vote in the Electoral College in November . . .in December – elected in November. Every one of those electors, there are eleven of them, made a pledge to the people of Alabama prior to that election that, if chosen as an elector, each one of them pledged that he would not, under any condition, vote for President Truman.”

Talk about inspiring Party Unity. The irony to all this, is Sparkman wound up being Adlai Stevenson's Vice-Presidential running mate in 1952.

Somehow, it now makes sense why Stevenson didn't win in 1952.

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( . . and then there was that "do nothing Congress" to deal with)

Improved Healthcare and the idea a National Healthcare system were on the Truman Administration agenda since 1945. It became a plank in the platform of the 1948 election and would be something he tried to keep active all the way until his leaving office in 1953.

But even in 1948, when it was a hotly contested issue, the massive lobbying and fearful resistance, every attempt was shot down.

This clip comes from an address on the occasion of Democratic Womens Day on September 27, 1949.

Truman:

“We must also act promptly to improve the health of our nation. The women of the country particularly know, in many areas there are not enough doctors or hospitals, and that many families cannot afford the medical care they need. This administration has proposed a program of improved medical care. Some parts of this program, such as an expanded health care for school children and additional aid for hospital construction have already passed the Senate. Our medical program will mean happier homes, healthier children, greater opportunity for useful lives for all the people.”

And sixty years later, almost to the day . . . .