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Show i If a vestige of doubt remained in any mind as to this country's position in the current world struggle for power, the President's speech at the White House Correspondents Cor-respondents Association dinner should have disipated it. There was no humor in the President's voioe. There were no light touches. He had grave words to say, and he said them gravely. That speech coming hard on the heels of Congress' approval of the lend-lease bill, made our policy clear as crystal we are not t destroy dictatorship, and the entire en-tire sources of this nation will be spent freely to that end. He denounced the Nazis by name. He accused them of seeking our own. He accused them of seeking to stir up controverseries and to create disunion within all demo, cracies, including their own. And he said that they would fail that "the would-be conquerors will find that hte forces of democracy, though they may move slowly, will in the end be supreme. That speech was obviously designed de-signed for raor" than American ears. Immediately after ilt was made, is was broadcast to the Pressure of the strongest kind will probably be applied to organizations organ-izations -or industries which the still thinking in ter.os of business busin-ess as usual, and are not thoubl-ing thoubl-ing themselves to give all-out ef. fort. Even the Administration's strongest critics believe that it really means that sacrifices, financial fin-ancial and otherwise, must be shared by all. The President made a significant signifi-cant statement when he said, at a press conference, that the lend-lease lend-lease bill does not restrict aid to any particular group of countries, coun-tries, but can be extended to cover other nations if the need arises. It is highly questionable, however, how-ever, if the frightened Balkin governments can be swayed now. ever, if the frightened Balkan governments can be swayed now. Hittler's immense legions are ominously om-inously close, and the U.S. is far away. Britain has little to spare in the way of aircrafe, mechanized mechan-ized equipment and fighting ships. Best military opinion holds that most of the small countries will accept Axis "protection." made, is was broadcast to the far corners of the world, in 14 different languages. It went by short wave, to Germany, to the occupied nations, to Africa, to 'South America. For this government govern-ment feels as do the British, that "the moral effect of 100 per cent support of the democracies' war is almost as important in some -ways as will be its material effect. ef-fect. It is no secret that Britain i .. expects ! nn thr onqf'rcd nations will eventually be major factor contributing to Hitler's collapse. col-lapse. The fact that the United ' States has actually intervened in the war even though only as a non-belligerent, is expected to give new hope to the millions of people who now live as virtual prisioners of the nazi-facist system. sys-tem. It is significient that the PresL dent had little to say concerning the world after the war. The whole emphasis, here and in England, En-gland, is now being placed upon victory. That dominates all official offi-cial thinking and planning. There is little time for discussion about the world order of the future. That must wait. Highly important were the Presidents words to industry and labor. He definently took the stand that many have wanted him to take for months he said that all must, work harder and longer, that all expect smaller profits. He said, in effect, that all must sacrifice, and that nothing noth-ing will be permitted to stand in the way' of the swiftest possible possi-ble consummation of the aid-to-the-democracies program. So the policy has been finally established. The debate is over, and even the opponents of the lend-lease plan admit that public sentiment is overwhelmingly be hind it. Now the real job begins to make and supply the weapons weap-ons Britain and Greece and China must have. That calls for greater industrial productivity than we have so far obtained. It calls for ship-building drive of unprecedented unpreced-ented proportions. Further, it may very likely call for use of the American navy to convoy merchant mer-chant ships to England it is obvious ob-vious that our weapons will be of no use of the ships bearing 'them are sunk by the dozen in the Atlantic. The President's request lor a $7,000,000,000 appropriation to put the lend-lease plan into effect, was unquestonably designed as a dramatic gesture. It is known that at least two years must pass before be-fore it will be possible for our factories to produce that value of goods for England some think that the war will be over before the appropriation is exhausted. The President apparently prefer, red to ask for a tremendous appropriation ap-propriation at once, rather than to request smaller sums at intervals inter-vals over a period of time, in order or-der to show the dictators that we really rean business. The tide is moving swiftly now. Watch for crackdowns on labor n labor if it gets out of hand. |