| Show I r io r J J 00 q s t 1 THANK GOD FOR FORThe i. i i. 1 V The America of Both Parties r I. I l r. r k i An lL article by William Hard Hardy so significant at t this ls moment 14 t r I that it is is printed here as a public u is service service two weeks in in advance of i I I. I r f its s appearance in Ul in Ule I e December n m ber issue ISSue o OJ of TL The L IW R Readers Reader's ea J r s D Digest tt ok t r f. f std t r d J r v Ore die election J. J As M I 1 to its outcome I know only that the dice victors will think they the own the country and the vanquished wiK wiil think America lost Both will be wrong I In the total toul vote vote- the victors will be victors only by a margin which they will need carefully and temperately to conserve tai Moreover the they will Swill include many factions and they will not be able to adopt any extreme measures without incurring the danger of j revolt rC within their own ranks The vanquished will retain great strength in the federal Congress Congress Congress Con Con- gress in the governorships and arid legislatures o of the states and in inthe inthe inthe the office-holding office bodies o of counties counties coun coun- ties tics cities ties towns villages The Democrats were dally mowed down in 1860 1861 4 1868 1872 1876 and six s successive e times The Republicans cans could survive for a similar period A minority party in the the United States always has the chance to start again from the grass grassroots That is because we we in inthe inthe inthe the United States still have the most strongly localized political institutions ever er produced in any great country to balance its central central cen cen- t national authority On that balance rests resU our stability May it never er be overthrown Forever throughout American history each party learns from the other and forever in a deglee degree de de- gree glee often very cry large there is an America of both parties There is i a quite considerable America merica of both parties today Observing it I am brought to this nonpartisan suggestion l' l Let both parties cease from front boxing and cooperate coopt coop coop- t erase erate for their common r I. I coun country J on principles principle on Oft f which in fact they are or orI I i agreed II Those principles are numerous 1 a and d paradoxical A majority o othe or of the Democratic Party and a mar IDar majority ma- ma r of the Republican lican Party as sh shown wn by the speeches of or their theira a responsible leaders and as shown also by reliable polls of public I opinion arc determined to have havey I y an an America in which there shall L r be both botti Social t Security and md Individual Individual Indi Jodi vidual Initiative and The theoretical quarrel between between between be be- tween those two principles is fin The practical task of combining combining com com- om bining them into an America which will stand staunch in the world winds of totalitarianism now starts It is a task which should evoke sincerity from both parties No basic quarrel Mr Thomas E. E Dewey has advocated advocated ad ad- an expansion of our present present present pres pres- ent Social Security against Old Age and against Unemployment to people not yet et covered by by itA it A similar expansion has been advocated ad ad- by an overwhelming vote among the hundreds of business organizations composing the U. U S. S Chamber of or Commerce Increased Social Security is now an objective of the American people as a whole Collective Bargaining is security se- se security se se- when needed against arbitrary power by employers employer The Democrats have accepted the Republican Collective Bargain ing Railway Labor Act of 1926 The Republicans in this campaign campaign cam cam- campaign have accepted the Democratic Democratic Demo Demo- cratic Collective-Bargaining Collective General General General Gen Gen- eral National Labor Relations Acts of or 1935 5 BO Both l parties could now cooperate to make both acts work better They are agreed on one tl the c e spirit of or both They arc are agreed also on laws like the Pure Food Law of oC Roosevelt Roosevelt Roose Roose- velt Theodore and the Securities Securities Securities ties and Exchange Law of Roosevelt Roosevelt Roose Roose- velt elt Franklin Delano Such laws lS l'S are security to the consumer Among numerous such Republican can laws the Democrats have attempted attempted attempted at at- tempted the repeal of not one Among numerous such Democratic Democratic Democratic Demo Demo- cratic laws the Republicans in inthis inthis inthis this campaign have suggested the repeal of not one Both parties can now cooperate to save such laws Jaws from abuses by y headstrong burea bureaucrats They can also cooperate on the theother theother theother other great principle Individual Initiative and nd Opportunity This may seem to be the opposite o of Security but it is really its parallel paral paral- lel today in American thought Not long ago the Democrats specialized on Security and the Republicans on Opportunity Now as the Republicans arc embracing embracing embracing em em- bracing Security so arc are the Democrats Democrats Demo Demo- embracing Opportunity The President is declaring repeatedly re re- repeatedly for Free Enterprise Nobody No No- bod body knows knots the Presidents President's mind better than Mr Harry Hopkins who writes in The American Magazine 1 Opportunity to work must be provided for all We e must not imagine that public works alone can do the job It must be done by the establishment of new busi busi- nesses Industry must be given er e every opportunity to expand Competition through free enterprise enterprise enterprise enter enter- prise can help destroy po erty in America A constant reliance upon scale large-scale Government spend spending is not consistent with the continuation of or our What the people want wantI I could quote from numerous New Deal Democrats in the same tenor They know what is admirably admirably admirably ably expressed by Mr Wendell rendell Berge Assistant Attorney General Gen Gen- eral oral The American people are arc agreed that the they shall have ha an economic economic economic eco eco- 01 order which allows a maximum maximum maxi maxi- mum of free play for private enterprise They hate regimentation tion and love freedom and they will demand the largest measure of freedom they can get regardless regard regard- less of what Administration is in power ower The mass massof of Americans are today today today to to- day pursuing the ideal of f a society Y Yin in which every man shall be secure secure secure se se- se- se cure in a minimum of subsistence but in which nevertheless every everyman everyman everyman man shall be free to under undertake ake a maximum of adventure This ideal presents towering problems For Fori instance Plow low can Social Security meet peoples people's honest needs and yet not encourage dishonest and grafts How can Individual Initiative Initiative Initiative Ini Ini- and Opportunity be opened opened opened open open- ed to all without allowing people individually to do the things which collectively dropped us into into into in in- to the abysmal crash of 1929 and 1930 Some people want S Social it ity but want so much of or it ft so fast along with so many parks pleasure pleas plea ure boulevards tards and concert halls that they would use up all of oC the national income needed for industrial industrial industrial in in- development and thus stop all economic and social socia progress Some people want Free Enterprise Enterprise Enterprise Enter Enter- prise but want so much of it as to leave businessmen free to combine combine combine com com- bine to give us a business community community community not free but enslaved And lots of people want Free Enterprise while at the same time wanting to exact taxes that will win destroy Free Enterprise There is nothing wrong with the ultimate purpose of or the American people in the matter of oE Security and in the matter of En En- There is everything right fight with it But the practical achievement achievement achieve achieve- ment o of it will require the most moM vivid vision and the most detailed drudgery of which our political parties are capable So will practical achievement of the international cooperation to which the leaders of both parties arc are committed How can that cooperation give a proper place to the Great Po Powers ers without becoming a world-wide world tyranny How can it give a proper place to small powers without becoming a 3 world-wide world bedlam For bedlam For the answers answers answers an an- to such questions ps the mass massof massof massof of Democrats and the mass of Republicans Republicans Republicans Re Re- publicans look to both parties 1 I suggest to both of or them aa an issue for 1948 1918 Thich Which party has outdone the theother theother theother other in refraining from the which promotes classes and divides Americans Which party has outdone the other in contributions to the Security-plus- Security Enterprise ideal which diminishes classes and unites Americans Which party has bas outdone theother theother the theother other in putting the American spirit into a world organization In other words which party part has outdone the other in service to the America of both parties panics t ry I Ii i |
