GENERAL FARM PROGRAM 1099 



of course, that it would be popular with most members of the trade-unions to do 

 so, but they did not tell their members that their food bill was costing them a less 

 percentage of their wage dollar than it had during any peacetime period of full 

 employment in the history of our Nation. 



The New Deal Party have constantly worked overtime in their great desire to 

 prove to labor that they were the champions of high wages and cheap food while 

 out of the other corner of their mouth telling the farmers they were for a high price 

 for his products. Hence the New Deal have received a great majority of labor's 

 votes. However, in the last campaign they felt it would be necessary for them 

 to further prove to labor that they were still for cheaper food in order to hold the 

 labor vote. So here is exactly how they did it. 



The labor leaders collaborated with high officials of the Department of Agri- 

 culture in writing the so-called Aiken long-term agriculture bill. One of the 

 provisions in the bill was the 90-60-percent slide-down scale for basic farm-crop 

 supports. And between the New Deal campaign strategists and the l.ibor leaders 

 the Aiken bill was sold lock, stock, and barrfBl'to ^the top men of our farm organi- 

 zations. 



The bill came to the Agriculture Committees of the House and the Senate 

 very late in the last regular session of the Eightieth Congress. The House 

 Agriculture Committee turned thumbs down cold on the 90-60-percent provisions. 

 The bill came to the House with the full 90-percent provisions in the bill and was 

 passed by the House in that form. 



The Senate Agriculture Committee also held hearings on the bill and inserted 

 the 90-60-percent slide-down scale provision. The bill was then taken to the 

 floor of the Senate at about 2 a. m. one morning during the last week of the 

 regular session of the Eightieth Congress, where Senator Aiken, from Vermont, 

 chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, put the bill through the Senate 

 with very little debate. 



Maybe you want to leave that out, as a matter of courtesy but 

 that is a fact. In other words, gentlemen, there are times you have 

 to call a spade a spade, and name names in order to make a proper 

 presentation, or a truthful and honest presentation. 



After which the Senate and House conferees met in almost constant session 

 for several days and nights to thrash out their differences in the bill. The 90-60- 

 percent slide-down scale provision inserted by the Senate versus the 90 percent 

 House provision was the main point of contention between the two Houses. 

 These conferences between the House and Senate were held during the very last 

 few days of the regular session. The House members held out for the full 90 

 percent of parity until about 4 a. m. on the morning of June 20, the very day 

 Congress adjourned. However, a compromise between the Members of the two 

 Houses was effected, and the 90 percent support provision to remain in effect 

 until January 1, 1950, after which time the 90-90-percent slide-down scale was 

 to go into effect. Then the compromise report was brought to the floor of the 

 House about 30 minutes thereafter. The bill was passed by the House and the 

 Senate within a very few minutes thereafter, and in due time the bill was signed 

 by the President. 



It is noteworthy that the very next day after the bill was passed prices on 

 most all farm products began to drop and have been on the decline since, and 

 from that day on the unemployment rolls have mounted. Now I am thoroughly 

 convinced that until we repeal the 90-60-percent provision in the bill prices on 

 farm commodities will continue to slide down and unemployment rolls will con- 

 tinue to mount proportionately. Not only will grain prices tumble further, but 

 hog, cattle, and poultry prices will go right down the toboggan with them. 



Let us not forget that farm prices were 66 percent of parity on an average in 

 1931-33, and that during those times not only the farmer, but the businessman, 

 the laboring man and everybody in America were in a serious predicament. I 

 need not remind you of this, I am sure, for I know you are old enough to remember 

 it. There was on an average of 14,000,000 American people who were unable to 

 find work during that era, for the very simple reason that the farmers' buying 

 power was almost nil. Now certainly that should be a lesson we dare not forget, 

 regardless of our politics, faith, or vocation. 



Ever since my first year in Congress I have cooperated very closely with com- 

 mon-sense economic analysts and many Congressmen, most of whom are from 

 farm States, in search of facts and figures to guide us in the right direction to avoid, 

 if humanly possible, another depression, and possibly the complete destruction of 

 our system of government and everything worth while in our blessed land. 



