Mr. Vice President, Mr. Speaker, Members of the Seventy-eighth Congress: This Seventy-eighth Congress assembles in one of the great moments in the history of the Nation. The past year was perhaps the most crucial for modern civilization; the coming year will be filled with violent conflicts- yet with high promise of better things. We must appraise the events of 1942 according to their relative importance; we must exercise a sense of proportion. First in importance in the American scene has been the inspiring proof of the great qualities of our fighting men. They have demonstrated these qualities in adversity as well as in victory. As long as our flag flies over this Capitol, Americans will honor the soldiers, sailors, and marines who fought our first battles of this war against overwhelming odds the heroes, living and dead, of Wake and Bataan and Guadalcanal, of the Java Sea and Midway and the North Atlantic convoys. Their unconquerable spirit will live forever. By far the largest and most important developments in the whole world-wide strategic picture of 1942 were the events of the long fronts in Russia: first, the implacable defense of Stalingrad; and, second, the offensives by the Russian armies at various points that started in the latter part of November and which still roll on with great force and effectiveness. The other major events of the year were: the series of Japanese advances in the Philippines, the East Indies, Malaya, and Burma; the stopping of that Japanese advance in the mid-Pacific, the South Pacific, and the Indian Oceans; the successful defense of the Near East by the British counterattack through Egypt and Libya; the American-British occupation of North Africa. Of continuing importance in the year 1942 were the unending and bitterly contested battles of the convoy routes, and the gradual passing of air superiority from the Axis to the United Nations. The Axis powers knew that they must win the war in 1942 -or eventually lose everything. I do not need to tell you that our enemies did not win the war in 1942. In the Pacific area, our most important victory in 1942 was the air and naval battle off Midway Island. That action is historically important because it secured for our use communication lines stretching thousands of miles in every direction. In placing this emphasis on the Battle of Midway, I am not unmindful of other successful actions in the Pacific, in the air and on land and afloat —especially those on the Coral Sea and New Guinea and in the Solomon Islands. But these actions were essentially defensive. They were part of the delaying strategy that characterized this phase of the war. During this period we inflicted steady losses upon the enemy -great losses of Japanese planes and naval vessels, transports and cargo ships. As early as one year ago, we set as a primary task in the war of the Pacific a day-by-day and week-by-week and month-by-month destruction of more Japanese war materials than Japanese industry could replace. Most certainly, that task has been and is being performed by our fighting ships and planes. And a large part of this task has been accomplished by the gallant crews of our American submarines who strike on the other side of the Pacific at Japanese ships—right up at the very mouth of the harbor of Yokohama. We know that as each day goes by, Japanese strength in ships and planes is going down and down, and American strength in ships and planes is going up and up. And so I sometimes feel that the eventual outcome can now be put on a mathematical basis. That will become evident to the Japanese people themselves when we strike at their own home islands, and bomb them constantly from the air. And in the attacks against Japan, we shall be joined with the heroic people of China—that great people whose ideals of peace are so closely akin to our own. Even today we are flying as much lend-lease material into China as ever traversed the Burma Road, flying it over mountains 17,000 feet high, flying blind through sleet and snow. We shall overcome all the formidable obstacles, and get the battle equipment into China to shatter the power of our common enemy. From this war, China will realize the security, the prosperity and the dignity, which Japan has sought so ruthlessly to destroy. The period of our defensive attrition in the Pacific is drawing to a close. Now our aim is to force the Japanese to fight. Last year, we stopped them. This year, we intend to advance. Turning now to the European theater of war, during this past year it was clear that our first task was to lessen the concentrated pressure on the Russian front by compelling Germany to divert part of her manpower and equipment to another theater of war. After months of secret planning and preparation in the utmost detail, an enormous amphibious expedition was embarked for French North Africa from the United States and the United Kingdom in literally hundreds of ships. It reached its objectives with very small losses, and has already produced an important effect upon the whole situation of the war. It has opened to attack what Mr. Churchill well described as "the under-belly of the Axis," and it has removed the always dangerous threat of an Axis attack through West Africa against the South Atlantic Ocean and the continent of South America itself. The well-timed and splendidly executed offensive from Egypt by the British Eighth Army was a part of the same major strategy of the United Nations. Great rains and appalling mud and very limited communications have delayed the final battles of Tunisia. The Axis is reinforcing its strong positions. But I am confident that though the fighting will be tough, when the final Allied assault is made, the last vestige of Axis power will be driven from the whole of the south shores of the Mediterranean. Any review of the year 1942 must emphasize the magnitude and the diversity of the military activities in which this Nation has become engaged. As I speak to you, approximately one and a half million of our soldiers, sailors, marines, and fliers are in service outside of our continental limits, all through the world. Our merchant seamen, in addition, are carrying supplies to them and to our allies over every sea lane. Few Americans realize the amazing growth of our air strength, though I am sure our enemy does. Day in and day out our forces are bombing the enemy and meeting him in combat on many different fronts in every part of the world. And for those who question the quality of our aircraft and the ability of our fliers, I point to the fact that, in Africa, we are shooting down two enemy planes to every one we lose, and in the Pacific and the Southwest Pacific we are shooting them down four to one. We pay great tribute—the tribute of the United States of America— to the fighting men of Russia and China and Britain and the various members of the British Commonwealth- the millions of men who through the years of this war have fought our common enemies, and have denied to them the world conquest which they sought. We pay tribute to the soldiers and fliers and seamen of others of the United Nations whose countries have been overrun by Axis hordes. As a result of the Allied occupation of North Africa, powerful units of the French Army and Navy are going into action. They are in action with the United Nations forces. We welcome them as allies and as friends. They join with those Frenchmen who, since the dark days of June, 1940, have been fighting valiantly for the liberation of their stricken country. We pay tribute to the fighting leaders of our allies, to Winston Churchill, to Joseph Stalin, and to the Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek. Yes, there is a very great unanimity between the leaders of the United Nations. This unity is effective in planning and carrying out the major strategy of this war and in building up and in maintaining the lines of supplies. I cannot prophesy. I cannot tell you when or where the United Nations are going to strike next in Europe. But we are going to strike- and strike hard. I cannot tell you whether we are going to hit them in Norway, or through the Low Countries, or in France, or through Sardinia or Sicily, or through the Balkans, or through Poland- or at several points simultaneously. But I can tell you that no matter where and when we strike by land, we and the British and the Russians will hit them from the air heavily and relentlessly. Day in and day out we shall heap tons upon tons of high explosives on their war factories and utilities and seaports. Hitler and Mussolini will understand now the enormity of their miscalculations—that the Nazis would always have the advantage of superior air power as they did when they bombed Warsaw, and Rotterdam, and London and Coventry. That superiority has gone—forever. Yes, the Nazis and the Fascists have asked for it—and they are going to get it. Our forward progress in this war has depended upon our progress on the production front. There has been criticism of the management and conduct of our war production. Much of this self-criticism has had a healthy effect. It has spurred us on. It has reflected a normal American impatience to get on with the job. We are the kind of people who are never quite satisfied with anything short of miracles. But there has been some criticism based on guesswork and even on malicious falsification of fact. Such criticism creates doubts and creates fears, and weakens our total effort. I do not wish to suggest that we should be completely satisfied with our production progress today, or next month, or ever. But I can report to you with genuine pride on what has been accomplished in 1942. A year ago we set certain production goals for 1942 and for 1943. Some people, including some experts, thought that we had pulled some big figures out of a hat just to frighten the Axis. But we had confidence in the ability of our people to establish new records. And that confidence has been justified. Of course, we realized that some production objectives would have to be changed- some of them adjusted upward, and others downward; some items would be taken out of the program altogether, and others added. This was inevitable as we gained battle experience, and as technological improvements were made. Our 1942 airplane production and tank production fell short, numerically—stress the word numerically of the goals set a year ago. Nevertheless, we have plenty of reason to be proud of our record for 1942. We produced 48,000 military planes—more than the airplane production of Germany, Italy, and Japan put together. Last month, in December, we produced 5,500 military planes and the rate is rapidly rising. Furthermore, we must remember that as each month passes by, the averages of our types weigh more, take more man-hours to make, and have more striking power. In tank production, we revised our schedule- and for good and sufficient reasons. As a result of hard experience in battle, we have diverted a portion of our tank-producing capacity to a stepped-up production of new, deadly field weapons, especially self-propelled artillery. Here are some other production figures: In 1942, we produced 56,000 combat vehicles, such as tanks and self-propelled artillery. In 1942, we produced 670,000 machine guns, six times greater than our production in 1941 and three times greater than our total production during the year and a half of our participation in the first World War. We produced 21,000 anti-tank guns, six times greater than our 1941 production. We produced ten and a quarter billion rounds of small-arms ammunition, five times greater than our 1941 production and three times greater than our total production in the first World War. We produced 181 million rounds of artillery ammunition, twelve times greater than our 1941 production and ten times greater than our total production in the first World War. I think the arsenal of democracy is making good. These facts and figures that I have given will give no great aid and comfort to the enemy. On the contrary, I can imagine that they will give him considerable discomfort. I suspect that Hitler and Tojo will find it difficult to explain to the German and Japanese people just why it is that "decadent, inefficient democracy" can produce such phenomenal quantities of weapons and munitions- and fighting men. We have given the lie to certain misconceptions—which is an extremely polite word- especially the one which holds that the various blocs or groups within a free country cannot forego their political and economic differences in time of crisis and work together toward a common goal. While we have been achieving this miracle of production, during the past year our armed forces have grown from a little over 2,000,000 to 7,000,000. In other words, we have withdrawn from the labor force and the farms some 5,000,000 of our younger workers. And in spite of this, our farmers have contributed their share to the common effort by producing the greatest quantity of food ever made available during a single year in all our history. I wonder is there any person among us so simple as to believe that all this could have been done without creating some dislocations in our normal national life, some inconveniences, and even some hardships? Who can have hoped to have done this without burdensome Government regulations which are a nuisance to everyone- including those who have the thankless task of administering them? We all know that there have been mistakes- mistakes due to the inevitable process of trial and error inherent in doing big things for the first time. We all know that there have been too many complicated forms and questionnaires. I know about that. I have had to fill some of them out myself. But we are determined to see to it that our supplies of food and other essential civilian goods are distributed on a fair and just basis—to rich and poor, management and labor, farmer and city dweller alike. We are determined to keep the cost of living at a stable level. All this has required much information. These forms and questionnaires represent an honest and sincere attempt by honest and sincere officials to obtain this information. We have learned by the mistakes that we have made. Our experience will enable us during the coming year to improve the necessary mechanisms of wartime economic controls, and to simplify administrative procedures. But we do not intend to leave things so lax that loopholes will be left for cheaters, for chiselers, or for the manipulators of the black market. Of course, there have been disturbances and inconveniences -and even hardships. And there will be many, many more before we finally win. Yes, 1943 will not be an easy year for us on the home front. We shall feel in many ways in our daily lives the sharp pinch of total war. Fortunately, there are only a few Americans who place appetite above patriotism. The overwhelming majority realize that the food we send abroad is for essential military purposes, for our own and Allied fighting forces, and for necessary help in areas that we occupy. We Americans intend to do this great job together. In our common labors we must build and fortify the very foundation of national unity- confidence in one another. It is often amusing, and it is sometimes politically profitable, to picture the City of Washington as a madhouse, with the Congress and the Administration disrupted with confusion and indecision and general incompetence. However—what matters most in war is results. And the one pertinent fact is that after only a few years of preparation and only one year of warfare, we are able to engage, spiritually as well as physically, in the total waging of a total war. Washington may be a madhouse- but only in the sense that it is the Capital City of a Nation which is fighting mad. And I think that Berlin and Rome and Tokyo, which had such contempt for the obsolete methods of democracy, would now gladly use all they could get of that same brand of madness. And we must not forget that our achievements in production have been relatively no greater than those of the Russians and the British and the Chinese who have developed their own war industries under the incredible difficulties of battle conditions. They have had to continue work through bombings and blackouts. And they have never quit. We Americans are in good, brave company in this war, and we are playing our own, honorable part in the vast common effort. As spokesmen for the United States Government, you and I take off our hats to those responsible for our American production—to the owners, managers, and supervisors, to the draftsmen and the engineers, and to the workers- men and women—in factories and arsenals and shipyards and mines and mills and forests—and railroads and on highways. We take off our hats to the farmers who have faced an unprecedented task of feeding not only a great Nation but a great part of the world. We take off our hats to all the loyal, anonymous, untiring men and women who have worked in private employment and in Government and who have endured rationing and other stringencies with good humor and good will. Yes, we take off our hats to all Americans who have contributed so magnificently to our common cause. I have sought to emphasize a sense of proportion in this review of the events of the war and the needs of the war. We should never forget the things we are fighting for. But, at this critical period of the war, we should confine ourselves to the larger objectives and not get bogged down in argument over methods and details. We, and all the United Nations, want a decent peace and a durable peace. In the years between the end of the first World War and the beginning of the second World War, we were not living under a decent or a durable peace. I have reason to know that our boys at the front are concerned with two broad aims beyond the winning of the war; and their thinking and their opinion coincide with what most Americans here back home are mulling over. They know, and we know, that it would be inconceivable—it would, indeed, be sacrilegious —if this Nation and the world did not attain some real, lasting good out of all these efforts and sufferings and bloodshed and death. The men in our armed forces want a lasting peace, and, equally, they want permanent employment for themselves, their families, and their neighbors when they are mustered out at the end of the war. Two years ago I spoke in my Annual Message of four freedoms. The blessings of two of them- freedom of speech and freedom of religion—are an essential part of the very life of this Nation; and we hope that these blessings will be granted to all men everywhere. 'The people at home, and the people at the front, are wondering a little about the third freedom—freedom from want. To them it means that when they are mustered out, when war production is converted to the economy of peace, they will have the right to expect full employment—full employment for themselves and for all able-bodied men and women in America who want to work. They expect the opportunity to work, to run their farms, their stores, to earn decent wages. They are eager to face the risks inherent in our system of free enterprise. They do not want a postwar America which suffers from undernourishment or slums- or the dole. They want no get-rich-quick era of bogus "prosperity" which will end for them in selling apples on a street corner, as happened after the bursting of the boom in 1929. When you talk with our young men and our young women, you will find they want to work for themselves and for their families; they consider that they have the right to work; and they know that after the last war their fathers did not gain that right. When you talk with our young men and women, you will find that with the opportunity for employment they want assurance against the evils of all major economic hazards- assurance that will extend from the cradle to the grave. And this great Government can and must provide this assurance. I have been told that this is no time to speak of a better America after the war. I am told it is a grave error on my part. I dissent. And if the security of the individual citizen, or the family, should become a subject of national debate, the country knows where I stand. I say this now to this Seventy-eighth Congress, because it is wholly possible that freedom from want—the right of employment, the right of assurance against life's hazards—will loom very large as a task of America during the coming two years. I trust it will not be regarded as an issue—but rather as a task for all of us to study sympathetically, to work out with a constant regard for the attainment of the objective, with fairness to all and with injustice to none. In this war of survival we must keep before our minds not only the evil things we fight against but the good things we are fighting for. We fight to retain a great past- and we fight to gain a greater future. Let us remember, too, that economic safety for the America of the future is threatened unless a greater economic stability comes to the rest of the world. We cannot make America an island in either a military or an economic sense. Hitlerism, like any other form of crime or disease, can grow from the evil seeds of economic as well as military feudalism. Victory in this war is the first and greatest goal before us. Victory in the peace is the next. That means striving toward the enlargement of the security of man here and throughout the world —and, finally, striving for the fourth freedom- freedom from fear. It is of little account for any of us to talk of essential human needs, of attaining security, if we run the risk of another World War in ten or twenty or fifty years. That is just plain common sense. Wars grow in size, in death and destruction, and in the inevitability of engulfing all Nations, in inverse ratio to the shrinking size of the world as a result of the conquest of the air. I shudder to think of what will happen to humanity, including ourselves, if this war ends in an inconclusive peace, and another war breaks out when the babies of today have grown to fighting age. Every normal American prays that neither he nor his sons nor his grandsons will be compelled to go through this horror again. Undoubtedly a few Americans, even now, think that this Nation can end this war comfortably and then climb back into an American hole and pull the hole in after them. But we have learned that we can never dig a hole so deep that it would be safe against predatory animals. We have also learned that if we do not pull the fangs of the predatory animals of this world, they will multiply and grow in strength- and they will be at our throats again once more in a short generation. Most Americans realize more clearly than ever before that modern war equipment in the hands of aggressor Nations can bring danger overnight to our own national existence or to that of any other Nation—or island—or continent. It is clear to us that if Germany and Italy and Japan- or any one of them- remain armed at the end of this war, or are permitted to rearm, they will again, and inevitably, embark upon an ambitious career of world conquest. They must be disarmed and kept disarmed, and they must abandon the philosophy, and the teaching of that philosophy, which has brought so much suffering to the world. After the first World War we tried to achieve a formula for permanent peace, based on a magnificent idealism. We failed. But, by our failure, we have learned that we cannot maintain peace at this stage of human development by good intentions alone. Today the United Nations are the mightiest military coalition in all history. They represent an overwhelming majority of the population of the world. Bound together in solemn agreement that they themselves will not commit acts of aggression or conquest against any of their neighbors, the United Nations can and must remain united for the maintenance of peace by preventing any attempt to rearm in Germany, in Japan, in Italy, or in any other Nation which seeks to violate the Tenth Commandment -"Thou shalt not covet." There are cynics, there are skeptics who say it cannot be done. The American people and all the freedom-loving peoples of this earth are now demanding that it must be done. And the will of these people shall prevail. The very philosophy of the Axis powers is based on a profound contempt for the human race. If, in the formation of our future policy, we were guided by the same cynical contempt, then we should be surrendering to the philosophy of our enemies, and our victory would turn to defeat. The issue of this war is the basic issue between those who believe in mankind and those who do not—the ancient issue between those who put their faith in the people and those who put their faith in dictators and tyrants. There have always been those who did not believe in the people, who attempted to block their forward movement across history, to force them back to servility and suffering and silence. The people have now gathered their strength. They are moving forward in their might and power—and no force, no combination of forces, no trickery, deceit, or violence, can stop them now. They see before them the hope of the world- a decent, secure, peaceful life for men everywhere. I do not prophesy when this war will end. But I do believe that this year of 1943 will give to the United Nations a very substantial advance along the roads that lead to Berlin and Rome and Tokyo. I tell you it is within the realm of possibility that this Seventy-eight Congress may have the historic privilege of helping greatly to save the world from future fear. Therefore, let us all have confidence, let us redouble our efforts. A tremendous, costly, long-enduring task in peace as well as in war is still ahead of us. But, as we face that continuing task, we may know that the state of this Nation is good—the heart of this Nation is sound -the spirit of this Nation is strong—the faith of this Nation is eternal.
Mr. Vice President, Mr. Speaker, Members of the Seventy-eighth Congress: This Seventy-eighth Congress assembles in one of the great moments in the history of the Nation. The past year was perhaps the most crucial for modern civilization; the coming year will be filled with violent conflicts- yet with high promise of better things. We must appraise the events of 1942 according to their relative importance; we must exercise a sense of proportion. First in importance in the American scene has been the inspiring proof of the great qualities of our fighting men. They have demonstrated these qualities in adversity as well as in victory. As long as our flag flies over this Capitol, Americans will honor the soldiers, sailors, and marines who fought our first battles of this war against overwhelming odds the heroes, living and dead, of Wake and Bataan and Guadalcanal, of the Java Sea and Midway and the North Atlantic convoys. Their unconquerable spirit will live forever. By far the largest and most important developments in the whole world-wide strategic picture of 1942 were the events of the long fronts in Russia: first, the implacable defense of Stalingrad; and, second, the offensives by the Russian armies at various points that started in the latter part of November and which still roll on with great force and effectiveness. The other major events of the year were: the series of Japanese advances in the Philippines, the East Indies, Malaya, and Burma; the stopping of that Japanese advance in the mid-Pacific, the South Pacific, and the Indian Oceans; the successful defense of the Near East by the British counterattack through Egypt and Libya; the American-British occupation of North Africa. Of continuing importance in the year 1942 were the unending and bitterly contested battles of the convoy routes, and the gradual passing of air superiority from the Axis to the United Nations. The Axis powers knew that they must win the war in 1942 -or eventually lose everything. I do not need to tell you that our enemies did not win the war in 1942. In the Pacific area, our most important victory in 1942 was the air and naval battle off Midway Island. That action is historically important because it secured for our use communication lines stretching thousands of miles in every direction. In placing this emphasis on the Battle of Midway, I am not unmindful of other successful actions in the Pacific, in the air and on land and afloat —especially those on the Coral Sea and New Guinea and in the Solomon Islands. But these actions were essentially defensive. They were part of the delaying strategy that characterized this phase of the war. During this period we inflicted steady losses upon the enemy -great losses of Japanese planes and naval vessels, transports and cargo ships. As early as one year ago, we set as a primary task in the war of the Pacific a day-by-day and week-by-week and month-by-month destruction of more Japanese war materials than Japanese industry could replace. Most certainly, that task has been and is being performed by our fighting ships and planes. And a large part of this task has been accomplished by the gallant crews of our American submarines who strike on the other side of the Pacific at Japanese ships—right up at the very mouth of the harbor of Yokohama. We know that as each day goes by, Japanese strength in ships and planes is going down and down, and American strength in ships and planes is going up and up. And so I sometimes feel that the eventual outcome can now be put on a mathematical basis. That will become evident to the Japanese people themselves when we strike at their own home islands, and bomb them constantly from the air. And in the attacks against Japan, we shall be joined with the heroic people of China—that great people whose ideals of peace are so closely akin to our own. Even today we are flying as much lend-lease material into China as ever traversed the Burma Road, flying it over mountains 17,000 feet high, flying blind through sleet and snow. We shall overcome all the formidable obstacles, and get the battle equipment into China to shatter the power of our common enemy. From this war, China will realize the security, the prosperity and the dignity, which Japan has sought so ruthlessly to destroy. The period of our defensive attrition in the Pacific is drawing to a close. Now our aim is to force the Japanese to fight. Last year, we stopped them. This year, we intend to advance. Turning now to the European theater of war, during this past year it was clear that our first task was to lessen the concentrated pressure on the Russian front by compelling Germany to divert part of her manpower and equipment to another theater of war. After months of secret planning and preparation in the utmost detail, an enormous amphibious expedition was embarked for French North Africa from the United States and the United Kingdom in literally hundreds of ships. It reached its objectives with very small losses, and has already produced an important effect upon the whole situation of the war. It has opened to attack what Mr. Churchill well described as "the under-belly of the Axis," and it has removed the always dangerous threat of an Axis attack through West Africa against the South Atlantic Ocean and the continent of South America itself. The well-timed and splendidly executed offensive from Egypt by the British Eighth Army was a part of the same major strategy of the United Nations. Great rains and appalling mud and very limited communications have delayed the final battles of Tunisia. The Axis is reinforcing its strong positions. But I am confident that though the fighting will be tough, when the final Allied assault is made, the last vestige of Axis power will be driven from the whole of the south shores of the Mediterranean. Any review of the year 1942 must emphasize the magnitude and the diversity of the military activities in which this Nation has become engaged. As I speak to you, approximately one and a half million of our soldiers, sailors, marines, and fliers are in service outside of our continental limits, all through the world. Our merchant seamen, in addition, are carrying supplies to them and to our allies over every sea lane. Few Americans realize the amazing growth of our air strength, though I am sure our enemy does. Day in and day out our forces are bombing the enemy and meeting him in combat on many different fronts in every part of the world. And for those who question the quality of our aircraft and the ability of our fliers, I point to the fact that, in Africa, we are shooting down two enemy planes to every one we lose, and in the Pacific and the Southwest Pacific we are shooting them down four to one. We pay great tribute—the tribute of the United States of America— to the fighting men of Russia and China and Britain and the various members of the British Commonwealth- the millions of men who through the years of this war have fought our common enemies, and have denied to them the world conquest which they sought. We pay tribute to the soldiers and fliers and seamen of others of the United Nations whose countries have been overrun by Axis hordes. As a result of the Allied occupation of North Africa, powerful units of the French Army and Navy are going into action. They are in action with the United Nations forces. We welcome them as allies and as friends. They join with those Frenchmen who, since the dark days of June, 1940, have been fighting valiantly for the liberation of their stricken country. We pay tribute to the fighting leaders of our allies, to Winston Churchill, to Joseph Stalin, and to the Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek. Yes, there is a very great unanimity between the leaders of the United Nations. This unity is effective in planning and carrying out the major strategy of this war and in building up and in maintaining the lines of supplies. I cannot prophesy. I cannot tell you when or where the United Nations are going to strike next in Europe. But we are going to strike- and strike hard. I cannot tell you whether we are going to hit them in Norway, or through the Low Countries, or in France, or through Sardinia or Sicily, or through the Balkans, or through Poland- or at several points simultaneously. But I can tell you that no matter where and when we strike by land, we and the British and the Russians will hit them from the air heavily and relentlessly. Day in and day out we shall heap tons upon tons of high explosives on their war factories and utilities and seaports. Hitler and Mussolini will understand now the enormity of their miscalculations—that the Nazis would always have the advantage of superior air power as they did when they bombed Warsaw, and Rotterdam, and London and Coventry. That superiority has gone—forever. Yes, the Nazis and the Fascists have asked for it—and they are going to get it. Our forward progress in this war has depended upon our progress on the production front. There has been criticism of the management and conduct of our war production. Much of this self-criticism has had a healthy effect. It has spurred us on. It has reflected a normal American impatience to get on with the job. We are the kind of people who are never quite satisfied with anything short of miracles. But there has been some criticism based on guesswork and even on malicious falsification of fact. Such criticism creates doubts and creates fears, and weakens our total effort. I do not wish to suggest that we should be completely satisfied with our production progress today, or next month, or ever. But I can report to you with genuine pride on what has been accomplished in 1942. A year ago we set certain production goals for 1942 and for 1943. Some people, including some experts, thought that we had pulled some big figures out of a hat just to frighten the Axis. But we had confidence in the ability of our people to establish new records. And that confidence has been justified. Of course, we realized that some production objectives would have to be changed- some of them adjusted upward, and others downward; some items would be taken out of the program altogether, and others added. This was inevitable as we gained battle experience, and as technological improvements were made. Our 1942 airplane production and tank production fell short, numerically—stress the word numerically of the goals set a year ago. Nevertheless, we have plenty of reason to be proud of our record for 1942. We produced 48,000 military planes—more than the airplane production of Germany, Italy, and Japan put together. Last month, in December, we produced 5,500 military planes and the rate is rapidly rising. Furthermore, we must remember that as each month passes by, the averages of our types weigh more, take more man-hours to make, and have more striking power. In tank production, we revised our schedule- and for good and sufficient reasons. As a result of hard experience in battle, we have diverted a portion of our tank-producing capacity to a stepped-up production of new, deadly field weapons, especially self-propelled artillery. Here are some other production figures: In 1942, we produced 56,000 combat vehicles, such as tanks and self-propelled artillery. In 1942, we produced 670,000 machine guns, six times greater than our production in 1941 and three times greater than our total production during the year and a half of our participation in the first World War. We produced 21,000 anti-tank guns, six times greater than our 1941 production. We produced ten and a quarter billion rounds of small-arms ammunition, five times greater than our 1941 production and three times greater than our total production in the first World War. We produced 181 million rounds of artillery ammunition, twelve times greater than our 1941 production and ten times greater than our total production in the first World War. I think the arsenal of democracy is making good. These facts and figures that I have given will give no great aid and comfort to the enemy. On the contrary, I can imagine that they will give him considerable discomfort. I suspect that Hitler and Tojo will find it difficult to explain to the German and Japanese people just why it is that "decadent, inefficient democracy" can produce such phenomenal quantities of weapons and munitions- and fighting men. We have given the lie to certain misconceptions—which is an extremely polite word- especially the one which holds that the various blocs or groups within a free country cannot forego their political and economic differences in time of crisis and work together toward a common goal. While we have been achieving this miracle of production, during the past year our armed forces have grown from a little over 2,000,000 to 7,000,000. In other words, we have withdrawn from the labor force and the farms some 5,000,000 of our younger workers. And in spite of this, our farmers have contributed their share to the common effort by producing the greatest quantity of food ever made available during a single year in all our history. I wonder is there any person among us so simple as to believe that all this could have been done without creating some dislocations in our normal national life, some inconveniences, and even some hardships? Who can have hoped to have done this without burdensome Government regulations which are a nuisance to everyone- including those who have the thankless task of administering them? We all know that there have been mistakes- mistakes due to the inevitable process of trial and error inherent in doing big things for the first time. We all know that there have been too many complicated forms and questionnaires. I know about that. I have had to fill some of them out myself. But we are determined to see to it that our supplies of food and other essential civilian goods are distributed on a fair and just basis—to rich and poor, management and labor, farmer and city dweller alike. We are determined to keep the cost of living at a stable level. All this has required much information. These forms and questionnaires represent an honest and sincere attempt by honest and sincere officials to obtain this information. We have learned by the mistakes that we have made. Our experience will enable us during the coming year to improve the necessary mechanisms of wartime economic controls, and to simplify administrative procedures. But we do not intend to leave things so lax that loopholes will be left for cheaters, for chiselers, or for the manipulators of the black market. Of course, there have been disturbances and inconveniences -and even hardships. And there will be many, many more before we finally win. Yes, 1943 will not be an easy year for us on the home front. We shall feel in many ways in our daily lives the sharp pinch of total war. Fortunately, there are only a few Americans who place appetite above patriotism. The overwhelming majority realize that the food we send abroad is for essential military purposes, for our own and Allied fighting forces, and for necessary help in areas that we occupy. We Americans intend to do this great job together. In our common labors we must build and fortify the very foundation of national unity- confidence in one another. It is often amusing, and it is sometimes politically profitable, to picture the City of Washington as a madhouse, with the Congress and the Administration disrupted with confusion and indecision and general incompetence. However—what matters most in war is results. And the one pertinent fact is that after only a few years of preparation and only one year of warfare, we are able to engage, spiritually as well as physically, in the total waging of a total war. Washington may be a madhouse- but only in the sense that it is the Capital City of a Nation which is fighting mad. And I think that Berlin and Rome and Tokyo, which had such contempt for the obsolete methods of democracy, would now gladly use all they could get of that same brand of madness. And we must not forget that our achievements in production have been relatively no greater than those of the Russians and the British and the Chinese who have developed their own war industries under the incredible difficulties of battle conditions. They have had to continue work through bombings and blackouts. And they have never quit. We Americans are in good, brave company in this war, and we are playing our own, honorable part in the vast common effort. As spokesmen for the United States Government, you and I take off our hats to those responsible for our American production—to the owners, managers, and supervisors, to the draftsmen and the engineers, and to the workers- men and women—in factories and arsenals and shipyards and mines and mills and forests—and railroads and on highways. We take off our hats to the farmers who have faced an unprecedented task of feeding not only a great Nation but a great part of the world. We take off our hats to all the loyal, anonymous, untiring men and women who have worked in private employment and in Government and who have endured rationing and other stringencies with good humor and good will. Yes, we take off our hats to all Americans who have contributed so magnificently to our common because. I have sought to emphasize a sense of proportion in this review of the events of the war and the needs of the war. We should never forget the things we are fighting for. But, at this critical period of the war, we should confine ourselves to the larger objectives and not get bogged down in argument over methods and details. We, and all the United Nations, want a decent peace and a durable peace. In the years between the end of the first World War and the beginning of the second World War, we were not living under a decent or a durable peace. I have reason to know that our boys at the front are concerned with two broad aims beyond the winning of the war; and their thinking and their opinion coincide with what most Americans here back home are mulling over. They know, and we know, that it would be inconceivable—it would, indeed, be sacrilegious —if this Nation and the world did not attain some real, lasting good out of all these efforts and sufferings and bloodshed and death. The men in our armed forces want a lasting peace, and, equally, they want permanent employment for themselves, their families, and their neighbors when they are mustered out at the end of the war. Two years ago I spoke in my Annual Message of four freedoms. The blessings of two of them- freedom of speech and freedom of religion—are an essential part of the very life of this Nation; and we hope that these blessings will be granted to all men everywhere. 'The people at home, and the people at the front, are wondering a little about the third freedom—freedom from want. To them it means that when they are mustered out, when war production is converted to the economy of peace, they will have the right to expect full employment—full employment for themselves and for all able-bodied men and women in America who want to work. They expect the opportunity to work, to run their farms, their stores, to earn decent wages. They are eager to face the risks inherent in our system of free enterprise. They do not want a postwar America which suffers from undernourishment or slums- or the dole. They want no get-rich-quick era of bogus "prosperity" which will end for them in selling apples on a street corner, as happened after the bursting of the boom in 1929. When you talk with our young men and our young women, you will find they want to work for themselves and for their families; they consider that they have the right to work; and they know that after the last war their fathers did not gain that right. When you talk with our young men and women, you will find that with the opportunity for employment they want assurance against the evils of all major economic hazards- assurance that will extend from the cradle to the grave. And this great Government can and must provide this assurance. I have been told that this is no time to speak of a better America after the war. I am told it is a grave error on my part. I dissent. And if the security of the individual citizen, or the family, should become a subject of national debate, the country knows where I stand. I say this now to this Seventy-eighth Congress, because it is wholly possible that freedom from want—the right of employment, the right of assurance against life's hazards—will loom very large as a task of America during the coming two years. I trust it will not be regarded as an issue—but rather as a task for all of us to study sympathetically, to work out with a constant regard for the attainment of the objective, with fairness to all and with injustice to none. In this war of survival we must keep before our minds not only the evil things we fight against but the good things we are fighting for. We fight to retain a great past- and we fight to gain a greater future. Let us remember, too, that economic safety for the America of the future is threatened unless a greater economic stability comes to the rest of the world. We cannot make America an island in either a military or an economic sense. Hitlerism, like any other form of crime or disease, can grow from the evil seeds of economic as well as military feudalism. Victory in this war is the first and greatest goal before us. Victory in the peace is the next. That means striving toward the enlargement of the security of man here and throughout the world —and, finally, striving for the fourth freedom- freedom from fear. It is of little account for any of us to talk of essential human needs, of attaining security, if we run the risk of another World War in ten or twenty or fifty years. That is just plain common sense. Wars grow in size, in death and destruction, and in the inevitability of engulfing all Nations, in inverse ratio to the shrinking size of the world as a result of the conquest of the air. I shudder to think of what will happen to humanity, including ourselves, if this war ends in an inconclusive peace, and another war breaks out when the babies of today have grown to fighting age. Every normal American prays that neither he nor his sons nor his grandsons will be compelled to go through this horror again. Undoubtedly a few Americans, even now, think that this Nation can end this war comfortably and then climb back into an American hole and pull the hole in after them. But we have learned that we can never dig a hole so deep that it would be safe against predatory animals. We have also learned that if we do not pull the fangs of the predatory animals of this world, they will multiply and grow in strength- and they will be at our throats again once more in a short generation. Most Americans realize more clearly than ever before that modern war equipment in the hands of aggressor Nations can bring danger overnight to our own national existence or to that of any other Nation—or island—or continent. It is clear to us that if Germany and Italy and Japan- or any one of them- remain armed at the end of this war, or are permitted to rearm, they will again, and inevitably, embark upon an ambitious career of world conquest. They must be disarmed and kept disarmed, and they must abandon the philosophy, and the teaching of that philosophy, which has brought so much suffering to the world. After the first World War we tried to achieve a formula for permanent peace, based on a magnificent idealism. We failed. But, by our failure, we have learned that we cannot maintain peace at this stage of human development by good intentions alone. Today the United Nations are the mightiest military coalition in all history. They represent an overwhelming majority of the population of the world. Bound together in solemn agreement that they themselves will not commit acts of aggression or conquest against any of their neighbors, the United Nations can and must remain united for the maintenance of peace by preventing any attempt to rearm in Germany, in Japan, in Italy, or in any other Nation which seeks to violate the Tenth Commandment -"Thou shalt not covet." There are cynics, there are skeptics who say it cannot be done. The American people and all the freedom-loving peoples of this earth are now demanding that it must be done. And the will of these people shall prevail. The very philosophy of the Axis powers is based on a profound contempt for the human race. If, in the formation of our future policy, we were guided by the same cynical contempt, then we should be surrendering to the philosophy of our enemies, and our victory would turn to defeat. The issue of this war is the basic issue between those who believe in mankind and those who do not—the ancient issue between those who put their faith in the people and those who put their faith in dictators and tyrants. There have always been those who did not believe in the people, who attempted to block their forward movement across history, to force them back to servility and suffering and silence. The people have now gathered their strength. They are moving forward in their might and power—and no force, no combination of forces, no trickery, deceit, or violence, can stop them now. They see before them the hope of the world- a decent, secure, peaceful life for men everywhere. I do not prophesy when this war will end. But I do believe that this year of 1943 will give to the United Nations a very substantial advance along the roads that lead to Berlin and Rome and Tokyo. I tell you it is within the realm of possibility that this Seventy-eight Congress may have the historic privilege of helping greatly to save the world from future fear. Therefore, let us all have confidence, let us redouble our efforts. A tremendous, costly, long-enduring task in peace as well as in war is still ahead of us. But, as we face that continuing task, we may know that the state of this Nation is good—the heart of this Nation is sound -the spirit of this Nation is strong—the faith of this Nation is eternal.
vice president speaker members of the congress this congress assembles in one of the great moments in the history of the nation the past year was perhaps the most crucial for modern civilization the coming year will be filled with violent yet with high promise of better things we must appraise the events of 1942 according to their relative importance we must exercise a sense of proportion first in importance in the american scene has been the inspiring proof of the great qualities of our fighting men they have demonstrated these qualities in adversity as well as in victory as long as our flag flies over this capitol americans will honor the soldiers sailors and marines who fought our first battles of this war against overwhelming odds the heroes living and dead of wake and bataan and guadalcanal of the java sea and midway and the north atlantic convoys their unconquerable spirit will live forever by far the largest and most important developments in the whole strategic picture of 1942 were the events of the long fronts in russia first the implacable defense of stalingrad and second the offensives by the russian armies at various points that started in the latter part of november and which still roll on with great force and effectiveness the other major events of the year were the series of japanese advances in the philippines the east indies malaya and burma the stopping of that japanese advance in the the south pacific and the indian oceans the successful defense of the near east by the british counterattack through egypt and libya the occupation of north africa of continuing importance in the year 1942 were the unending and bitterly contested battles of the convoy routes and the gradual passing of air superiority from the axis to the united nations the axis powers knew that they must win the war in 1942 eventually lose everything i do not need to tell you that our enemies did not win the war in 1942 in the pacific area our most important victory in 1942 was the air and naval battle off midway island that action is historically important because it secured for our use communication lines stretching thousands of miles in every direction in placing this emphasis on the battle of midway i am not unmindful of other successful actions in the pacific in the air and on land and afloat those on the coral sea and new guinea and in the solomon islands but these actions were essentially defensive they were part of the delaying strategy that characterized this phase of the war during this period we inflicted steady losses upon the enemy losses of japanese planes and naval vessels transports and cargo ships as early as one year ago we set as a primary task in the war of the pacific a and and destruction of more japanese war materials than japanese industry could replace most certainly that task has been and is being performed by our fighting ships and planes and a large part of this task has been accomplished by the gallant crews of our american submarines who strike on the other side of the pacific at japanese up at the very mouth of the harbor of yokohama we know that as each day goes by japanese strength in ships and planes is going down and down and american strength in ships and planes is going up and up and so i sometimes feel that the eventual outcome can now be put on a mathematical basis that will become evident to the japanese people themselves when we strike at their own home islands and bomb them constantly from the air and in the attacks against japan we shall be joined with the heroic people of great people whose ideals of peace are so closely akin to our own even today we are flying as much material into china as ever traversed the burma road flying it over mountains feet high flying blind through sleet and snow we shall overcome all the formidable obstacles and get the battle equipment into china to shatter the power of our common enemy from this war china will realize the security the prosperity and the dignity which japan has sought so ruthlessly to destroy the period of our defensive attrition in the pacific is drawing to a close now our aim is to force the japanese to fight last year we stopped them this year we intend to advance turning now to the european theater of war during this past year it was clear that our first task was to lessen the concentrated pressure on the russian front by compelling germany to divert part of her manpower and equipment to another theater of war after months of secret planning and preparation in the utmost detail an enormous amphibious expedition was embarked for french north africa from the united states and the united kingdom in literally hundreds of ships it reached its objectives with very small losses and has already produced an important effect upon the whole situation of the war it has opened to attack what churchill well described as the of the axis and it has removed the always dangerous threat of an axis attack through west africa against the south atlantic ocean and the continent of south america itself the and splendidly executed offensive from egypt by the british eighth army was a part of the same major strategy of the united nations great rains and appalling mud and very limited communications have delayed the final battles of tunisia the axis is reinforcing its strong positions but i am confident that though the fighting will be tough when the final allied assault is made the last vestige of axis power will be driven from the whole of the south shores of the mediterranean any review of the year 1942 must emphasize the magnitude and the diversity of the military activities in which this nation has become engaged as i speak to you approximately one and a half million of our soldiers sailors marines and fliers are in service outside of our continental limits all through the world our merchant seamen in addition are carrying supplies to them and to our allies over every sea lane few americans realize the amazing growth of our air strength though i am sure our enemy does day in and day out our forces are bombing the enemy and meeting him in combat on many different fronts in every part of the world and for those who question the quality of our aircraft and the ability of our fliers i point to the fact that in africa we are shooting down two enemy planes to every one we lose and in the pacific and the southwest pacific we are shooting them down four to one we pay great tribute of the united states of to the fighting men of russia and china and britain and the various members of the british the millions of men who through the years of this war have fought our common enemies and have denied to them the world conquest which they sought we pay tribute to the soldiers and fliers and seamen of others of the united nations whose countries have been overrun by axis hordes as a result of the allied occupation of north africa powerful units of the french army and navy are going into action they are in action with the united nations forces we welcome them as allies and as friends they join with those frenchmen who since the dark days of june 1940 have been fighting valiantly for the liberation of their stricken country we pay tribute to the fighting leaders of our allies to winston churchill to joseph stalin and to the generalissimo chiang yes there is a very great unanimity between the leaders of the united nations this unity is effective in planning and carrying out the major strategy of this war and in building up and in maintaining the lines of supplies i can not prophesy i can not tell you when or where the united nations are going to strike next in europe but we are going to and strike hard i can not tell you whether we are going to hit them in norway or through the low countries or in france or through sardinia or sicily or through the balkans or through or at several points simultaneously but i can tell you that no matter where and when we strike by land we and the british and the russians will hit them from the air heavily and relentlessly day in and day out we shall heap tons upon tons of high explosives on their war factories and utilities and seaports hitler and mussolini will understand now the enormity of their the nazis would always have the advantage of superior air power as they did when they bombed warsaw and rotterdam and london and coventry that superiority has yes the nazis and the fascists have asked for they are going to get it our forward progress in this war has depended upon our progress on the production front there has been criticism of the management and conduct of our war production much of this has had a healthy effect it has spurred us on it has reflected a normal american impatience to get on with the job we are the kind of people who are never quite satisfied with anything short of miracles but there has been some criticism based on guesswork and even on malicious falsification of fact such criticism creates doubts and creates fears and weakens our total effort i do not wish to suggest that we should be completely satisfied with our production progress today or next month or ever but i can report to you with genuine pride on what has been accomplished in 1942 a year ago we set certain production goals for 1942 and for 1943 some people including some experts thought that we had pulled some big figures out of a hat just to frighten the axis but we had confidence in the ability of our people to establish new records and that confidence has been justified of course we realized that some production objectives would have to be some of them adjusted upward and others downward some items would be taken out of the program altogether and others added this was inevitable as we gained battle experience and as technological improvements were made our 1942 airplane production and tank production fell short the word numerically of the goals set a year ago nevertheless we have plenty of reason to be proud of our record for 1942 we produced military than the airplane production of germany italy and japan put together last month in december we produced military planes and the rate is rapidly rising furthermore we must remember that as each month passes by the averages of our types weigh more take more to make and have more striking power in tank production we revised our and for good and sufficient reasons as a result of hard experience in battle we have diverted a portion of our capacity to a production of new deadly field weapons especially artillery here are some other production figures in 1942 we produced combat vehicles such as tanks and artillery in 1942 we produced machine guns six times greater than our production in 1941 and three times greater than our total production during the year and a half of our participation in the first world war we produced guns six times greater than our 1941 production we produced ten and a quarter billion rounds of ammunition five times greater than our 1941 production and three times greater than our total production in the first world war we produced 181 million rounds of artillery ammunition twelve times greater than our 1941 production and ten times greater than our total production in the first world war i think the arsenal of democracy is making good these facts and figures that i have given will give no great aid and comfort to the enemy on the contrary i can imagine that they will give him considerable discomfort i suspect that hitler and tojo will find it difficult to explain to the german and japanese people just why it is that decadent inefficient democracy can produce such phenomenal quantities of weapons and and fighting men we have given the lie to certain is an extremely polite especially the one which holds that the various blocs or groups within a free country can not forego their political and economic differences in time of crisis and work together toward a common goal while we have been achieving this miracle of production during the past year our armed forces have grown from a little over to in other words we have withdrawn from the labor force and the farms some of our younger workers and in spite of this our farmers have contributed their share to the common effort by producing the greatest quantity of food ever made available during a single year in all our history i wonder is there any person among us so simple as to believe that all this could have been done without creating some dislocations in our normal national life some inconveniences and even some hardships who can have hoped to have done this without burdensome government regulations which are a nuisance to including those who have the thankless task of administering them we all know that there have been mistakes due to the inevitable process of trial and error inherent in doing big things for the first time we all know that there have been too many complicated forms and questionnaires i know about that i have had to fill some of them out myself but we are determined to see to it that our supplies of food and other essential civilian goods are distributed on a fair and just rich and poor management and labor farmer and city dweller alike we are determined to keep the cost of living at a stable level all this has required much information these forms and questionnaires represent an honest and sincere attempt by honest and sincere officials to obtain this information we have learned by the mistakes that we have made our experience will enable us during the coming year to improve the necessary mechanisms of wartime economic controls and to simplify administrative procedures but we do not intend to leave things so lax that loopholes will be left for cheaters for chiselers or for the manipulators of the black market of course there have been disturbances and inconveniences even hardships and there will be many many more before we finally win yes 1943 will not be an easy year for us on the home front we shall feel in many ways in our daily lives the sharp pinch of total war fortunately there are only a few americans who place appetite above patriotism the overwhelming majority realize that the food we send abroad is for essential military purposes for our own and allied fighting forces and for necessary help in areas that we occupy we americans intend to do this great job together in our common labors we must build and fortify the very foundation of national confidence in one another it is often amusing and it is sometimes politically profitable to picture the city of washington as a madhouse with the congress and the administration disrupted with confusion and indecision and general incompetence matters most in war is results and the one pertinent fact is that after only a few years of preparation and only one year of warfare we are able to engage spiritually as well as physically in the total waging of a total war washington may be a but only in the sense that it is the capital city of a nation which is fighting mad and i think that berlin and rome and tokyo which had such contempt for the obsolete methods of democracy would now gladly use all they could get of that same brand of madness and we must not forget that our achievements in production have been relatively no greater than those of the russians and the british and the chinese who have developed their own war industries under the incredible difficulties of battle conditions they have had to continue work through bombings and blackouts and they have never quit we americans are in good brave company in this war and we are playing our own honorable part in the vast common effort as spokesmen for the united states government you and i take off our hats to those responsible for our american the owners managers and supervisors to the draftsmen and the engineers and to the men and factories and arsenals and shipyards and mines and mills and railroads and on highways we take off our hats to the farmers who have faced an unprecedented task of feeding not only a great nation but a great part of the world we take off our hats to all the loyal anonymous untiring men and women who have worked in private employment and in government and who have endured rationing and other stringencies with good humor and good will yes we take off our hats to all americans who have contributed so magnificently to our common because i have sought to emphasize a sense of proportion in this review of the events of the war and the needs of the war we should never forget the things we are fighting for but at this critical period of the war we should confine ourselves to the larger objectives and not get bogged down in argument over methods and details we and all the united nations want a decent peace and a durable peace in the years between the end of the first world war and the beginning of the second world war we were not living under a decent or a durable peace i have reason to know that our boys at the front are concerned with two broad aims beyond the winning of the war and their thinking and their opinion coincide with what most americans here back home are mulling over they know and we know that it would be would indeed be sacrilegious this nation and the world did not attain some real lasting good out of all these efforts and sufferings and bloodshed and death the men in our armed forces want a lasting peace and equally they want permanent employment for themselves their families and their neighbors when they are mustered out at the end of the war two years ago i spoke in my annual message of four freedoms the blessings of two of freedom of speech and freedom of an essential part of the very life of this nation and we hope that these blessings will be granted to all men everywhere people at home and the people at the front are wondering a little about the third from want to them it means that when they are mustered out when war production is converted to the economy of peace they will have the right to expect full employment for themselves and for all men and women in america who want to work they expect the opportunity to work to run their farms their stores to earn decent wages they are eager to face the risks inherent in our system of free enterprise they do not want a postwar america which suffers from undernourishment or or the dole they want no era of bogus prosperity which will end for them in selling apples on a street corner as happened after the bursting of the boom in 1929 when you talk with our young men and our young women you will find they want to work for themselves and for their families they consider that they have the right to work and they know that after the last war their fathers did not gain that right when you talk with our young men and women you will find that with the opportunity for employment they want assurance against the evils of all major economic assurance that will extend from the cradle to the grave and this great government can and must provide this assurance i have been told that this is no time to speak of a better america after the war i am told it is a grave error on my part i dissent and if the security of the individual citizen or the family should become a subject of national debate the country knows where i stand i say this now to this congress because it is wholly possible that freedom from right of employment the right of assurance against life loom very large as a task of america during the coming two years i trust it will not be regarded as an rather as a task for all of us to study sympathetically to work out with a constant regard for the attainment of the objective with fairness to all and with injustice to none in this war of survival we must keep before our minds not only the evil things we fight against but the good things we are fighting for we fight to retain a great and we fight to gain a greater future let us remember too that economic safety for the america of the future is threatened unless a greater economic stability comes to the rest of the world we can not make america an island in either a military or an economic sense hitlerism like any other form of crime or disease can grow from the evil seeds of economic as well as military feudalism victory in this war is the first and greatest goal before us victory in the peace is the next that means striving toward the enlargement of the security of man here and throughout the world finally striving for the fourth freedom from fear it is of little account for any of us to talk of essential human needs of attaining security if we run the risk of another world war in ten or twenty or fifty years that is just plain common sense wars grow in size in death and destruction and in the inevitability of engulfing all nations in inverse ratio to the shrinking size of the world as a result of the conquest of the air i shudder to think of what will happen to humanity including ourselves if this war ends in an inconclusive peace and another war breaks out when the babies of today have grown to fighting age every normal american prays that neither he nor his sons nor his grandsons will be compelled to go through this horror again undoubtedly a few americans even now think that this nation can end this war comfortably and then climb back into an american hole and pull the hole in after them but we have learned that we can never dig a hole so deep that it would be safe against predatory animals we have also learned that if we do not pull the fangs of the predatory animals of this world they will multiply and grow in and they will be at our throats again once more in a short generation most americans realize more clearly than ever before that modern war equipment in the hands of aggressor nations can bring danger overnight to our own national existence or to that of any other continent it is clear to us that if germany and italy and or any one of remain armed at the end of this war or are permitted to rearm they will again and inevitably embark upon an ambitious career of world conquest they must be disarmed and kept disarmed and they must abandon the philosophy and the teaching of that philosophy which has brought so much suffering to the world after the first world war we tried to achieve a formula for permanent peace based on a magnificent idealism we failed but by our failure we have learned that we can not maintain peace at this stage of human development by good intentions alone today the united nations are the mightiest military coalition in all history they represent an overwhelming majority of the population of the world bound together in solemn agreement that they themselves will not commit acts of aggression or conquest against any of their neighbors the united nations can and must remain united for the maintenance of peace by preventing any attempt to rearm in germany in japan in italy or in any other nation which seeks to violate the tenth commandment thou shalt not covet there are cynics there are skeptics who say it can not be done the american people and all the peoples of this earth are now demanding that it must be done and the will of these people shall prevail the very philosophy of the axis powers is based on a profound contempt for the human race if in the formation of our future policy we were guided by the same cynical contempt then we should be surrendering to the philosophy of our enemies and our victory would turn to defeat the issue of this war is the basic issue between those who believe in mankind and those who do ancient issue between those who put their faith in the people and those who put their faith in dictators and tyrants there have always been those who did not believe in the people who attempted to block their forward movement across history to force them back to servility and suffering and silence the people have now gathered their strength they are moving forward in their might and no force no combination of forces no trickery deceit or violence can stop them now they see before them the hope of the a decent secure peaceful life for men everywhere i do not prophesy when this war will end but i do believe that this year of 1943 will give to the united nations a very substantial advance along the roads that lead to berlin and rome and tokyo i tell you it is within the realm of possibility that this congress may have the historic privilege of helping greatly to save the world from future fear therefore let us all have confidence let us redouble our efforts a tremendous costly task in peace as well as in war is still ahead of us but as we face that continuing task we may know that the state of this nation is heart of this nation is sound spirit of this nation is faith of this nation is eternal
vice president speaker members congress congress assembles one great moments history nation past year perhaps crucial modern civilization coming year filled violent yet high promise better things must appraise events 1942 according relative importance must exercise sense proportion first importance american scene inspiring proof great qualities fighting men demonstrated qualities adversity well victory long flag flies capitol americans honor soldiers sailors marines fought first battles war overwhelming odds heroes living dead wake bataan guadalcanal java sea midway north atlantic convoys unconquerable spirit live forever far largest important developments whole strategic picture 1942 events long fronts russia first implacable defense stalingrad second offensives russian armies various points started latter part november still roll great force effectiveness major events year series japanese advances philippines east indies malaya burma stopping japanese advance south pacific indian oceans successful defense near east british counterattack egypt libya occupation north africa continuing importance year 1942 unending bitterly contested battles convoy routes gradual passing air superiority axis united nations axis powers knew must win war 1942 eventually lose everything need tell enemies win war 1942 pacific area important victory 1942 air naval battle midway island action historically important secured use communication lines stretching thousands miles every direction placing emphasis battle midway unmindful successful actions pacific air land afloat coral sea new guinea solomon islands actions essentially defensive part delaying strategy characterized phase war period inflicted steady losses upon enemy losses japanese planes naval vessels transports cargo ships early one year ago set primary task war pacific destruction japanese war materials japanese industry could replace certainly task performed fighting ships planes large part task accomplished gallant crews american submarines strike side pacific japanese mouth harbor yokohama know day goes japanese strength ships planes going american strength ships planes going sometimes feel eventual outcome put mathematical basis become evident japanese people strike home islands bomb constantly air attacks japan shall joined heroic people great people whose ideals peace closely akin even today flying much material china ever traversed burma road flying mountains feet high flying blind sleet snow shall overcome formidable obstacles get battle equipment china shatter power common enemy war china realize security prosperity dignity japan sought ruthlessly destroy period defensive attrition pacific drawing close aim force japanese fight last year stopped year intend advance turning european theater war past year clear first task lessen concentrated pressure russian front compelling germany divert part manpower equipment another theater war months secret planning preparation utmost detail enormous amphibious expedition embarked french north africa united states united kingdom literally hundreds ships reached objectives small losses already produced important effect upon whole situation war opened attack churchill well described axis removed always dangerous threat axis attack west africa south atlantic ocean continent south america splendidly executed offensive egypt british eighth army part major strategy united nations great rains appalling mud limited communications delayed final battles tunisia axis reinforcing strong positions confident though fighting tough final allied assault made last vestige axis power driven whole south shores mediterranean review year 1942 must emphasize magnitude diversity military activities nation become engaged speak approximately one half million soldiers sailors marines fliers service outside continental limits world merchant seamen addition carrying supplies allies every sea lane americans realize amazing growth air strength though sure enemy day day forces bombing enemy meeting combat many different fronts every part world question quality aircraft ability fliers point fact africa shooting two enemy planes every one lose pacific southwest pacific shooting four one pay great tribute united states fighting men russia china britain various members british millions men years war fought common enemies denied world conquest sought pay tribute soldiers fliers seamen others united nations whose countries overrun axis hordes result allied occupation north africa powerful units french army navy going action action united nations forces welcome allies friends join frenchmen since dark days june 1940 fighting valiantly liberation stricken country pay tribute fighting leaders allies winston churchill joseph stalin generalissimo chiang yes great unanimity leaders united nations unity effective planning carrying major strategy war building maintaining lines supplies prophesy tell united nations going strike next europe going strike hard tell whether going hit norway low countries france sardinia sicily balkans several points simultaneously tell matter strike land british russians hit air heavily relentlessly day day shall heap tons upon tons high explosives war factories utilities seaports hitler mussolini understand enormity nazis would always advantage superior air power bombed warsaw rotterdam london coventry superiority yes nazis fascists asked going get forward progress war depended upon progress production front criticism management conduct war production much healthy effect spurred us reflected normal american impatience get job kind people never quite satisfied anything short miracles criticism based guesswork even malicious falsification fact criticism creates doubts creates fears weakens total effort wish suggest completely satisfied production progress today next month ever report genuine pride accomplished 1942 year ago set certain production goals 1942 1943 people including experts thought pulled big figures hat frighten axis confidence ability people establish new records confidence justified course realized production objectives would adjusted upward others downward items would taken program altogether others added inevitable gained battle experience technological improvements made 1942 airplane production tank production fell short word numerically goals set year ago nevertheless plenty reason proud record 1942 produced military airplane production germany italy japan put together last month december produced military planes rate rapidly rising furthermore must remember month passes averages types weigh take make striking power tank production revised good sufficient reasons result hard experience battle diverted portion capacity production new deadly field weapons especially artillery production figures 1942 produced combat vehicles tanks artillery 1942 produced machine guns six times greater production 1941 three times greater total production year half participation first world war produced guns six times greater 1941 production produced ten quarter billion rounds ammunition five times greater 1941 production three times greater total production first world war produced 181 million rounds artillery ammunition twelve times greater 1941 production ten times greater total production first world war think arsenal democracy making good facts figures given give great aid comfort enemy contrary imagine give considerable discomfort suspect hitler tojo find difficult explain german japanese people decadent inefficient democracy produce phenomenal quantities weapons fighting men given lie certain extremely polite especially one holds various blocs groups within free country forego political economic differences time crisis work together toward common goal achieving miracle production past year armed forces grown little words withdrawn labor force farms younger workers spite farmers contributed share common effort producing greatest quantity food ever made available single year history wonder person among us simple believe could done without creating dislocations normal national life inconveniences even hardships hoped done without burdensome government regulations nuisance including thankless task administering know mistakes due inevitable process trial error inherent big things first time know many complicated forms questionnaires know fill determined see supplies food essential civilian goods distributed fair rich poor management labor farmer city dweller alike determined keep cost living stable level required much information forms questionnaires represent honest sincere attempt honest sincere officials obtain information learned mistakes made experience enable us coming year improve necessary mechanisms wartime economic controls simplify administrative procedures intend leave things lax loopholes left cheaters chiselers manipulators black market course disturbances inconveniences even hardships many many finally win yes 1943 easy year us home front shall feel many ways daily lives sharp pinch total war fortunately americans place appetite patriotism overwhelming majority realize food send abroad essential military purposes allied fighting forces necessary help areas occupy americans intend great job together common labors must build fortify foundation national confidence one another often amusing sometimes politically profitable picture city washington madhouse congress administration disrupted confusion indecision general incompetence matters war results one pertinent fact years preparation one year warfare able engage spiritually well physically total waging total war washington may sense capital city nation fighting mad think berlin rome tokyo contempt obsolete methods democracy would gladly use could get brand madness must forget achievements production relatively greater russians british chinese developed war industries incredible difficulties battle conditions continue work bombings blackouts never quit americans good brave company war playing honorable part vast common effort spokesmen united states government take hats responsible american owners managers supervisors draftsmen engineers men factories arsenals shipyards mines mills railroads highways take hats farmers faced unprecedented task feeding great nation great part world take hats loyal anonymous untiring men women worked private employment government endured rationing stringencies good humor good yes take hats americans contributed magnificently common sought emphasize sense proportion review events war needs war never forget things fighting critical period war confine larger objectives get bogged argument methods details united nations want decent peace durable peace years end first world war beginning second world war living decent durable peace reason know boys front concerned two broad aims beyond winning war thinking opinion coincide americans back home mulling know know would would indeed sacrilegious nation world attain real lasting good efforts sufferings bloodshed death men armed forces want lasting peace equally want permanent employment families neighbors mustered end war two years ago spoke annual message four freedoms blessings two freedom speech freedom essential part life nation hope blessings granted men everywhere people home people front wondering little third want means mustered war production converted economy peace right expect full employment men women america want work expect opportunity work run farms stores earn decent wages eager face risks inherent system free enterprise want postwar america suffers undernourishment dole want era bogus prosperity end selling apples street corner happened bursting boom 1929 talk young men young women find want work families consider right work know last war fathers gain right talk young men women find opportunity employment want assurance evils major economic assurance extend cradle grave great government must provide assurance told time speak better america war told grave error part dissent security individual citizen family become subject national debate country knows stand say congress wholly possible freedom right employment right assurance life loom large task america coming two years trust regarded rather task us study sympathetically work constant regard attainment objective fairness injustice none war survival must keep minds evil things fight good things fighting fight retain great fight gain greater future let us remember economic safety america future threatened unless greater economic stability comes rest world make america island either military economic sense hitlerism like form crime disease grow evil seeds economic well military feudalism victory war first greatest goal us victory peace next means striving toward enlargement security man throughout world finally striving fourth freedom fear little account us talk essential human needs attaining security run risk another world war ten twenty fifty years plain common sense wars grow size death destruction inevitability engulfing nations inverse ratio shrinking size world result conquest air shudder think happen humanity including war ends inconclusive peace another war breaks babies today grown fighting age every normal american prays neither sons grandsons compelled go horror undoubtedly americans even think nation end war comfortably climb back american hole pull hole learned never dig hole deep would safe predatory animals also learned pull fangs predatory animals world multiply grow throats short generation americans realize clearly ever modern war equipment hands aggressor nations bring danger overnight national existence continent clear us germany italy one remain armed end war permitted rearm inevitably embark upon ambitious career world conquest must disarmed kept disarmed must abandon philosophy teaching philosophy brought much suffering world first world war tried achieve formula permanent peace based magnificent idealism failed failure learned maintain peace stage human development good intentions alone today united nations mightiest military coalition history represent overwhelming majority population world bound together solemn agreement commit acts aggression conquest neighbors united nations must remain united maintenance peace preventing attempt rearm germany japan italy nation seeks violate tenth commandment thou shalt covet cynics skeptics say done american people peoples earth demanding must done people shall prevail philosophy axis powers based profound contempt human race formation future policy guided cynical contempt surrendering philosophy enemies victory would turn defeat issue war basic issue believe mankind ancient issue put faith people put faith dictators tyrants always believe people attempted block forward movement across history force back servility suffering silence people gathered strength moving forward might force combination forces trickery deceit violence stop see hope decent secure peaceful life men everywhere prophesy war end believe year 1943 give united nations substantial advance along roads lead berlin rome tokyo tell within realm possibility congress may historic privilege helping greatly save world future fear therefore let us confidence let us redouble efforts tremendous costly task peace well war still ahead us face continuing task may know state nation heart nation sound spirit nation faith nation eternal
vice president speaker member congress congress assembles one great moment history nation past year perhaps crucial modern civilization come year fill violent yet high promise well thing must appraise event 1942 accord relative importance must exercise sense proportion first importance american scene inspire proof great quality fight men demonstrate quality adversity well victory long flag fly capitol american honor soldier sailor marine fight first battle war overwhelm odds hero live dead wake bataan guadalcanal java sea midway north atlantic convoy unconquerable spirit live forever far large important development whole strategic picture 1942 event long front russia first implacable defense stalingrad second offensives russian army various point start latter part november still roll great force effectiveness major event year series japanese advance philippines east indie malaya burma stop japanese advance south pacific indian ocean successful defense near east british counterattack egypt libya occupation north africa continue importance year 1942 unending bitterly contest battle convoy route gradual pass air superiority axis united nation axis power know must win war 1942 eventually lose everything need tell enemy win war 1942 pacific area important victory 1942 air naval battle midway island action historically important secure use communication line stretch thousand mile every direction place emphasis battle midway unmindful successful action pacific air land afloat coral sea new guinea solomon island action essentially defensive part delay strategy characterized phase war period inflict steady loss upon enemy loss japanese plane naval vessel transport cargo ship early one year ago set primary task war pacific destruction japanese war material japanese industry could replace certainly task perform fight ship plane large part task accomplish gallant crew american submarine strike side pacific japanese mouth harbor yokohama know day go japanese strength ship plane go american strength ship plane go sometimes feel eventual outcome put mathematical basis become evident japanese people strike home island bomb constantly air attack japan shall join heroic people great people whose ideal peace closely akin even today fly much material china ever traverse burma road fly mountain foot high fly blind sleet snow shall overcome formidable obstacle get battle equipment china shatter power common enemy war china realize security prosperity dignity japan seek ruthlessly destroy period defensive attrition pacific draw close aim force japanese fight last year stop year intend advance turn european theater war past year clear first task lessen concentrated pressure russian front compel germany divert part manpower equipment another theater war month secret plan preparation utmost detail enormous amphibious expedition embark french north africa united state united kingdom literally hundreds ship reach objective small loss already produce important effect upon whole situation war open attack churchill well describe axis remove always dangerous threat axis attack west africa south atlantic ocean continent south america splendidly execute offensive egypt british eighth army part major strategy united nation great rain appal mud limit communication delay final battle tunisia axis reinforce strong position confident though fight tough final ally assault make last vestige axis power drive whole south shore mediterranean review year 1942 must emphasize magnitude diversity military activity nation become engage speak approximately one half million soldier sailor marines flier service outside continental limit world merchant seaman addition carry supply ally every sea lane american realize amazing growth air strength though sure enemy day day force bomb enemy meeting combat many different front every part world question quality aircraft ability flier point fact africa shoot two enemy plane every one lose pacific southwest pacific shoot four one pay great tribute united state fight men russia china britain various member british million men year war fight common enemy deny world conquest seek pay tribute soldier flier seamen others united nation whose country overrun axis horde result allied occupation north africa powerful unit french army navy go action action unite nation force welcome ally friends join frenchman since dark day june 1940 fight valiantly liberation stricken country pay tribute fight leader ally winston churchill joseph stalin generalissimo chiang yes great unanimity leader unite nation unity effective planning carry major strategy war build maintain line supply prophesy tell united nation go strike next europe go strike hard tell whether go hit norway low country france sardinia sicily balkans several point simultaneously tell matter strike land british russian hit air heavily relentlessly day day shall heap ton upon ton high explosive war factory utility seaports hitler mussolini understand enormity nazi would always advantage superior air power bomb warsaw rotterdam london coventry superiority yes nazis fascist ask go get forward progress war depend upon progress production front criticism management conduct war production much healthy effect spur u reflect normal american impatience get job kind people never quite satisfied anything short miracle criticism base guesswork even malicious falsification fact criticism create doubt create fear weaken total effort wish suggest completely satisfied production progress today next month ever report genuine pride accomplish 1942 year ago set certain production goal 1942 1943 people include expert think pull big figure hat frighten axis confidence ability people establish new record confidence justify course realize production objective would adjust upward others downward item would take program altogether others add inevitable gained battle experience technological improvement make 1942 airplane production tank production fell short word numerically goal set year ago nevertheless plenty reason proud record 1942 produce military airplane production germany italy japan put together last month december produced military plane rate rapidly rise furthermore must remember month pass average type weigh take make strike power tank production revise good sufficient reason result hard experience battle divert portion capacity production new deadly field weapon especially artillery production figure 1942 produce combat vehicle tank artillery 1942 produce machine gun six time great production 1941 three time great total production year half participation first world war produce gun six time great 1941 production produce ten quarter billion round ammunition five time great 1941 production three time great total production first world war produce 181 million round artillery ammunition twelve time great 1941 production ten time great total production first world war think arsenal democracy make good fact figure give give great aid comfort enemy contrary imagine give considerable discomfort suspect hitler tojo find difficult explain german japanese people decadent inefficient democracy produce phenomenal quantity weapon fight men give lie certain extremely polite especially one hold various bloc group within free country forego political economic difference time crisis work together toward common goal achieve miracle production past year arm force grown little word withdraw labor force farm young worker spite farmer contribute share common effort produce great quantity food ever make available single year history wonder person among u simple believe could do without create dislocation normal national life inconvenience even hardship hop do without burdensome government regulation nuisance include thankless task administer know mistake due inevitable process trial error inherent big thing first time know many complicate form questionnaire know fill determine see supply food essential civilian good distribute fair rich poor management labor farmer city dweller alike determine keep cost living stable level require much information form questionnaires represent honest sincere attempt honest sincere official obtain information learn mistake make experience enable u come year improve necessary mechanism wartime economic control simplify administrative procedure intend leave thing lax loophole leave cheater chiseler manipulator black market course disturbance inconvenience even hardships many many finally win yes 1943 easy year u home front shall feel many way daily life sharp pinch total war fortunately americans place appetite patriotism overwhelm majority realize food send abroad essential military purpose ally fight force necessary help area occupy american intend great job together common labor must build fortify foundation national confidence one another often amusing sometimes politically profitable picture city washington madhouse congress administration disrupt confusion indecision general incompetence matter war result one pertinent fact year preparation one year warfare able engage spiritually well physically total wag total war washington may sense capital city nation fight mad think berlin rome tokyo contempt obsolete method democracy would gladly use could get brand madness must forget achievement production relatively great russian british chinese develop war industry incredible difficulty battle condition continue work bombing blackouts never quit american good brave company war play honorable part vast common effort spokesman united states government take hat responsible american owner manager supervisor draftsmen engineer men factory arsenal shipyard mine mill railroad highway take hat farmer face unprecedented task feed great nation great part world take hat loyal anonymous untiring men woman work private employment government endure ration stringency good humor good yes take hat american contribute magnificently common seek emphasize sense proportion review event war need war never forget thing fight critical period war confine large objective get bogged argument method detail united nation want decent peace durable peace year end first world war begin second world war live decent durable peace reason know boys front concerned two broad aim beyond win war think opinion coincide americans back home mulling know know would would indeed sacrilegious nation world attain real lasting good effort suffering bloodshed death men arm force want last peace equally want permanent employment family neighbor muster end war two year ago speak annual message four freedom blessing two freedom speech freedom essential part life nation hope blessing grant men everywhere people home people front wonder little third want mean muster war production convert economy peace right expect full employment men woman america want work expect opportunity work run farm store earn decent wage eager face risk inherent system free enterprise want postwar america suffers undernourishment dole want era bogus prosperity end selling apple street corner happen burst boom 1929 talk young men young woman find want work family consider right work know last war father gain right talk young men woman find opportunity employment want assurance evil major economic assurance extend cradle grave great government must provide assurance tell time speak good america war tell grave error part dissent security individual citizen family become subject national debate country know stand say congress wholly possible freedom right employment right assurance life loom large task america come two year trust regard rather task u study sympathetically work constant regard attainment objective fairness injustice none war survival must keep mind evil thing fight good thing fight fight retain great fight gain great future let u remember economic safety america future threaten unless great economic stability come rest world make america island either military economic sense hitlerism like form crime disease grow evil seed economic well military feudalism victory war first great goal u victory peace next mean strive toward enlargement security man throughout world finally strive fourth freedom fear little account u talk essential human need attain security run risk another world war ten twenty fifty year plain common sense war grow size death destruction inevitability engulf nation inverse ratio shrink size world result conquest air shudder think happen humanity include war end inconclusive peace another war break baby today grow fight age every normal american prays neither son grandson compel go horror undoubtedly americans even think nation end war comfortably climb back american hole pull hole learn never dig hole deep would safe predatory animal also learn pull fang predatory animal world multiply grow throat short generation american realize clearly ever modern war equipment hand aggressor nation bring danger overnight national existence continent clear u germany italy one remain armed end war permit rearm inevitably embark upon ambitious career world conquest must disarm kept disarm must abandon philosophy teach philosophy bring much suffer world first world war try achieve formula permanent peace base magnificent idealism fail failure learn maintain peace stage human development good intention alone today united nation mighty military coalition history represent overwhelm majority population world bound together solemn agreement commit act aggression conquest neighbor united nation must remain united maintenance peace prevent attempt rearm germany japan italy nation seek violate tenth commandment thou shalt covet cynic skeptic say do american people people earth demand must do people shall prevail philosophy axis power base profound contempt human race formation future policy guide cynical contempt surrender philosophy enemy victory would turn defeat issue war basic issue believe mankind ancient issue put faith people put faith dictator tyrant always believe people attempt block forward movement across history force back servility suffering silence people gather strength move forward might force combination force trickery deceit violence stop see hope decent secure peaceful life men everywhere prophesy war end believe year 1943 give united nation substantial advance along road lead berlin rome tokyo tell within realm possibility congress may historic privilege help greatly save world future fear therefore let u confidence let u redouble effort tremendous costly task peace well war still ahead u face continue task may know state nation heart nation sound spirit nation faith nation eternal