Remarks in Baltimore at the Fifth Regiment Armory

Governor Tawes, Mayor Grady, Renegotiating Board Member D'dlesandro, ladies and gentlemen:

Never have so many Democratic candidates said so much in so little time, and I will join them. I'm delighted to come back here to Baltimore. As your distinguished Governor said, this State helped nominate me for the office of the Presidency. You gave me your support in November 1960, and I'm proud to come back to this city and State and ask your support in electing Democrats to State office and to the United States Senate and the House of Representatives-your distinguished Governor, Governor Tawes, who I'm sure will be reelected for another 4-year term, Comptroller Louis Goldstein and Attorney General Finan, and the other members of the State ticket.

The Constitution of the United States gives very great responsibilities to the President of the United States, especially in the field of foreign policy. But the Constitution of the United States very wisely also gives great responsibilities to the Congress of the United States, to the Members of the House and the Members of the Senate. And I believe it vitally important in the years 1963 and 1964 that this State and all the States of the Union be represented in the House and Senate by those Members who believe in progress, who believe in moving this country ahead.

This State is now represented in the United States Senate by two Republicans. I believe it vitally important for the interests of this State, so that this State will have someone to speak for it and for the country, to elect as your next United States Senator from the State of Maryland Congressman Danny Brewster, and I'm confident you're going to do it.

As Governor Tawes has said, the State of Maryland, because of your addition in population, now has an extra Congressman and, therefore, an extra voice, and I'm hopeful this State will send as Congressman at Large, Carlton Sickles, to speak in the House of Representatives, and will reelect to the House of Representatives my former colleagues who're all with us tonight on this platform--Ed Garmatz and George Fallon, and Sam Friedel, and Dick Lankford, and former Congressman John Foley, and Congressman Tom Johnson. And they will be joined by a distinguished Member of the House, I'm confident, who'll speak for this State and country, Dr. Long. This is a great ticket.

Now this isn't just merely coming up here and participating in parades and bands. What we're talking about are those Members of the House and Senate who support those programs of minimum wage, and medical care for the aged, and urban renewal, and cleaning our rivers, and giving security to our older people, and educating our children, and giving jobs to our workers. That's the issue of this campaign, as it was in the campaign of 1960.

All the political cheers, all the political speeches, don't mean anything unless in the final analysis a party functions. What use is the success of any political party, Woodrow Wilson said, unless it serves a great national purpose. The strength of this Nation around the world helps maintain the freedom of dozens of countries. But the strength of this Nation around the world depends upon the strength of the United States here at home. And the people of this country, in this election in November, have a very clear choice between those members of the House and Senate who believe in sitting still, and those members who support those programs which make it possible for us to maintain the economic strength and vitality of our country. That's why I come to Baltimore tonight, to ask your help in that job.

The 87th Congress is coming to an end, but that 87th Congress, in spite of the close votes we had time after time, in spite of the votes we lost to permit a member of the Cabinet to come from our city areas, to permit medical care for our aged, to permit aid for higher education, in spite of those votes that we lost by 3, 4, and 5, we passed bill after bill: the Trade Expansion Act, which can mean more to this City and State which depends on exports than any bill passed in recent years, the bills which we passed to strengthen the military force of this country, to increase the number of combat divisions by five, to make a great national effort in the field of space--we're going to spend more this year than all the 8 years from 1953 to 1960 in the field of space. And by 1970 this country will be first.

Without this Congress, without the 87th Congress, thousands of Peace Corps volunteers who speak for the best of our country around the world would be at home. Without this Congress the largest Food for Peace program in the history of the world would not have been enacted in the last 20 months. Without this Congress we would not have had the most effective legislation against organized interstate gambling that's been passed since 1934. Without this Congress we would not have legislation to protect the housewives of this country from the sale of drugs, the kind of legislation which was passed in the 1920's for the protection of hogs and cattle, but remained for this year to be passed for the protection of the people of the United States by this Congress.

For the first time since 1938 the protection of the minimum wage law was extended to millions of workers who are not now covered. And even then, because we didn't have enough members, we couldn't cover laundry women who're paid an average of 70 or 75 cents an hour in some of the largest cities in the United States.

These are the issues in this campaign. One dollar and twenty-five cents minimum wage, and 85 percent of the Republicans voted against it. That's why I'm in Baltimore tonight, to ask your support. For 6 years the Congress and the administration, talked about doing something in areas of chronic unemployment, and you have them in western Maryland. For 6 years they talked about it. This Congress last year passed the area redevelopment bill, which makes it possible for loans to be made and new businesses to come into those areas where before 10, 15, and 20 percent of the people were out of work for 2, 3, and 4 years.

That's what this issue's about. We've helped, for the first time in the history of this country, to retrain unemployed workers, men who may be 40 or 50, and who know only one skill, and that skill isn't needed. For the first time in the history of the United States now we have a program to retrain them. As Democrats, we're proud of our tradition, and the inheritance of Wilson and Roosevelt and Truman. But we have our own responsibilities in the 1960's, and we want to meet them.

Do you know it took the 87th Congress to pass a bill to provide assistance to children of unemployed workers? Up until this year only children whose fathers had deserted their wives could receive assistance, and now, when they're chronically unemployed and on relief, now we give them some help. That's what all this is about tonight.

This is not merely just a great political cheering. We're talking about what kind of a Congress we're going to have in the next 2 years, and because those issues which mean so much to the people of this city and State, which mean so much to a strong and vital America, and a strong and vital America is essential to the freedom of the world, we want a strong country, and I believe that in this case, in this year, in these times, it calls for the election of men and women who believe in progress, and I believe in 1962 that is the function, that is the responsibility, and that is the promise of the Democratic Party. So I come here tonight, as I came in 1960, and ask your help in electing these men here in this State, under the leadership of your distinguished Governor. In the United States Senate, someone will finally speak for Maryland, and in the House of Representatives they will speak as they've spoken in the past. We ask you to join us on November 6th in putting Maryland in the Democratic column.

Thank you very much.