Lot 109

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Kennedy John

John F. Kennedy Nine page Typescript speech draft with his personal edits

 

A nine page draft for a speech planned for the Catholic Alumni Sodality[sic] In Boston. Dated "February 5, 1956".  The typescript is nine pages, 8" x 10.5". In it, he discusses the legislation on Natural Gas and agricultural policies, making the point that the issues are not clear cut and the general public should take an interest. Kennedy has added five words on page three; and on page 4, he has made a small note in the left margin. There are lines and phrases underlined in the same ink as Kennedy's emendations that were likely made by him. There is a second set of edits made in pencil in another hand. 

 

Kennedy's warm, personal and down to earth speech reflects on the general public's views of politicians and the voters "they (the voters) can not understand why their Senator or Congressman does not always immediately see the right answer and the easy answer to every problem … I think you might be interested today in a brief discussion of the from most pressing problems currently facing the senate, problems which are not black and white, to which there is no easy answer …". Kennedy continues about the "so-called Fulbright Natural Gas Bill … seeking to remove from direct regulation by the Federal Power Commission the prices charged by the producers of natural gas." (At this point the Supreme Court had the authority to regulate the price of gas). The debate at hand was that some senators believed that "that controls on the price of gas in the filed must be removed, not only as a matter of principle -- namely the principal of free enterprise -- but also because such controls discourage small wildcatters and others from making the investment and effort necessary to find new sources of supply."  Kennedy's position however was to uphold regulation noting "I am convinced that the question is how much regulation and what kind. I am convinced that only direct regulation will sufficiently protect the consumer …" to which he continues his support thesis.

 

His second concern addressed the anticipation of an agricultural depression, one of a farmer parity, a program designed to keep the relationship between the prices the famer received for his crops and the prices he has to pay for the operation of his farm … "and the Governmental purchasing program, whereby the Government buys up all the so-called surplus crops in order to keep the price at the desired parity level" He makes note "more than $5.5 billion worth of wheat, cotton, and other surplus products are already in Government storage, at a cost to the taxpayers of $700,000 a day (note this was valued in 1956 dollars).  --- not including the deterioration and decomposition of those commodities. Our net loss in the last fiscal year on price support operations alone was nearly $800 million. Well over 10% of this nations cropland -- some 40 million acres -- is devoted to growing crops not for sale, not for stomachs, but for surplus storage."

 

A fascinating draft, allowing the reader to understand how Government and the programs handled basic utilities and food. These issues still occur today, but reading Kennedy's thoughts on them is quite revealing.

Provenance: Ex- Malcolm Forbes.


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