FDR

They have had two major objectives: to destroy German war industries which maintain the German armies and air forces; and to shoot the German Luftwaffe out of the air.

And allowing the enemy no respite, the Allies are now pressing hard on the heels of the Germans as they retreat northwards in ever-growing confusion.

Turning now to our enemy who is first on the list for destruction-- Germany has her back against the wall-- in fact three walls at once!

But, carrying out our original strategy of eliminating our European enemy first and then turning all our strength to the Pacific, we can force the Japanese to unconditional surrender or to national suicide much more rapidly than has been…

We have cut off from a return to the homeland tens of thousands of beleaguered Japanese troops who now face starvation or ultimate surrender.

But today we are on the offensive all over the world--bringing the attack to our enemies.

Tonight, therefore, on the opening of this Fifth War Loan Drive, it is appropriate for us to take a broad look at this panorama of world war, for the success or the failure of the drive is going to have so much to do with the speed with…

There is a direct connection between the bonds you have bought and the stream of men and equipment now rushing over the English Channel for the liberation of Europe.

And yet today we are building airplanes at the rate of one hundred thousand a year.

Well, I was called crazy--it was said that the figure was fantastic; that it could not be done.

I am reminded of the fact that after the fall of France in 1940 I asked the Congress for the money for the production by the United States of fifty thousand airplanes that year.

But of such visions is the stuff of America fashioned.

Anyone who would have said this was possible a few years ago would have been put down as a starry-eyed visionary.

Whatever else any of us may be doing, the purchase of war bonds and stamps is something all of us can do and should do to help win the war.

This is the very worst time for any war worker to think of leaving his machine or to look for a peacetime job.

It goes almost without saying that we must continue to forge the weapons of victory--the hundreds of thousands of items, large and small, essential to the waging of war.

But we have already begun to save the lives of the men, women and children of Rome.

They have gone to many other nations in every continent of the world, giving of their industry and their talents, and achieving success and the comfort of good living, and good citizenship.

They have been welcomed, they have prospered, they have become good citizens, community and governmental leaders.

Italians have been overcrowded within their own territories, but they do not need to try to conquer the lands of other peoples in order to find the breath of life.

Italy cannot grow in stature by seeking to build up a great militaristic empire.

We remember the great sons of the Italian people--Galileo and Marconi, Michelangelo and Dante--and incidentally that fearless discoverer who typifies the courage of Italy--Christopher Columbus.

We remember the many centuries in which the Italians were leaders in the arts and sciences, enriching the lives of all mankind.

And that means that they are dividends which justify such an investment, because they are additional supports for world peace.

And at the same time, we hope that this relief will be an investment for the future--an investment that will pay dividends by eliminating Fascism, by ending any Italian desires to start another war of aggression in the future.