ANDREW MELLON
(Andrew William Mellon)
Essentially Mellon told the President to let the entire economy crash. With huge numbers of people out of work, labor would be more humble and not only settle for lower wages, but will work harder, and without "excess" income beyond their basic needs, they would not drink and engage in other immoral activities. President Hoover, a wealthy man himself, did not go along with Mellon's idea of making the situation worse, but his conservative philosophy of government would not allow the Government to "interfere" with the private economy or give any direct assistance to the citizens.
This is the most articulate historical statement of the modern conservative mantra regarding taxes. However, one change has taken place. The words “necessarily” and “often” tend to be left out of the more modern ideological statements. Mellon’s original statement has never really had any politicians or economists who disagreed. Politicians of all economic persuasions have generally accepted the Mellon statement but the extreme conservatives’ creed is that a lowering of taxes always produces more revenue and a tax increase will inevitably lead to greater tax revenue—a position which Mellon never took. Mellon however was very solicitous of the wealthy, felt the welfare of the nation depended on their prosperity, and was a strong advocate of what was later called ‘trickle down’ economics {628592}.
Like many rich people of the time, and even today, he thought occasional recessions positive forces:
Andrew William Mellon, sometimes A.W., was an American banker, businessman, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector, and politician. From the wealthy Mellon family of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he established a vast business empire before transitioning into politics. He served as United States Secretary of the Treasury from March 9, 1921, to February 12, 1932, presiding over the boom years of the 1920s and the Wall Street crash of 1929. A conservative Republican, Mellon favored policies that reduced taxation and the national debt in the aftermath of World War I.
