LUIGI STURZO SULLA “PLAIN FASCIST ECONOMICS” DI HERBERT HOOVER

Sturzo during his exile in America intervened in the political debate dealing with various topics; diplomacy, society, problems of Catholics and also economic issues. One of these interventions is the subject of this essay: the wartime economic model that Herbert Hoover envisioned for the United States. Hoover declared that a “plain fascist economics” was necessary to win at war. Sturzo challenged Hoover that he knew fascist economics only from hearsay, otherwise he would have guarded against such a definition. Sturzo's critique of Hoover's proposal of "plain fascist economics," consistent with the view of freedom he had held throughout his life, was based on the scientific conviction that state economics is not only un economic, but ompresses freedom and succeeds less in serving social welfare.