NATIONAL MOBILISATION APPEAL

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27447, 21 July 1950, Page 7

NATIONAL MOBILISATION APPEAL

MILITARY AND MATERIAL RESOURCES

President Truman Seeks Sweeping Powers

New Zealand Press Association—Copyright Rec. 8.15 p.m. WASHINGTON, July 19. Republicans and Democrats today buried their differences and rallied behind President Truman’s momentous national mobilisation appeal, and Bills were introduced to carry out the President’s economic control and military manpower requests. In the present patriotic fever Congressional leaders believe the legislation can be passed before the end of the month. Even former isolationists, and some of the severest critics of the Government’s foreign policy, agree that President Truman should be given all he required in the emergency.

The threat of a third world war was frequently mentioned in Congressional comment. Some members contend that the President should have gone even further in mobilising man-power and material resources behind the war effort.

Reuter’s diplomatic correspondent says President Truman put the United States on a war footing to meet the threat to world peace resulting from the Communist aggression in Korea. At the same time, says the correspondent, he asked Congress to provide funds to assist Communist-threat-ened countries in Europe and Asia. The President said these countries, too, must step up their own security programmes and turn more economic resources to defence. President Truman called for the doubling of the total national defence and foreign military aid budgets for the current year and for sweeping - military and economic powers never before granted to a United States' President except during a world war.

For strengthening United States forces alone the President asked for 1 10,000,000,000 dollars. In addition, he called for new foreign military aid programmes, not only to North Atlantic and other Powers now receiving aid, but also to additional free nations, which he did not name. These programmes are expected to involve the allocation of some 5,000,000,000 dollars for Western European Powers, and further sums for other countries in the Far and Middle East. In line for inclusion in the new military aid programmes are New Zealand, Australia. Indo-China, Malaya, Burma, Siam, Pakistan, Formosa, and possibly India and Yugoslavia if they are threatened with aggression. Due to receive increased aid under the existing mutual defence assistance proframme are the North Atlantic ’owers, Greece. Turkey, Persia, Korea, and the Philippines.

non-essential purposes to prevent hoarding, and to requisition or seize materials required for defence.

2. That all Government agencies review their programmes with an eye to lessening the demand for services and supplies vital to defence. 3. That Congress should pass a tax programme based on the principles that the nation must try to pay for the greatest amount of needed spending out of taxes and that the tax system must be balanced to distribute its burden fairly. President Truman heretofore has urged mainly higher taxes on corporations and on the upper bracket incomes. He told Congress today that heavier taxes would lessen the need for general economic controls, and a balanced tax programme would help to check profiteering. 4. That there be further restraints on credit expansion along the lines of restrictions he had directed yesterday for Federally-assisted housing (these included restrictions on housing and the Home Finance Agency, to increase deposits required for new housing construction and repairs, and Federal housing construction to be cut substantially for the remainder of the year). The President today recommended Congress to authorise more controls to limit expansion of pri-vately-financed real estate. 5. That Congress authorise production loan guarantees, and direct loans to increase production. Vast Potentialities The President referred to the United States economic strength and potentialities. He said that there were now 61,500,000 persons in civilian employment, with 16,000,000 more in productive employment than in 1939. Steel production was 11,000,000 tons higher than in the peak war year of 1944. Electric power output had risen from 128,000,000,000 kilowatt hours in 1939 to 228,000,000,000 in 1944 and 317,000,000,000 now. The “ enormous ” economic strength of the United States would enable it to undertake new war preparedness programmes, he said. He would submit to Congress later the details of his total request for 10,000,000,000 dollars. He made it clear that this programme was only a beginning. He closed his message on a confident note, saying: “We will follow the course we have chosen with courage and with faith, because we carry in our hearts the flame of freedom. We are fighting for liberty, for peace, and with God’s blessing we shall succeed.”

President Truman also asked Congress to provide him with unlimited powers of conscription, and asked that all statuory limits in the sizes of the armed forces be removed. He said that increases in military strength and supplies of material were required not only to deal with the situation in Korea, but to assist the free nations to augment their military strength.

The President said he had authorised the call up of many National Guard units and as many units of the reserve forces as were required. Along with the new military measures he proposed a partial homefront moblisation. He said that there would be no price controls or rationing now, but he would not hesitate to call for them if sharp price rises made these steps necessary. The President said later that he would request higher taxes. The armed services now are limited by law to 2,005,882 men, including 837,000 in the army, 66,882 in the navy, and 502,000 in the air force. At the latest report the actual number of men under arms was 593,000 in the army, 451,000 in the navy, and 407,000 in the air force. Truman’s Proposals

At home, said the President, there must be a substantial redirection of economic resources to ensure that defence needs would be met without bringing inflation and its resultant hardship for every family. Accordingly he proposed: 1. That Congress pass legislation now authorising priorities and allocations for material needed for national security, to limit the use of materials for