AMERICAN AID

Wairarapa Times-Age, 11 January 1941, Page 5

AMERICAN AID

BILLS BEFORE CONGRESS

UNPRECEDENTED POWERS. QUICK ACTION SOUGHT BY PRESIDENT. United States Administration leaders in both Houses of Congress, the 8.8.5. reports, yesterday introduced legislation to give effect to President Roosevelt’s plan for further aid to the Allies. The President has asked for quick action on his lease-lending programme.

At a Press Conference. Mr Roosevelt said he did not necessarily want the powers provided in the Bills, but somei body had to have them to make quick action possible. The Bills empower the President to manufacture in any arsenal. factory, shipyard, or otherwise procure defence materials of all kinds and to sell, transfer. lease or lend these materials to any country whose de- ! fence is considered vital to that of the ; United States. I GENERAL AGREEMENT ! CABINET & CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS. WASHINGTON. January 9. President Roosevelt, eight Congressional leaders, five members of Cabinet. and the Defence Co-ordinator. Mr Knudsen, at a conference reached a | general agreement on a Bill authoris-l ing war aid to the democracies. The President's secretary, Mr Early, termed the conference a full-dress review of Mr Roosevelt’s pledge to make the United States an arsenal for the democracies. The Bill will be introduced simultaneously in both the House of Representatives and the Senate tomorrow. Senator A. W. Barkley. Democratic leader of the Senate, said that the measure would bo strictly an authorisation Bill and would not give any figures. Appropriations to pay for the programme will come later. DETAILS OF BILL COMPREHENSIVE PROPOSALS. PORTS OPEN TO BRITISH WARSHIPS. <Received This Day. 9.50 am.) WASHINGTON. January 10. President Roosevelt’s Bill for aid to Britain, which was introduced simultaneously to the House of Representatives and the Senate, enables British warships to enter United States ports for repairs and authorises the United States "to test, inspect, repair, fit out or recondition any defence article for any Government." The Bill will authorise the President to manufacture defence articles in United States arsenals and private factories for any country whose defence I the President deems vital to the Unit-! cd States. Thus the President’s powersj are virtually unlimited except in cases i of cost appropriations, which Congress will be called on from time to time to provide in order to carry out the pro-! gramme.

The Bill, which is entitled: "An Act to Promote the Defence of the United States’." provides: (1) Notwithstanding any other law ihe President may. from time to time when he deems it in the interests of national defence authorise the Secretaries of War and the Navy or the heads of any other Department or agency to manufacture any defence article for the government of any country whose defence the President deems vital to the defence of the United States.

<25 Sell, transfer, exchange, lease, lend or otherwise dispose to any such Government any such defence article. (3) Inspect, repair, fit out or recondition defence articles. <4). Communication of defence information to any such Government. (5) Release any defence article for export. Such action may be carried out

"on terms the President deems satisfactory and beneficial to the United States.” The Bill defines "defence articles” in the broadest possible terms, covering machinery and tools necessary for manufacture as well as component parts and materials. The Bill defines j defence information as any plan, spej ciflcation, design, prototype or infonnj alien pertaining to any defence ari President Roosevelt has imposed j strict export licence regulations, eovI ering copper, bras.-:, bronze, zinc, nickel j and potash, to be effective on Februj ary 3. due to the accelerating of the ! nation’s defence needs. BRITISH RESOURCES CASH HOLDINGS STILL LARGE V> ASHING I O.». January 10. The Federal Rmervc B.mk's bulletin reported that Britain has mad'large eoiniiiitiiii’ii!.'' <>n lie:' war orders ti. the Unite.'! Stat..- but Ims net actually paid out .any large part of the 7.115.000.000 dollar gold and dollar resource , which '■he held at the .start ; of the war. : The bidl'. tin did n•’ estimate the i extent i.f the British orders .vet to be ■ paid for but estimates elsewhere state I that it >< about 3,000,000.000 dollars.