I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 3712

To award a congressional gold medal on behalf of President Harry S Truman

to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his 1st inauguration as President of the United States of America.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

NOVEMBER 22, 1993

Mr. WHEAT introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee

on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs

A BILL

To award a congressional gold medal on behalf of President

Harry S Truman to commemorate the 50th anniversary

of his 1st inauguration as President of the United States

of America.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘President Harry S

5 Truman Congressional Gold Medal Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress hereby finds the following:
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1 (1) Harry S Truman served as President of the

2 United States from April 12, 1945, to January 20,

3 1953.

4 (2) President Truman took important measures

5 to found and support the United Nations.

6 (3) President Truman made important deci7 sions that brought World War II to a successful con8 clusion and brought the former Axis countries to a

9 free and democratic condition.

10 (4) President Truman gave economic and mili11 tary aid to Greece and Turkey in 1947 and after in

12 order to allow them to avoid a communist overthrow

13 of their governments and to pursue freely their indi14 vidual destinies, and he further stated it to be the

15 policy of the United States to support free peoples

16 who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed

17 minorities and to help them freely to pursue their

18 independent destinies.

19 (5) President Truman had an important part in

20 formulating and realizing the program of economic

21 assistance for Europe that became known as the

22 Marshall Plan and, through his support for the plan,

23 he helped to maintain an area of prosperity and

24 freedom in Western Europe.
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1 (6) President Truman stood by the people of

2 West Berlin when they were threatened by a block3 ade by the Soviet Union of all land and water routes

4 to the city, and the airlift that grew out of Truman’s

5 desire to maintain West Berlin as an area of free6 dom succeeded in supplying the city until the Soviet

7 Union gave up its blockade.

8 (7) President Truman helped to establish the

9 North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and his admin10 istration was strongly supportive of measures to

11 strengthen the Atlantic Alliance and to achieve the

12 integration of the countries of Western Europe.

13 (8) President Truman fought throughout his

14 Presidency for domestic programs that would im15 prove the lives of the American people and reinforce

16 their country’s commitment to social justice.

17 (9) President Truman desegregated the Armed

18 Forces and took other actions to fight racism, and

19 his actions helped to provide the foundation of the

20 modern civil rights movement.

21 (10) President Truman oversaw the reorganiza22 tion of the United States Government in order that

23 it might be capable of meeting the demands of the

24 postwar world, and during his administration were

25 created the National Security Council, the Central
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1 Intelligence Agency, the Department of Defense, the

2 Department of the Air Force, the Council of Eco3 nomic Advisers, and other important new agencies

4 and offices.

5 (11) President Truman, through his Point Four

6 Program, stated the goal for American policy of fos7 tering economic growth and human uplift in under8 developed countries.

9 (12) President Truman led his country to resist

10 aggression in Korea, and his goals in making war

11 against the aggressors were to avoid a world war, to

12 support the United Nations, and to maintain free13 dom in the world.

14 (13) President Truman in retirement founded

15 the Harry S Truman Library and devoted his library

16 and himself to teaching the American people, and es17 pecially young people, about their history and their

18 government.

19 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

20 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The President is

21 authorized to present, on behalf of the Congress, to Mar22 garet Truman Daniel a gold medal of appropriate design,

23 in recognition of the many accomplishments of President

24 Harry S Truman on the occasion of the 50th anniversary
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1 of his 1st inauguration as President of the United States

2 of America.

3 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For purposes of the

4 presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary

5 of the Treasury shall strike a gold medal with suitable em6 blems, devices, and inscriptions to be determined by the

7 Secretary.

8 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATION.—There are

9 authorized to be appropriated not to exceed $20,000 to

10 carry out this section.

11 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

12 (a) STRIKING AND SALE.—The Secretary of the

13 Treasury may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the

14 gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 under such regu15 lations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient

16 to cover the cost thereof, including labor, materials, dies,

17 use of machinery, and overhead expenses, and the cost of

18 the gold medal.

19 (b) REIMBURSEMENT OF APPROPRIATION.—The ap20 propriation used to carry out section 3 shall be reimbursed

21 out of the proceeds of sales under subsection (a).

22 SEC. 5. NATIONAL MEDALS.

23 The medals struck pursuant to this Act are national

24 medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United

25 States Code.
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