The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1940-09-12
Disquieting Situation
Washington, Septembe

In launching so huge a defense pro-
cram as now engages this Govern
ment. certain amount of confusion
Is inevitable and unavoidable. But
# ought not to be so great as to be-
wilder those upon whom large respon-
sibity is thrown and render orderly |
and logical effort impossible. Never
tbeless. it is that great, and the reas-
on seems to be that there is no we'll
conceived, carefully considered plan of
procedure.
Instead, the experience of the past |
is not being used with intelligence;
nor is adequate thought being given
TO a clearly visible future. The whole
business is being rushed in a high
speed, high-pressure, needless, head
long way, without steady direction by
one dominant mind concerned only |
with getting results and knowing how
to get them. There is progress, to
be sure Certain things are being done
and done well-but there is not the T
kind of progress there should be, and /
soon or late it will be surprising if |
some one of the men brought here
from out side does not arise and
say so.
The necessity for one Individual who
really can-and will coordinate the |
whole defense effort has been vainly |
urged upon the President from the
start He has made it plain that he
intends to be the one big central fig |
re in this business. Rather than del |
egate power to another, he is at !
tempting the coordinating himself, |
though it is quite obvious that his
other Presidential duties, to say
nothing of his third-term candidacy,
make it impossible for him to give
either the time or the kind of con-
centraton for which coordination and |
direction Of the defense program calls.
One result is that time is being |
wasted and effectiveness diminished. |
A further result is that friction exists
between some of the Presidents New |
Deal aides and some of the Industrial |
lists whom he has drafted. The former
feel rescntful at the importance being |
given the latter and insist there is |
enough ability among the New Dealers |
to do this job without bringing in men
unsympathetic both to the New Deal
philosophy and the third-term can
ddacy, 1t is fair to say that Mr.
Roosevelt has in no way encouraged |
this idea and, except that he viii not |
delegate the power. without which
they cannot fully function, is support
ing the industrialists.
This, however, does not prevent a
campaign of disparagement from be-
ing waged by the resentful aides, evil
dence of which is to be found in the !
left-wing weeklies and comments of
other journalistic refectors of the "ad-
vanced thinkers" Injurious, too, is the
suspicion that politics is getting into
the defense program. The third-term |
candidacy naturally makes these sus-
picions inevitable, but certainly they
are promoted by such incidents as the
disclosure that Mr.. "Chip" Robert, |
Secretary of the Democratic National
Committee and one of the thirdterm
drafters, has received very large fees
from contracts for defense work.
That creates a bad smell and makes |
the nonpartisan atmosphere which
should cnvelop the defense effort, and
which Mr.. Roosevelt has attempted to
establish, difficult to maintain. But
the Robert incident is not important
and the refusal of the President to
utlize-or even make publc-the in
dustrial mobilization plan is impor-
tant This is not, as he has said, an
"od' plan; it is not only new plan
but it is the only plan there is. AS
General Johnson pointed out, this plan
is the result of years of work and
study in the Army War College, the
Army Industrial College and the Cen
era Staff. 1t is the plan to which Mr..
B. NJ. Baruch, head of the old War
Industries Board and certainly the
Disqualified man in the country on
this subject, has contributed and APP
proved.
The successes and failures of the
industrial mobilization of the last war
form the basis for this plan. 1t tries
to eliminate the errors of 1917 and
1918 and to vaccinate against a repe-
tltlon of the mistakes of that time.
IN brief, the best brains Of the War
Department and of the industrialists
who went through the last war have
been combined to evolve an industrial
mobilization plan for better than the
one we had. But Mr.. Roosevelt pushes
II aside as cold stuff" He will not even
make it public and exhibits pronounced
irritation when anyone refers to it.