The daily monitor leader. [volume] (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1942-19??, 1942-06-25
By PETER EDSOk
Monitor-Leoder Washington
Correspondent

scheduled TO go before Sem
otor Trumon's committee in
Vestiooting war pro d U ction
some time before the end Of
June and give O progress re-
port on what he has done in
the six months since he took
over. The formal report itself
will probably be pretty dull 60
ing. Much Of it will be q mere
making public Of information
prepared previously for on ex-
ecutive session Of the House
Appropriations { o m m ttee,
when Nelson appeared TO esti-
mate the sums needed TO fl
nance WPB operations during
the coming fiscal year. Thot
part Of the report will be q
mere chronology Of WPB oper-
atoms. Production figures, if
they could be made public,
would m q k e on interesting
chapter but thot's all restrict
ed information.
Nelson's appearance before
the Truman committee can be
q pretty lively session, how
ever, if the senators have q
mind to follow up their report
on conversion, in which they
Iombosted the War Production
Board for keeping doIIor-o-
year men from big business in
key WPB positions. This is be-
coming quite O row, and it is
O beautiful example Of the diff
ference in the way things ore
done in government and the
way they ore done in private
business.
Some Of the WPB brointrus-
tiers who are Nelson's advisers
privately bemoon the foct that
the BOSS one blind spot is his
continual backing up Of these
doIIor-o-yeor men who ore his
principle assistants.
Nearly all Of the senators
on the Truman committee still
mistrust dollar q year men.
They believe Nelson, to save
himself, should divorce the
WPB organization from all
these doIIor-o-yeor boys.
MOT IMPRESSED"
Nelson's first reaction to the
Truman report on conversion
wos 10 issue O statement ex-
pressing full confidence in
Philip D. Reed, Sl2O,OOO-o-
year chairman Of the board Of
the General Electric Company
now on leave and serving at q
doIIor-o-yeor as chief Of the
Bureau Of Industry Branches in
WPB. The committee singled
out Reed for criticism, decIor-
inq he did not toke the nee
essory action TO obtain the
moximum conversion Of pri-
Vote industry TO war production
in the shortest possible time, q"
and that THE committee has
not been impressed with Mr..
Reeds ability or accomplish
ments, either in the field Of
conversion or in the field Of
copper, lead and zinc, where
the committee, in its report Of
jan. IS, 1912, had occasion TO
criticize his failure to rec
ognize that q shortage Of these
metals was imminent or TO
toke proper action with respect
thereto.
Now in this battle over Phil
Reed you have q glazing ex-
ample Of the difference be-
tween the way q top man gets
fired in private business and
the way he gets the gate in
government.
In private industry, when
some second vice president or
other stooee pulls q boner and
is about to be bounced, he is
permitted ITO resign" quietly.
Any publicity is hushed up.
It's just the opposite in gov
eminent.
AS to whether Phil Reed is
guilty or innocent, you're as
good q Judge as anyone. You
have the report Of the Truman
committee that he isn't so hot.
a few days before, O House
sub committee on military Of
toirs, Investigating the some
set Of facts, found that dollar
o-yeor men we're okoy and vim
dcoted Reed in particular.
Nelson shares the latter view.
TOUGH ENOUGH?
But Nelson troubles with the
politicians now seem to be be-
ginning. Reported to be in the
works is another big reoreon-