The midland journal., 1946-05-17
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Released by Western Newspaper Union.
ARM Y-NAVY UNIFICATION
SHOULD START AT ONCE
By PAUL MALLON

WASHINGTON Mr.. Truman
made the proper move to get his
army-navy unification bill through
congress. The navy had performed
an all-out lobbying job against the
program. 1t was in charge of Navy
Assistant Secretary H. Struve Hen
sci, who worked through the Navy
League promoting speeches and
articles by admirals, and arousing
naval affairs committeeman in both
houses. If Mr.. Truman succeeds
in stopping navy agitation, he will
get his bill through because there
is no other opposition, except that
which may be continued by the
naval committeeman who fear they
may lose their seniority standing in
their committee jobs. But the bill
is not on the program for this ses-
sion. The calendar of both houses
is already crowded for the next
several months, and the leaders are
planning a summer recess to let
the legislators 60 home and mend
their broken fences in preparation
for their reelection campaigns.
The navy never had much of a
case. No one can oppose unification
as theory. Appalling Implications
of army and navy services filed
the committee record of hearings.
Army and navy competed with each
other in bidding for such things as
clothing, for example. In that line,
one service might have surplus
of some items while the other had
deficiency. f@
In negotiating their separate con-
tracts, they were actively compet-
ing against each other. Then again
on small islands like Guam, there
would be naval hospital construct
ed and maintained a mile away
from an army hospital 1t was
shown also that in armament the
navy and army encountered need
less conflict Furthermore, the
building of separate airports around
the world caused duplication waste
in many instances.
NAVAL DELAYING ACTION
In the face of such overwhelming
evidence, the navy centered it's
campaign largely upon delaying ac-
tion by congress. Its basic fear and
claim was that the navy was to be
put under the army by unification
which simply is not true. The
Thomas subcommittee has report
ed now bill which proposes to set
up the unification this way: A sin
gle secretary of common defense in
the cabinet, with three secretaries
under him, one each for army, air
and navy; then an overall chief of
staff with a recommendation that
the President rotate this office be-
tween the three services, giving it
to army for year, then to air and
then to navy, three assistant Sec
retaries representing each branch
of the service, and finally legaliza-
ton of the joint chiefs of staff set
up during the war to provide Co
operation in strategy between the
services.
This setup preserves the navy as
just as much an independent unit
as the army or the air forces. It
does not put the navy under the
army. But it is true the army,
numerically, is stronger, and may
WELD a greater influence in the
combined department than the ad-
mirals or air arm, despite the legal
equality of each branch.
Delay in enacting the program
until next year will greatly impede
efficiency in national defense. Even
if the legislation could be enacted
today, at least year or more
would be required to work out and
effect the vast details of reorganiza-
ton.
While the Soviet seems to be
leisurely Withdrawing it's military
army from Iran, it is leaving be-
hind political army which has an
excellent chance of absorbing the
country, as Britain and the U. S.
have no armies on the ground, mill
tary or political
Next possible Russian move may
be to cut the nearest slice of Turkey
already defined in the official Mos
cow journals. This is a thin slice
running about 200 miles westward
in length along the Black sea with
a depth of rs to 100 miles inland.
The Turks could not stop such a
move without naval assistance from
the British or U. S. Their frontier
armies could easily be by-passed
by Russian amphibious landings in
their rear.
A late grapevine report to trust