Evening star., 1946-04-04
Not q Matter of Substance

10 DOTTOW from une language OF
the United Nations Organization, 1t
may be said that the rewritten VAN
denberg amendment to the McMa-
hon atomic-energy bill involves a
matter of procedure far more than
a matter of substance. Procedurally,
it would effect an administrative i'm
provement, but in substantive
sense its objective is so much like
that of the original that it is diff
cult to understand why it has been
described in some quarters as a great
victory for civilian control over an
alleged effort by military leaders to
harness the atom to their own ends
Actually, despite loud cries to the
contrary. the original amendment
would not have established military
control. 1t would merely have set
up, as an adjunct to an all-civilian
atomic energy commission, a non
voting Army-Navy liaison committee
which would have been appointed by
the President with the right to be
kept fully informed of the commits
sion'S proceedings and to appeal to
the President-as the final deciding
authority-in cases of disagreement
on matters related to "the common
defense and security" of the Nation.
Administratively. as was pointed out
even by those who supported the
basic purpose OF Senator Vahden-
berg'S initial proposal. such an ar
rangement could lead to difficulties
but its objective-namely, to let the
armed forces have a proper voice in
this revolutionary f1eld-was COM
pletely sound. Certainly no fair
reading of its language could justify
the wild propaganda leveled against
it, particularly the dark suggestion
that the brass hats" might employ
it eventually to impose military
fascism" on America.
1t is worth emphasizing, therefore,
that the revised amendment-unan-
imously approved by the Special
Senate Atomic Committee-does not
make any obeisance to those guilty
OF having engaged in a line of criti-
cism which so misrepresented the
original as to make one wonder
whether there were not a deliberate
campaign afoot to discredit and
smear the Army and Navy for sinis-
ter purposes. The objective of the
new version is the same as that of
the old-to give the armed forces a
proper voice in the development of
nuclear energy without removing the
field from civilian control. The
major change is this: Instead of be-
ing appointed by the President, as
under the old version, the liaison
committee would be appointed by
the Secretaries of War and Navy
and would file its appeals with them
rather than with the President. In
turn, however, the Secretaries would
consult the President If one or both
agreed on the validity of any appeal,
and his decision would be final
There would be kind of screening
process, in other words, that would
guard against overburdening the
Chief Executive.
This is procedural revision, and
adminiStratively good one. In sub
stance, though, Army and Navy in
tereSts are protected as much as be-
fore on matters which the commit
tee deems to relate to military appli-
cations" The phrase common de-
fense and security" has been deleted,
to the satisfaction of those scientists
who sincerely believed it to be 80
broad as to threaten the kind of re-
strictions which were vitally neces-
sary during the war, but which
would tend to stifle peacetime re-
search and development. If there is
a victory for anything in all of
this, 1t is victory" simply for
clearer definition and smoother ad-
ministration. The issue of military
versus civilian control is not in
volved because it never really existed,
despite the extraordinary efforts of
some people to conjure it up out OF
thin air.