Evening star., 1946-09-19
Truman Errs Again
In Keeping Wallace
Commentator Says Presidents
Stand Weakens Foreign Policy
By Darid Loprpncs

By Dapid Laurence
President Truman has blundered
again. He had a chance to clear up the
international situation and strengthen
the hand of Secretary Of State Byrnes
in his dealings with other governments
by asking for the resignation OF Secre-
tary of Commerce Wallace. But Mr.
Truman temporized as is his habit. and
the Nation gets further evidence that
it has the weakest man in the White
House since Mr.. Harding
Mr. Truman secured from Secretary
Wallace a promise that he would keep
quiet until after the Paris conferences
are ended. but this is tantamount to
saying that the President tolerates the
'appeasement" and pro-Russian views
OF member of his own cabinet while
he keeps the American delegation at
Paris, Secretary Byrnes and Senators
Vandenberg and Connally. wondering
what will happen when Mr. Wallace
opens up again.
BY inference. the President now has
approved Mr.. Wallace's views but merely
doesn't want them expressed at this
time. II Mr. Truman disapproved Of the
mistake of his cabinet Secretary in pub
licly attacking the policies of his ad-
ministration, he now gives the impress
sion that he is willing to allow further
criticism OF Secretary Byrnes from with
in his own official family.
Advance Warning Given,
What is more significant is that the
Wallace letter of July % last warned Mr..
Truman III great detail of the Secretary
! OF Commences critical view OF what
Secretary Byrnes was doing. But Mr..
Truman, instead of repudiating public
ly the criticism expressed in that letter,
now allows the country to believe that
maybe he. the President. is sympathetic
with the Wallace viewpoint
1t is difficult to imagine Mr.. Byrnes
remaining as Secretary of State very
long. A resignation by him and the
other members of the delegation would
not be surprising. Mr.. Truman has in
effect notified the world that he doesn't
know what the, foreign policy of the
United States should be and that he
wants to hear Mr.. Wallace expound
further before making up his mind.
Under the Constitution, the President
formulates foreign policy and instructs
the Secretary of State how to carry it
out But Mr.. Truman apparently be-
lieves he can delegate his constitutional
function temporarily to one cabinet
officer or the other and remain de-
tached from an actual decision of issues
himself
The truth is a political campaign is
on. Mr.. Truman is afraid to fire Mr..
Wallace because it might have an ad-
verse effect on Democratic nominees for
congressional seats But he may dis
cover that the country does not like the
fact that the leader of the Democratic
party retains pro-Communist member
in his cabinet, and the voters may use
the opportunity afforded them at the
polls in November to vote against all
Democratic nominees who do not dis
avow the Wallace utterances.
| The President is supposed to have
learned something about politics in his
early days Of association with the
Pendergast machine. But it begins to
look as If he doesn't know politics too
well. The Communist issue is one that
/, cuts across party lines The Democratic
voters who want to show by their votes
that they repudiate Communism in any
+ form will consider voting the Republi-
can ticket to make their protest A
considerable body of Democratic votes
is against pro-Russian or pro-Commu-
mist tactics whether by cabinet officer
or any one else
The President, therefore has opened
up new issue throughout the country.
II ne had called for the resignation of
Secretary Wallace, he would have been
applauded for firmness and for endeav-
oring to present unified front to for
eign governments. Today as a result
of the compromise reached, whereby Mr.
Wallace stays in the cabinet but for
few weeks refrains from expressing
himself in public, the Russians have
been given their most direct encourage
ment to continue their obstructive tao
tics at Paris and in other parts of the
world.
Foreign policy now will become foot
ball Of party politics again as in the
'20s and Mr.. Truman will find more
and more difficulty in steering the ship
OF state through Secretary Byrnes or
any one else. 1t is a sad story of weak
ness in the White House and an ex-
ample of rigid system of tenure which,
unlike the parliamentary systems in
Canada and other countries, does not
permit the people to get rid OF an in
competent leader overnight.