Evening star., 1948-09-30
Press Remains Polite
To Truman Despite
His Denunciations
Lack Of Confidence Seer
In Presidents Hundling
Of Foreign Situation
By David Laurence

Notwithstanding the fact that
President Truman isn't very polite
to the press these days-he seems
to be denouncing newspapers for
expressing their opinions and pref
erences in the campaign-the press
happens to be very polite to Mr..
Truman.
Thus, very little has been reported
publicly about the ienominious posi-
ton in which a President OF the
United States finds himself today in
the midst of one of the gravest crises
in the Nations history.
For several weeks now a group of
officials have worked day and night
and Sundays trying to develop and
apply American policy toward Rus
sia. The group has labored to the
point of fatigue. Theirs is the re-
sponsibility for formulating policy.
They, of course, keep President
Truman advised by messages OF
what they are doing, but it is an
open secret in Washington that, so
far as the making of policy is con-
cerned, the Nation might as well
forget that it has a President OF the
United States.
Out Shaking Hands.
Mr.. Truman is out shaking hands
and campaigning, which is his right
and privilege. But he would be
making many more votes if he
stayed at home and attended to the
public business. No opposing can
didate would venture to criticize
him for remaining at his post OF
duty.
But even if Mr. Truman were here,
what could he do or say? There is
such a feeling OF lack Of confidence
in Mr.. Truman's capacity to decide
important questions that the group
to which he has delegated power
goes ahead without him. The truth
of the matter is that Mr.. Truman
Is not sufficiently informed to deal
with the present-day questions OF
diplomacy-certainly not while he is
out stumping.
1t is a tragic fact, but Mr.. Truman
is so completely out of the picture
Of top-level Safeguarding that
one wonders why it never dawned
on his political advisers to give even
a pretense of participation by him
in the high councils Of state.
The Nation is being asked to con-
tinue Mr.. Truman in office. He
himself is out asking for votes in
a fortnight manner-and 1t may
be important from his personal
standpoint that he be continued In
Office. But it evidently Is not i'm
portant to the official group which
runs American policy.
Responsibility Fixed.
Under the Constitution, the Presi-
dent of the United States is re-
sponsible for the conduct of foreign
relations. The Secretary OF State
is his agent but never before in
major crisis has a President abdi-
Gated so completely. The Ameri-
can people choose their Chief Ex-
ecutive on the assumption that he
is capable of being a leader and
that he will not be rubber stamp
for his cabinet. The advice that
cabinet group can give is all-impor-
tant but the decision must rest
with President as to what course
to pursue.
Woodrow Wilson never would
have consented to delegate to a
Secretary of State the entire max
ing of foreign policy. Neither
would Herbert Hoover nor Franklin
D. Roosevelt. The weaker ones
among the Presidents did-President
Harding turned over nearly every
thing to Secretary Hughes and his
successors. Harding, however, was
President in peacetime when prob
lens we're not as acute as they are
today.
1t is significant that Gov.
Dewey is letting 1t be known that
he is keeping in touch with what
is happening at Paris through his
adviser, John Foster Dulles. Mr..
Dewey sees point that may be
helpful to American policy-he
warns the Soviet that there is no
disunity here at home on foreign
policy and that our Governments
policy will be supported irrespec-
tive of party.
1t is necessary for Mr.. Dewey to
say this for political reasons. What
he may think of the conduct of
American policy to date is some
thing else again. Clearly the group
which is making policy here is not