Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-03-12
Defeat Of Slash
In ERP Forecast
In Senate Today
Toft, Booking Cut to
a Billion, Expected to
Make Floor Speech
By J. A. OLeoy

EHortS TO cut the $4,000, 900, 900
European Recovery Program
probably will fail in the Senate
today, while the House Foreign
Affairs Committee begins draft
ing one overall foreign aid bill.
Senator Taft of Ohio, an active
Republican candidate for President,
will pit his strength against Chair
man Vandenberg of the Foreign
Relations Committee, by urging
that only $4,000, 10000 be spent
during the first year of the Mar
shall Plan.
Senator Vandenberg, regarded by
many as possible dark horse Re-
publican nominee, will have the
advantage as leader of strong BIZ
partisan bloc of Democrats and Re-
publicans who are going down the
line for the Administrators foreign
policy.
Taft Expected to Speak Today.
Senator Taft is expected to take
the floor this afternoon for one of
the major speeches of the two
week debate. The Ohioan is not
opposing ERP, but reflects the SEN
tinients of a group of Midwestern
Republican "revisionists" who think
the bill goes too far.
Senator Taft, who heads the
Senate Republican Policy Com
mittee. announced before the Sem
ate convened that the Senate For
eign Relations Committee will pro-
coed next week with separate bills
for China, Greece and Turkey, de-
spite the decision of House leaders
to throw them all together.
Senator Taft said after a meeting
Of the policy group this morning
that, I'VE hope they (the House, will
not put military aid in with the
European Recovery Program"
Senator Taft made it clear, how
ever, that if that course is followed
the Senate will reserve its right to
separate debate on military aid for
China and further military aid for
Greece and Turkey.
Further Delay Unlikely.
This may not cause any further
delay in foreign aid, however. Sen
ator Taft said he thought the Sen
ate could finish its debate on China,
Greece and Turkey by April 8. 1t
is doubtful If the House will have
passed its combined bill before that
time.
Having discussed the whole prob
lem separately, the Senate could
then agree to let all phases Of the
foreign aid program go to confer
ence between the two houses in one
catch-all bill.
There was division of opinion
at the Capitol whether the pro-
gram would be slowed down by the
decision of House Republican lead
ers for "one-package" bill.
The Senate started out on the
theory it would be better to clean
up the European bill and then tackle
the separate administration esti-
mates of $275 100000 for further
military aid to Greece and Turkey
and the $5700O0,O00 of additional
economics aid for China.
There were two reasons for this
course: % That economic and mill
tary aid should not be intermingled;
CD that ERP should be made law
in time to help keep Italy from go
ing communstic in the April Is
election.
While all three foreign aid
funds have the same goal-to check
communism-ERP and the China
money is entirely economic, and the
budget for Greece and Turkey is
military.
Halleck Favors One Bill.
House Majority Leader Halleck
made clear his belief, however, that
the entire question of foreign aid
can be settled as quickly in one bite
as three. Mr.. Halleck and Speaker
Martin sat IN with the Republican
members of the House Foreign At
fairs Committee when they made
their decision.
Mr.. Halleck pointed out that the
additional money for Greece and
Turkey can be covered by adding
one sentence to the ERP bill. chang
ing the total in the original Greek
Turkish bill. He also reminded
critics of the House program that
the administration put an April
deadline on Greek Turkish as well
ss European aid.
The House Republicans are going
further than the administration by