Evening star., 1949-07-03
Tydings Bill Believed
Essential to Economy
Failure of House Committee to Act
on Measure Called a Disservice
Bv Frank X. Kent

Four days ago. after an unexplained In
terval of complete inactivity for more than
a month, the House Armed Services Com
mittee began hearings on the National Sc
curity Act amendments of 1949, known as
the Tydings bill. In the Judgment of most
informed men, this is the most important
piece of domestic legislation that has come
before Congress in long time.
Its progress from now on should deeply
concern every man and woman in the coun-
try who wants to cut down governmental
waste and restore health to the exceedingly
sick Federal finances Recent polls in various
sections of the country convincingly show
that a heavy majority of citizens favor these
objectives. If the last chance to regain con-
troll of our now almost unmanageable fiscal
affairs is not to be irretrievably lost this is
the time for these citizens to make their feel
ing known by whatever means they can con-
trive For the Tydings bill comes pretty
close to being the heart of the Hoover re-
port on reorganization of the Executive
branch of the Government. 1t passed the
Senate on May 26 without dissenting vote
and ever since has been hung up in the
House. It's failure now would be a national
calamity.
Considering the unanimity of the Senate
action; considering its Endorsement by PreSi-
dent Truman and long list of experts in
and out of the Government, including ex-
President Hoover former Secretary of De-
fense James Forrestal, Secretary of Defense
Louis johnson; w. Stuart Symington. Secre-
tary of Air; Kenneth Royall former Secre-
tary of War; Gordon Gray present Secretary
OF Army; Frank Pace budget director, and
Ferdinand Eberstadt chairman of the Hoover
report task force considering also the over
Whelming testimony by disinterested men Of
highest hot of fho +o A y;
lions savable by adoption of the complete
Hoover recommendations p billions or
more than third, can be saved in the armed
forceS alone under this bill without in any
way weakening our defense machine-couple
all this with the vital need for national
economy and increased efficiency and it
seems inexcusable that this bill should bog
down at this stage. Editors note: Mr..
Hoover approves the bill generally, but Is
opposed to a section which he believes would
set up super chief of staff
Yet some of its leading advocates believe
1t in real danger
All parts OF the Hoover program are nat
urally opposed by the Federal jobholders
who fear consolidation, combination and
elimination will sever them from the paw
roll. No sensible man minimizes the po-
tency OF this opposition. Always it has been
the great barrier to reduction in size and
armed forces today there are nearly 100000
OF the more than 100000 civilian employees
OF the Government. 1t may be that these
and their congressional and political spon-
sors are concentrating on Wrecking the
Tydings bill in the House. not by voting
against it but by holding it in committee
until too late for effective action An early
August adjournment would help such plan.
At any rate, DR.. Robert L. johnson, chair
man OF the national and non-partisan Citi-
zens' Committee. supporting the Hoover
report, asserts that the Tydings bill has
developed secret enemies stronger than was
suspected Powerful forces" he declares,
are plainly engaged in last-ditch effort
to defeat measure which would end bick-
ering and waste in the armed services"
How otherwise" he asks, can we account
for the delay this bill has met in the House
after its passage by the Senate without a
single dissenting vote?" DR.. johnson also
made the point that Chairman Wilson's
skeptcism about the saving of billion and
half dollars opposes an array of ''formid-
able authorities" who agree that the least
possible saving would be a billion. This. he
says. would mean approximately $40 a. year
for the average American family.
In view Of the extraordinary Endorsement
of the Tydings bill by the experts in every
branch of the armed services and by the
executives of all three branches it is diff
cult to see how any open fight can be made
against it. The prime purpose of the bill is
to make unihcation effective. It gives the
Secretary Of Defense the essential powers
he now notably lacks. 1t not only gives him
direction. authority and control" of his
subordinates, but it also vests in him major
policy decisions subject only to the Presi-
dent. Also it would definitely end the chaotic
situation under which the Secretaries OF
Army, Navy and Air can bypass the Secre-
tary of Defense And 60 direct to the
President.
The great saving Of course, will come
largely In the abolition of the multitude Of
duplicating. overlapping and unnecessary
boards bureaus and commissions. Also, by
doing away with antiquated accounting
methods 1t will put an end to the budget
padding stressed by Mr.. Eberstadt and his
task force, which recently included such
items as the 838,800 tropical uniforms at
$129 apiece and 910 houses for military per-
sonnel In Alaska at $4,000 each, and of the
strangely transposed budget figure which
made difference of $30000.000.
The points made against the bill that 1t
would make a military dictator Of the Sec
retary of Defense and that no one knows
how to make the estimated savings are fam
c1ful, strained ana unSound. Inc truth Is
that without this bill no real savings can
be made and without the powers it confers
on the Secretary of Defense uni1cation never
can be really effective. A good many inde-
fensible things have happened in Congress
but, under all the circumstances, the fail
ure of the Tydings bill would seem to top
them all. Revelation of the danger probably
will insure against that. The opposition can
not come fully out In the open and once
the alarm has been sounded 1t is much too
big to be killed by stealth.
will see something of reproduction in the
wooded island, which sparkles with thou
sands of soft-colored lights festooned among
the trees and arranged in fanciful designs
along the shore. Dancing in the big pavilion