Evening star., 1950-08-29
.S8 Billion Budget Bill
With Loan 10 Spain
Is Sent 10 Truman
By J. A. O'Leory

Lie poO.4 UlillUu OMNIBUS ap-
preparation bill to meet regular
requirements of all Government
agencies is on its way to the
White House today, containing
the administration opposed loan
to Spain.
Congressional leaders do not
believe President Truman will vote
the bill because of the $62.5 mil
lion Spanish loan, but there were
reports yesterday he might i'm
pound the loan fund.
Meanwhile, the Senate Ap-
prCpriations Committee turned
promptly to the follow-up supple
mental defense appropriation bill,
which passed the House Saturday
carrying $16.7 billion. These two
money bills, plus the Govern
ment'S fixed charges of SOS bill
lion. including interest on the
public debt, bring the current
budget to about $50 billion. 1t is
almost certain to go higher as
later requests from the armed
forces are received.
Economy Bloc Hits Action.
AS the Senate gave final ap-
proval to the omnibus bill yes
terday, leaders of the economy
bloc deplored the decision of the
conferees to let the Budget Bureau
do the citing in non-defense
agencies.
Senators Byrd, Democrat, of
Virginia and Bridges, Republican,
of New Hampshire defended their
discarded amendment, which the
Senate had written into the orig
inal text of the bill, requiring a
reduction of 10 per cent in all
except a selected list of essential
functions. The conferees took,
instead, a House proposal to cut
a fiat sum of $3.50 million from the
bill and instructing the Budget
Bureau to pick the spots, without
national defense.
Senator Byrd said he was sorry
Congress is abdicating its budget
cutting power. Senator Bridges
insisted the plan finally adopted
is more of meat-ax approach
than the Senate had proposed.
Chairman McKellar, of the Ap-
preparations Committee, praised
the committee for the thorough
way it handled this first attempt
to wrap the regular Federal
budget into a one-package bill,
agreed the conferees did a good
overall job.
The bill. which goes to the
President today, is s2.3 billion
under his budget estimates. in
Guiding the $3.50 million the
Budget Director is required to
save. This means the two houses
shaved nearly $1.8 billion from
specific items before ordering the
fiat reduction.
In the final round of Senate
debate yesterday Senator Robert
son, Democrat, of Virginia de-
Tended the loan to Spain, for
which he voted. He recalled that
ever since the close of World War
II the United States has been
trying to build up the nations
to communism.
Loans to Tito Recalled.
"If Spain won't fight against
communism. then no one will"
he said, and added that the Span
ish Army is in better condition
than some of the other countries
the United States is helping.
The Virginia Senator pointed
out that the Export Import Bank
has already made loans to Tito's
Yugoslavia on faith rather than
security. He recalled he visited
Spain within the past year and
found more personal freedom
there than in Yugoslavia.
Senator Robertson said he had
heard the reports that President
Truman may impound the Span
ish loan fund and does not chal-
lenge the Presidents right to re-
frain from spending money Con-
gress has appropriated. The Sen
ator added, however, that if Mr.
Truman impounds it that will be
his responsibility.
Spain may never get any of
this money and we may never
get any help from Spain," the
Virginia Senator concluded.