Evening star., 1950-12-13
Burdens on Presiden
Being Talked About
All Over Country
Fears Widely Expressed
Survival Of America as
Free Nation Is at Stake
Bv David Lawrence

By David Laurence
The strain that the American
system puts on one man in the
Presidency is, at critical moment
in history, being talked about from
one end of the country to the
other. Yet across the seas. and
even across the Canadian border,
no one man has all the RESPONSE
bihty of executive power-it is
shared with a large cabinet which
is collectively responsible to the
country and can be removed over
night.
There is reason to sympathize
with President Truman because
the burdens he is carrying are
heavier than those which have
confronted any President in near
ly 100 years. Only the crisis which
Lincoln faced can be said to COM
pare with the series of crises of
today. Fears are widely expressed
that the survival of America as a
free nation may be at stake.
Mr.. Truman cannot under our
constitutional system really dele
gate responsibility. He may have
numerous advisers in the execu-
tive branch Of the Government
but he alone is elected and hence
directly responsible to the people,
whereas in the parliamentary sys-
tenn in vogue in Britain and Can
ada the party which is dominant
is jointly responsible for both the
executive and legislative branches
Of the government. Whatever may
be the defects of this system in a
domestic sense. 1t certainly makes
for national unity in crisis in
volving the danger of war.
Letters Show Irritation.
Under the parliamentary sys-
tenn, the Secretary of State would
not long remain an issue. He
would be voted out of power in
the national legislature or else he
would be given a vote of conf
dence. The decision would be made
and the operation of foreign pol
icy would proceed without the un-
dermining influences of constant
debate and friction, because the
secretary would be confirmed in
office or new one put in his
place.
President Truman is the sub
tect of conversation more than
ever before because of various
letters he has written showing ir-
ritation at critics. Some people
explain this as the natural re-
action of a man who considers
that being President doesn't de-
prive him Of the rights that any
person outside the White House
may exercise-as, for instance.
the right ITO blow his top"
Other people are saying that,
while the President has the right
to get angry, he shouldn't show
1t-he must not write letters ex-
pressing indignation. And If he
does, he must couch them in
language which is acceptable. g.
The public in a democracy re-
serves the right to talk about a
President and even to write and
tell him how he should behave.
But when he answers back, the
code Of the Office is that a Presi- |
dent must be dignified and re-
strained and accept the epithets
thrown at him.
AS a matter of fact, any one
who Is thin-skinned doesn't belong
IN politics because the political
game involves not only dishing
it out but being able to take what
Is dished out to oneself.
Prisoner Of Fate.
But when all this is considered,
the fact remains that just a few
weeks ago a couple of would-be-
assassins shot their way to the
front door Of the house where
the President was sleeping. Out
side the house four persons were
killed or wounded. The newspapers
reported that the President stood
up we'll under the strain-that he
took a walk downtown early the
next morning and so on-but they
also reported that the number of
guards had been increased.
More and more a President
under these circumstances be-
comes prisoner of fate. He can
not mingle freely with the people.
He cannot come and go as he
pleases. He gets a ''closed-in" feel
ing and about the only way he
can communicate with folks on
the outside is by letter or tele-
phone.
The strain which Mr.. Truman
is under nowadays cannot be
imagined by persons on the out
side. Death came close to him at
Blair House as the shots rang out
in October and just a few days
ago death came again and took
his own close friend and press
secretary, Charles Ross. But
death stalks even more conspicu-
ously in the frozen fields of Korea
as American troops-the men Mr..
Truman sent there last June
keep their rendezvous with des-
tiny. 1t is a time for patience,
for forbearance, for tolerant
understanding-and indeed for
prayer for the man who carries
the greatest burden of our time.
And 1t Is possible that the prayers
of others will ease this burden and
bring an antidote to the spirit of
disappointment or even bitterness
that may haunt him and give him
strength to carry on. For he has
two years more of official burdens.
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