Evening star., 1950-09-16
The Political Min
Chino Policy Still Seen
6. O. P. Election Turqet
Johnson Custer, Koreo Coins
Won't Change Campaign
The Political Mill
By Gould Lincoln

By Gould Lincoln
The Republican attack on the Demo.
cratic opposition in the Congressional
campaign has been geared to the ad-
ministration's policy in the Far East,
with very definite inclusion of Secretary
of State Acheson. Neither the ousting
of Secretary of Defense Johnson nor
gains by our forces in Korea are likely
to change the direction of the Repub-
lican campaign.
Nothing could be more significant,
in this connection, than the statement
Of Senator Taft of Ohio, chairman OF
the Republican Policy Committee of the
Senate, in which he opposed the ap-
pointment of Gen. George C. Marshall to
be Secretary of Defense. Mr.. Taft in
sisted that the appointment of Gen
Marshall was "reaffirmation of the
tragic policy of this Administration in
encouraging Chinese Communism, which
brought on the Korean war and has
made our whole situation so precarious
in the Far East"
Mr.. Taft called attention to the fact
that President Truman had sent Gen.
Marshall to China-after hostilities in
the Second World War had ceased-un-
der orders to force the Chinese Com
munlsts into the Nationalists'.A cabinet.
Ihls, Mr.. Taft said, was policy which
was followed SO disastrously by the
BeneS government in Czechoslovakia.
Gen. Marshall did not succeed in fore
ing the Nationalist government to take
Communists into its cabinet-but other
steps were taken, seeking to bring about
a coalition of the Nationalist and Com
munist Chinese which materially weak
ened the Nationalist government and
played into the hands of the Com
muniStS
Marshall Moves Recalled.
Gen. Marshall was in China to tell the
Nationalist government that unless a
mediation effort was made, to bring
about a unified Chinese nation, that
American aid, both economic and mil
itary, would be withheld. Under the i'm
pact of such tractics truces were brought
about in the fighting between the
Chinese Nationalists and the Com
munistS-and every time there was a
truce and it had been ended, the posi-
tion Of the Nationalists was weakened
and that of the Communists strength
ened.
Gateways to Manchuria and to Mon
golia were yielded to the Communists
under the Marshall appeal to promote
mediation. And finally, the Chinese
acknowledgement to re-
duce its army from Isl to 81 divisions,
with the idea that the Communists
would also reduce their army-for the
sake of mediation and peace. But it
did not work out that way. The Ma
or - l.
more than half million officers and
mer, The Communists made no re-
ductions.
Hindsight is frequently better than
foreaight-and it certainly turned out
that way so far as the Administration
China policy is concerned. How much
was due to naivete and how much to the
urging of Russia and her friends-in
the interests of the Chinese Communists :
is not clear. fBut from the record it
appears that this country's policy in
China worked to the advantage of the >
Communists and against the National
ist government, eheaded by Chang Kali
shek. "a
Contention of G. o. p.
No one today, not the staunchest fol-
lower Of the Administration. paints
American policy of the past five years in
China and the present situation there
as a success. Communist China is
scarcely an asset to this country and the
western nations in their opposition to a
general communication of the world by
Soviet Russia and her satellites.
The Republicans contend that, had
not this country intervened. the Ma
tionalist government would have cleaned
up the Communists in China, particu-
larly if aid from this country had con-
tinued to reach the Nationalist. Their
secono contention is that had China not
fallen to the Communists, the present
war in Korea would not have been
started by the Communists of North
Korea. Their third contention is that
had the Korean war not been started,
thousands of American lives would have
been spared and billions of dollars OF
the taxpayers money would not have
had TO be expended.
Mr.. Johnson, as a Republican target
ON the ground he failed to prepare
sufflciently-has been removed from the
Administration. But Secretary Acheson,
as strong defender and perhaps as a
chief instigator, of the China policy, the
Korean policy and the FormoSa policy
before the. present war-remains, and
the Republicans continue their fire.