Evening star., 1951-01-20
Douglas Says Truman
Forced Landing Graft
Program on Navy

President Truman-then a Sem
lator and head of the War Investi-
eating Committee-did more to
help win World War II than
almost any other member Of Con-
gress," Senator Douglas, Demo-
crat, Of Illinois and an ex-Marine,
declared last night.
He said Mr.. Truman's Senate
committee overruled the Navy and
insisted on production of shall
low-draft landing craft to put
Allied troops ashore on enemy
Isoil.
"The Navy had nothing but
|deep-draft ships for landings"
Senator Douglas said, "and they
never would have had any landing
|craft-LSTs, LCVPs and LCMs-if
the Navy bureaucrats had had
their way"
Senator Douglas spoke to about
300 persons in Howard Univer-
sity's Rankin Chapel. The pro-
gram was sponsored by the uni
versity's division of social sciences
and the Sidney Hillman Founda-
ton Of the Amalgamated Clothing
Workers. CIO.
Hits Some Committees
The Senator cited the Truman
War Investigating Committee as
an example of a Congressional in
vestigating group that made no
|attempt to pillory individuals or
to get publicity for members"
The work Of some Congressional
committees he branded as "defa-
nation, trial by accusation and
partisan perversion." On this list
he included the investigations Of
DR.. Edward U. Condor, director
of the National Bureau of Stand
ards; Howard Hughes, airplane
manufacturer and movie producer,
and the Pearl Harbor hearings.
DR.. Condor was charged with
being "the weakest link" in Amer
ican atomic security and was
never given chance to offer his
own rebuttal testimony. Mr..
Hughes investigation on a war
time airplane contract included
scattered accusations against
President Roosevelt and his fam
lily that were irrelevant and
defamatory," Senator Douglas
asserted.
Senator Douglas said Congress
sional committees can be given
credit for much good work inside
the Government with the execu-
tive agencies simply by the threat
of their existence" He added:
"The carrying out of a law is
often very different from what we
poor Senators and Representatives
thought we were doing"
Criticizes State Department.
Senator Douglas singled out the
State Department and the Recon-
struction Finance Corp. as abusers
of congressional intentions. "The
State Department" he said, "is
like a british husband-the wife
(Congress) suggests something
and is rebuked. Then, when the
necessity of the suggestion be-
comes plain, the husband makes
the same suggestion and takes the
credit for it.
This procedure accounts for
the large influx Of lawyers into
Washington" he said, and added:
Without investigating commit
tees, there's no telling where this
sort of thing would end.
He proposed several safe
guards" including the right of per-
sons who believe they have been
DETAINED in testimony before COM
mittees to redress by a sworn
statement entered in the record
or by personal appearance
Immediately" and the right to be
accompanied by counsel as an ad-
wiser. Testimony would be kept
within relevant" bounds and wit
nesses could have stenographic
copies, if available. Committee
members would be bound not to
leak" parts Of the final report
until majority adopted it, and
hearings would be limited to regu-
lar press coverage.