Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1951-07-08
Leadership Of Truman
Held Feeble and Week
Writer Says Congress FIouts
President on Controls
By Fronk R. Kent

The really frightening thing about the
existing Washington situation is the
exceeding feebleness of the White House
leadership. This has been true from the
beginning of the administration - but
before the crisis it was not too vital.
Now it is
The trouble with Mr.. Truman u.s. first,
that he fails to act when he has the
power and action is needed: second,
when, after long and costly delays, he
finally acts. he lacks the strength to be
effective. Naturally. White House weak
ness is reflected all down the admin
istration line. No organization can be
much better than the man at the top.
There is nothing in the least sinister or
wicked about Mr.. Truman. But though
he has proclaimed himself a fighting
man" there seems little force in his
fighting, and most of his reputation
along this line is based on the idea that
he stands by his friends when attacked.
However. there have been one or two
occasions when he most notably failed
to do that
The lamentable truth is that while
he has made number of fights, they
have been mostly over appointments
and he has by no means won all Of
them. So far as can be recalled he has
won no big fight since he has been
President. AS matter of fact, he has
not made any. At the beginning of the
defense effort he evaded conflict with
the organized labor bosses who baked
at his program and are still dragging
their feet Nor has he shown any dis
position to come to grips with the
farm lobby, which stands in the way
of effective price control. Also, though
he has talked good\ deal about the
danger of imitation, he has utterly
neglected to fight for the essential econ
onlies in non-defense expenditures, the
terrific Importance Of which has been
pointed out many times by many per-
sons.
At no time, however, has the feeble
ness of the Truman leadership been
more clearly exposed than in the de-
feat in Congress on the issue Of con-
trolls upon which the administrators
program wholly depends and without
which the danger of a ruinous imitation
is vastly increased. With clear party
majority in both House and Senate.
and with an overwhelming press sup
port, Congress rejected Mr.. Trumans
pleas and refused to give him what he
asked, though the first Importance OF
the questions raised was generally con-
coded.
Beyond doubt this was the most
humiliating reverse the President has
suffered since he took office in 1915.
1t was not possible to blame it upon the
alleged iniquitous coalition of fre-
dictionary Republicans" and Southern
Democrats. For the extraordinary fact
Is that in both House and Senate the
administrators own regular Demo-
cratic leaders refused to follow the
White House lead and ignored the
presidential appeals No such exhibition
as this has been seen in Congress with
in the recollection of any one conversant
with congressional history. During the
Roosevelt era, while there were times
when the majority leaders did not per-
sonally favor the Roosevelt program,
there was no such bolt as that staged in
the Senate when Senator: Mcfarland OF
Arizona, the official Democratic leader.
and the Democratic whip, Senator
johnson of Texas, departed from the
White House proposals and voted with
it's opponents. ,-
Also, upon several votes, that example
of Democratic organization regularity.
Senator. Tom Connally of Texas. did
the same thing. The result of the defec-
ton of these administration leaders
left defense of the administration pro-
gram in the hands of Senators Lehman
of New York and Benton of Connect
icut-two Senators conspicuously lack
ing in personal popularity and influence.
They Jared rather badly in the bitter
debate and were utterly unable to
avert the debacle. 1t may be that be-
fore the extension of the emascnlated
controls-to July 31-expires a SUI
ficient pressure can be brought upon
Congress to compel a reversal and in
sure an effective bill. That is what can
be hoped but there is no surety about
it. and the revelation of Mr.. Humans
inability to keep his own leaders in line
has had facilitating effect.