Evening star., 1951-09-29
The Political Mill:
Drive to Meet Attacks
OfG. O. P. in High Gear
Proposed Low to Report Gifts
New Kind of Red Herring
The Political Mill:
By Gould Lincoln

The Truman Administrators drive
to counter Republican attacks of corrup-
ton and the use of political influence to
obtain Government favors for friends"
and clients has gone into high gear.
On the same day William NJ Boyle.
jr., chairman of the Democratic Ma
tional Committee told Senate investi-
eating committee he had no special in
f1uence with Government agencies,
President Truman sent to Congress
special message in which he proposed
law compelling all elected Federal
officials, including members of Congress,
presidential appointees and members Of
political National committees, to make
public statements annually of their
income from all sources-including
gifts"
MIR. Boyle's effort to make the public
believe that call from high official
of the Democratic National Committee,
or letter of instruction, addressed to
Government agency has no particular
influence is naiVe-an underStatement
of the case. President Trumans pro-
posal is new variety of red herring,
drawn this time across the path of anti
Administration attack. Obviously, no
such message would have been sent to
Congress if the charges against the
Administration had not been made
and were not having their political effect.
Recalls Demand for Letters.
The incident recalls the demand from
the White House for all letters written
to the Reconstruction Finance Corp.
by members of Congress at the time
Donald Dawson, presidential assistant,
and others were being charged with
using influence in connection with RFC
loans. Members of Congress charged at
the time the White House was seeking
by that means to intimidate them and
to halt the congressional RFC investi-
cation.
So Mr.. Truman now appears as the
advocate of tearing the curtain aside and
revealing to the public all the sources
of income of Federal "ofhcials, including
members of Congress, which might be
considered as affecting them in the per-
formance of their public duties. In his
message, the President asserted that in
recent months there has been deliber-
ate effort to discredit the Government
service. BY the publicity he proposes,
he hopes to prove that Government
servants are honest and are not swerved
in the course of their duty by outside
influences. OF course he is right in his
assumption that the vast percentage of
them are honest. No charge Of dis
honesty has been made against this vast
majority. 1t is the few who have used
their influence improperly, who have
accepted gifts and other emoluments-
tv, +; Il Asefra
been under attack.
The Administration seemingly is adj
mitting that it is not able to eradicate
corruption in the executive department
of the Government. 1t is therefore asking
Congress to pass law designed to put
fear of being caught into any Govern
ment officials who might be tempted to
stray. Whether it would or not is ques-
tionable Men who crookedly attempt
to sell influence are not going to make
it public.
Charges Made BY G. o. P.
The charge of the Republicans is that
the Administration makes no attempt to
clean house. despite all the evidence
turned up by congressional investiga-
tions. Instead of getting rid of those
who act with improperly, If nothing
worse, the Administration continues to
hold on to them.
Whether Congress will carry out the
Presidents plan for public statements of
income received by Government officials,
legislative executive and judicial. is d
question. When it was called to atten-
ton of Chairman Doughton of the House
Ways and Means Committee and to that
Of Chairman Celler of the House Judi
ciary Committee they said they would
want to know more about the proposal
before they went along with it. Both are
Democrats.
Senator Millikin. of Colorado, chair
man of the Republican Conference Of
the Senate. described the Presidents
message as a cheap political trick. de-
signed to throw blame on others to
escape the blame falling where it be-
longs" If Congress fails to pass the law
he asks, however, Mr.. Truman, in the
campaign next year, will probably be
found replying to charges of corruption
in his Administration with the assertion
that Congress declined to give him the
weapon to prevent 1t.