Milford chronicle., 1951-06-01
TO WHOM DID MACARTHUR
OWE HIS DUTY?

OWE HIS DUTY?
When General Macarthur was fired the
basic soundness of the country was evidenced
by the fact that millions of us said at once,
''BUt the military must be subordinate to
the civil authority" 1t was the one yardstick
Immediately at hand by which to measure
the dispute. 1t is a sound one. May we al
ways adhere to it. But what is the civil
authority to which Macarthur owed his
duty? Tt is the President alone in his capa-
city as Commander in Chief of the Army
and Navy? No. That is only part of the
civil authority. Tt is at this point that many
well meaning Americans have gone off the
track in Judging the Iruman-MacArthur dis
puCes. The civil authority of the nation is the
President AND Congress- AND the Federal
courts as agents of the final civil authority
the people thenselves-the young men who
die in war and those who gave them life.
Every branch of this civil authority has
rights in matters of great policy. No one is
supreme over the other. except in matters
specially entrusted to them. General Mac
Arthur is subordinate RESPONSIBLE
to all of them, President Congress. the
Courts, and the people.
Every one comedies that some one man
must have the final power to decide between
the cashing ambitions of commanders; to
c8napel unitY Of action by the Army, Navy
short, to MANAGE a war Otherwise the
defense of the nation is imperilled. For want
Of some one better, that one man is the Pres
ldent, however inexperienced he may be in
the science and art of war. That is his func-
tiOA as Commander in Chief" But even the
Commander in Chief may be restrained by
the courts when he goes beyond this special
power. it was so held in a great case during
the Civil War when LincOln's orders violated
81 IL -
"eivil authority COngress-has great pow
ers, greater than the Presidents with respect
to war. 1t alone may declare war, or refuse
to do so; borrow money and levy taxes for
the common defense; appropriate funds $50
much for flat tops, or jet planes, etc), or re-
fuse to appropriate; to call out the militia;
to cOnscript citizens into the armed forces;
to commander the products of factory and
farm; to make rules for the government and
regulation of the armed services, ETC. AS the
Supreme Court has said, the war power of
Congress "extends to all legislation essential
to the prosecution of war with vigOr and sue
cess EXCEPT SUCH AS INTERPRETERS
WITH THE COMMAND OF THE FORCES
AND THE CONDUCT OF CAMPAIGNS'' In
short both IN peace or war, Congress is the
great POLICY board Of the nation. No policy
is more important than to declare war. and
against whom. Military orders are one thing;
the determination of POLICY is another.
One is the province of the Commander in
Chief; the other must be shared with Con-
gress, and the people. All must agree that
this division Of the war power is sound;
otherwise, we CAN have a dictatorship Let
US apply it to the Iruman-MacArthur dis
pute.
Many believe that sending our armed
forces into Korea without the prior approval
oI Congress was an unconstitutional act. But
no dispute arose between the two men with
respect to this, SO we pass it for the moment.
But when the ''neW war" started in October.
the question arose as to whether sound policy
required us to go beyl0nd the defense of
South Korea into the territory of China. At
gnls polnt did Congress- the people
nave no power to help debate and decide this
new question: Was Harry S. Truman alone
20 deelQes Must Congress and military ex-
perts who differ with the President keep
their mouths shut? No The Constitution
says that Congress has part of the RESPONSE
0llLy and duty to decide policy. But how can
Congress act intelligently without the views
OF military experts, freely and honestly ex-
pressed, even if they differ from the Pres
ldent4 Specifically, did Macarthur violate
any constitutional duty when in answer to
question, he expressed his views on policy
% q responsible member of Congress, Hon.
joseph w Martin That is the issue
Every one agrees that a private must obey
tne MILITARY orders Of his captain, even
4 tne captain Is wrong, and FIVE store gem
etsl must obey the MILITARY orders of the
Efesioent General Marshall agrees that Mae
arthur o1eyed al such orders. But to extend
fhe rule thst the military must be snbord3r-
ste g tne civil authority beyond the execu-