Evening star., 1951-01-10
Acheson Will Discuss
Policy With Anybody;
Points Out Channels
By Gornett D. Horner

cuSS foreign policy with Senator
Taft. Republican of Ohio, but has
no specific plans to do So.
His comment at a press con.
ference appeared to throw some
cold water on an offer by Sen
ator Taft yesterday to consult
with any administration leaders
in an effort to work out a pro-
gram for opposing Soviet aggres-
sion which would command the
unanimous and consistent" sup
port of the American people.
Mr.. Acheson said that the Off.
cial channel for consultation o1
foreign policy issues with the Re
publican minority in the Senate
is through the Republican mem
bers of the Senate Foreign Rela.
tions Committee. He added tina.
he has. of course. been discussing
foreign policy with them.
Ready to See Anybody.
He held the door open to pos.
sible discussions with Senator
Taft, who is not a member of thai
committee, by saying he is alway.
ready to discuss foreign policy
with anybody.
Many of the issues on which,
Senator Taft has been criticisins
administration policy are out Of
the foreign policy field. Mr.. Ache
son pointed out. He referred tt
military and mobilization prob.
lens which he said are the pri-
mary responsibility of Pres'd dent
Truman and Secretary of Defense
Marshall.
Mr.. Acheson said he did not
know what the President and Gen
Marshall have in mind regarding
Senator Taft's proposal.
Senator Taft made his offer to
consult with the administration
yesterday in a National Press Club
luncheon address in which he
urged again that any great com
mitment" by this Government to
land war in Europe be avoided
until the question is thrashed out
in CONGRESS.
The Republican leader said that
he is quite prepared to sit down
with the President or anybody else
on the majority side and try TO
work out program which will
command the unanimous and
consistent support of the people
of the United States"
Rejects Write of of u. N.
Mr.. Acheson rejected one spe-
ciflc idea put forward by Senator
Taft-that the United Nations be
written-off in connection with
determining American military
policy because it is nothing but
a debating group.
1t obviously is not Government
policy to write of the U. NJ, Mr.
Acheson said. He added that to
a certain extent Senator Taft was
correct, however, in describing the
U. N. as a debating society. This
is one way, he said. of describing
any international forum where
things are discussed.
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats
rallied to the support of the ad-
minlstration program.
Chairman Connally of the SEN
ate Foreign Relations Committee.
Senate Democratic Leader Nc
Farland and Democratic Senators
Douglas of Illinois, Mcmahon of
Connecticut and Fulbright of Ar
kansas all went to work on
speeches for the developing foreign
policy debate.
To strengthen the Presidents
position Senator Douglas proposed
that the Senate act affirmatively
on the issue of sending American
troops to bolster Europes de-
lenses and on defining similar
policies in Asia.
Senator Douglas said he wants
to reverse the negative" approach
taken oy Senator Wherry of
Nebraska. the Republican floor
leader, in a icsolution which would
ban the sending of additional
American ground troops to Eu-
rope without prior approval from
Congress.
In his Press Club speech, SEN
ator Taft did not express irrev-
ocaole opposition to further
American land force commitments
in Western Europe, although he
said he was very dubious" about
such a policy. AS in a major
Senate address last week, he
urged instead that the United
States concentrate on developing
its air and sea power to the limit.
Wants Congress TO Decide.
But his main point was that the
issue should be settled by Con-
gress-not by the President acting
alone. The Senator put it this
way:
We are asked to commit our
selves without further considera-
ton not only to a large
army to be established and sta
toned in Europe as part of a great
international army, but also to as
suming the commanding position
in that army, the initiative for the
entire army, and very likely for
sending additional divisions In
case a war might come"
Insisting that his ideas were not
1solationist or defeatist and do not
involve running out on Europe, -
Senator Taft said I'VE are only
trying to determine what is the
best way to fight a war how
we can best, as a matter of fact
protect Europe"
Involves Huge Tax Increase.
Even the minimum mobilization
program he envisages, Senator
Taft said, would involve a $1s
billion to $25 billion tax increase
taking about another 10 per cent
of every ones income; draft O.
all 1812-year-olds for at least
two wears military service opd