Milford chronicle., 1952-03-14

. VI popular mSLlGuLlOuS
throughout the world, so long will
they rest assured that materiel and
supplies will be sent to them from
the United States in ever increas-
ing quantities and kind.
Il know that you will understand
that these statements carry with
them no implication Of military COM
mitments. Only the Congress can
make such commitments.
franklin D. Roosevelt"
Yet Harry S. Truman in the case
OF Korea undertook to do exactly
the thing which Franklin Roosevelt
said he had no power to do.
Case Of Korea
In the case Of Korea It was
claimed that the Intervention could
take place under the United Nations
Charter on the call of the Security
Council. OF course the Security
Council never acted under Articles
Al and a of the United Nations
Charter, and even if it had done so
the Obligation to send troops is
clearly limited by Article 4S. That
Article provides that troops can
only be called for when an agree
ment has been entered into with the
Security Council specifying the num-
Der and character Of the assistance
to be furnished, No such agreement
has ever been entered into.
The United Nations Participation
Act Of I945, approved by President
Truman also made it clear that any
agreement which required the pro-
viding Of military aid must be sub
Sequently approved by Congress,
and. Of course, it never has been.
Not only that, but President Tru-
man sent cable from Potsdam
when the United Nations Charter
was under consideration, in which
he said: when any such agree.
ment or agreements are negotiated,
it will be my purpose to ask the
Congress by appropriate legisla-
ton to approve them" The charter
was adopted largely on that assur-
ance, but now the Presidents claims
are far beyond what they were then.
Unlimited Power?
The State Department itself ad.
mits that the action Of the Security
Council in the Korean case was
only a recommendation under Ar.
tiele 80. If the President can carry
out every recommendation Of the
Security Council or the General As
sembly supported by the vote Of the
American representative whom he
can direct, then he has almost un-
limited power to do anything in the
world in the use Of either troops OF
money. The Security Council might
recommend that the nations should
rebuild the canals on the Tigris and
Euphrates and establish a vast
Garden Of Eden in the Kingdom Of
Iraq. According to the argument
made, the President would then
have power to use all American
forces to establish such an eco.
nomic project.
On the same theory. he could
send troops to Tibet to resist Com.
munist aggression or to Indo-Chins
or anywhere else in the world, with.
out the slightest voice Of Congress
in the matter. If that could be the
effect Of an international treaty. we
had better watch closely the ap,
proval Of any IIch treaty in the
future. OF course, it is not.
My conclusion. therefore. Is that
in the case of Korea, where a wal
was already under way. we had nc
right to send troops to a nation
with whom we had no treaty, tc
defend it against attack by another
nation, no matter how unprincipleo
that aggression might be, unless
the whole matter was submitted tC
Congress and a declaration Of wal
or some other direct authority OBJ
tanned.