Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-02-26
The Political Mill
The Political Mill
Nee orthy Did His Duty
In Maj. Peress Case
The Time to Kick the Senator
Is Not When He Is Right
By Gould Lincoln

The time to kick Joe McCarthy-if
you want to kick him-is not when he
is right. The Wisconsin Senator hap
pened to be right when he criticized
the Army for its handling Of the case
Of Maj. Irving Peress, an alleged Com
munist. It seems incredible that there
should have been sucn a long delay in
getting Maj. PeresS out of the Army,
in view of the fact he had declined to
answer questions on Army forms on
the ground Of constitutional rights. The
explanation given that Peress was
moved about during his years service
and his papers never caught up with
him doesn't really explain anything ex-
cept an incredible situation. Further,
he received an honorable discharge
after invoking the Fifth Amendment.
and report Is to the effect that there
was precedent for such action; that a
court-martial had ruled that an officer
could not be kicked out cf the service
except for conduct not becoming an
officer-and that refusal to sign a
paper on constitutional grounds was
not so construed.
Without condoning Senator McCar-
thys slambang, Incorporate and at
times insulting manner of questioning
Brig. Gen. Ralph Zwicker, the Army
and the Secretary of the Army, Robert
T. Stevens, were in weak position.
reading of the transcript of the testi-
mony taken when Gen. Zwicker APP
peared before Senator Mccarthy indl-
Gated clearly that something was being
withheld from the investigators. In
such a case as that of Maj. Peress. this
was a. mistake. It could be made to
appear that the Army was covering
up for some one, and that is just what
Senator Mccarthy charged.
McCarthy's Advantage.
So when Secretary of the Army
Stevens undertook to do battle with
Mccarthy because of his manner OF
interrogating q general officer in this
particular case, the big guns were in
McCarthy's corner. From a purely
realistic and political point Of view. the
Wisconsin Senator was in position to
tell the country he had only one end
in mind when he examined Gen.
zwicker-the ascertainment of why the
Army had failed to deal promptly with
an alleged Communist. To answer this
attack by saying that Senator Nc
Carthy had no license to browbeat q
general officer who would not answer
some of his questions, even though the
general was under orders not to reply
on some details, would be pretty in
effective. To rely on any such argu-
ment would be little short Of folly. Also,
to defy Senator Mccarthy and his in
vestigating committee on the ground
they had no business sticking their
noses into Army affairs would make
little Roadway with the public. except
that part which wants to see Joe Nc
Carthy slapped down no matter what.
Secretary Assailed.
So Secretary Stevens at meeting
with Senator Mccarthy and other Re
publican Senators agreed to furnish
Senator Mccarthy and his committee
with the data requested about the
handling by the Army of the Peress
case. Immediately he is assailed,
charged with having laid down to the
Wisconsin Senator. 1t is interesting
to note that the British press has echoed
heartily these attacks upon Secretary
Stevens. The British do not like Nc
Carthy or any part of him. They
resent, therefore, that the Eisenhower
administration. in this case the Secre-
tary of the Army failed to go to the
mat with the Wisconsin Senator. What
these critics all are aching for is
knockdown, dragout fight between Nc
Carthy and President Eisenhower in the
hope that Mccarthy will come of
second best against the popular Chief
Executive. Time and again they have
sought to foster such battle. They
believe that a knockout of Senator
Mccarthy would tend to lessen and
minimize this issue and to divide the
Republicans on it,