Evening star., 1954-11-21


Writer Says Contract Facts.
Have Been Misrepresented
By Fronk R. Kent
So violent has become the uproar
over the so-called Dixon-Yates con-
tract (to supply electric power TO the
Acc. which the iva cannot do with
out vast expansion and expenditlre)
that the facts behind 1t have become
almost completely obscured. The whole
debate, In and out Of Congress, Is
drenched in the most bitter and
partisan politics and the gates have
been opened for q flood Of dema-
goguery not exceeded In many years.
Despite the present lull. the battle
seems sure to continue long after the
new Congress meets In January.
OF course. it Is the Democrats who
are opposing the contract and who
have misrepresented its meaning and
purpose. But the present unfortunate
situation could not exist but for the
ineptitude and stupidity Of the Re-
publicans. There is plenty Of room
for difference Of opinion on the basic
principle involved; o sharp division
between those who believe In private
enterprise and those who believe in
public ownership. That Is at the bot
tom of the fight. However. to read
and listen to the output on this ques-
ton the ordinary citizen would have
some difficulty in grasping that fact.
The opposition has succeeded in paint
ing remarkable picture. Rarely has
there been more skillful and unscrupu-
lous propaganda. In its distortion and
falsity its only rival Is that put out by
the labor bosses and their political
stooges concerning the Taft Hartley Act.
Early in the last campaign the at
tack was inaugurated by the Demo-
cratic National Committee by insinua-
tions that President Eisenhower had
personally engineered the contract as
q favor to his friend Bobby" Jones.
who is a small stockholder in the
Dixon-Yates concern. Though ignored
by the President. this shameless at
tack created so much resentment that
Stephen Mitchell, who made it re-
tracted in some confusion. However,
1t offered q splendid opportunity for
the demagogues Of the Tennessee VAL
ley and adjacent territory to beat their
breasts and yell that this was .
diabolical effort to destroy the iva, a
Deep, dark and sinister plot concocted
by the administration and Wall Street
to rob the people. A most ungodly
uproar ensued and has temporarily
ceased now to await the organization
of the new Congress.
The Republican stupidity lies in let
ting the Democratic publicity and the
Democratic demagogues generally get
away with this kind Of stuff almost
without an answer. 1t was all right
for the President to ignore the dirty
little personal filings at himself by an
insignificant politician, but whoever
advised letting the whole general as
sault 60 unanswered for so long
time was pretty poor political ad-
wiser. Actually, Of course, there Is
nothing sinister or unsavory about the
Dixon-Yates contract. In 1850 two
years before Gen. Ike was elected
the Acc, with White House approval
contracted with a group OF five Mid
West private utilities to furnish 100000
kilowatts for it's Paducah (Ky.) plant.
and in 1852, with Mr.. Truman still in
the White House, Acc signed contract
with is other private utilities to sup
ply Q million kilowatts to Aces plant
at Portsmouth, Ohio. There was no
howl about either of these contracts
from the Democrats. And there is
no more reason for bowling about
this one.
1t follows the pattern of previous
contracts and is line with President
Eisenhower's belief in private enterprise
for such work wherever it profltably
can be used. He does not want to
destroy IVA, but neither does he want
to expand all over the country its
principle Of tax support while exempt
front tax contributions-part
when private enterprise is equipped
and willing to take over the expansion.
Why any one who believes in private
enterprise should quarrel with him
dUOuI Oll1b ID 1ldIu w u11QGISIdIlQ
But there are plenty who think 1t
smart politics to do so. The big
mistake was made in not promptly and
completely giving the public the facts
in the case The excuse given Is that
the administration was so sure the con-
tract was healthy, wholesome and right
that it believed the attack would fall
to the ground without answer.
That is q fine idea but things Just
do not work that way in politics. Un-
answered propaganda makes an Inn
preston hard to erase-sometimes
impossible. For example. II the strong
statement of Col. Roane Waring,
president of the Memphis Chamber
Of Commerce, indorsing the contract
had been made month ago instead
Of last week it would have had much
greater effect. So would that of No
vember II Of the Messrs. Dixon and
Yates themselves in which they an
swered fully every point made by the
opposition. But confident in the COM
plete righteousness Of what it proposed,
the administration did not believe IL
needed to defend. That was an error.
It is always an error In politics to Let
lie run loose.
John o. Allen was interlocutor and
Dennis Connell. r. Paul Repetti. ]. j.
German and Matt Lepley were end
men. The "circle" included: Andrew