Evening star., 1956-03-11
BY HERBERT BRATTER

With the cold war as chill
ing as ever and the Admins
tration. in the words of Secre-
tary of State Dulles, asking for
"$100 million year for sew
eral years for long-range
projects" to strengthen the
less developed countries. Sena-
tors are letting the world know
in no uncertain terms that
they are not buying the for
eign-aid package until they
look carefully inside.
Some Senators lately have
been tugging forcibly at the
red tape in which some Of the
records of aid and trade have
been tied. once more bringing
to the surface the question:
How far can the Administra-
tion-any administration-go
in the conduct of foreign
policy without taking the
Congress fully into its conf
dence?
A Senate subcommittee was
studying this problem again
last week. 1t reached into the
cabinet for its witnesses.
Full Reports Asked
What the Senators have
been demanding is full re-
porting as to what the Ad-
ministration knows about the
trade our European allies have
been doing with the Soviet
bloc and why we permit 1t.
1t Is well known that Western
European governments. pres
sured by business interests,
have been getting a freer
hand in doing business with
the Reds, including Red China,
as was made clear during
Prime Minister Eden's recent
Washington visit.
Congress on the other hand,
having a few years ago laid
down, in the Battle Act the
principle that we were not
going to give aid to countries
which in turn help to build UP
Soviet military might. shows
real concern at disclosures Of
Senator John L. McClellan's
investigating subcommittee.
Senator Mcclellan suggests
that at Paris in 1854 the then
head of the Foreign Operations
Administration, Harold Stas-
sen,, agreed to some alarming
relaxations of controls on east
bound European trade. Just
what Mr.. Stassen gave away
he claims the administration
won't tell the Senate. AS a re-
suit we have Senator Wayne
Morse, Democrat of Oregon,
saying II serve notice now that
do not intend to vote for a
foreign-aid program when
there is concealed from me
what is happening in regard
to the use to which that for
eign aid is being put by al
legged allies"
Mcclellan Side
Senator Mcclellan recently
read the Senate a long bill of
particulars, charging that the
United States made astound-
ing secret concessions to our
allies whose merchants want
business as usual with the So
Wet Union" But the facts, he
holds, "have been hidden from
Congress, the public and the
press by the Executive
Branch" which has done ev-
erything to hinder and ham,
per" the committee.
Why so? To protect in
ternational condolences and
strengthen our alliances?
Bosh, is the Mcclellan reac-
tion. The secrecy and censor
ship is to hide errors, ineffi-
cheney and poor judgment of
certain Government officials"
Some of Senator McClellan's
charges are very disturbing.
He claims that while retain
ing on the unpublished forbid
den list simple machine tools
Of little military value, we
have consented to our allies
sending Russia complicated
modern tools essential to
weapons manufacture. He
quotes Defense Department
experts as saying it would be
better to send Russia shells
and guided missiles than the
tools to make more Of them.
Senator Mcclellan says that
the Administration has eased
the embargo list so that our
allies may send Russia such
strategic items as aluminium,
asbestos, tale, and beryllium
and nickel alloys which we are
stockpiling; that we have
agreed with the IA other ma
tions to the lifting of the en-
barge on shipments to Russia
of induction furnaces, cru
cibles and refractories essen
tial for the manufacture Of
guided missiles and sonic and
supersonic aircraft; locomo-
tives and other transportation
equipment.
1.-THE Administration" Sem
ator Mcclellan charges, made
the Battle Act q mockery and
circumvented the will Of Con-
gress." The Senator even
charges the Administration
with misleading Congress by "a
/ gross misstatement Of mate
rial fact" when reporting that
copper remained under EN-
| barge.