Evening star., 1963-05-19
SoRENSEN
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key issues, to initiate delibera-
tions, to anticipate crises. 9th
er Presidents may prefer to de-
eide only what cannot be de-
cided below or only what others
present.
In the White House, as else
where, "the squeaky wheel gets
the grease"-and whenever a
controversy looms large in the
press or the Congress or the
public mind, however small 1t
may be in true perspective, 1t
either lands on the Presidents
desk or confronts S him at a
news conference. CThe advis-
ability of corporal punishment
in the District of Columbia
schools, for example, is not a
major issue Of state-but the
predominance of that issue in
the Washington press prior to
q recent news conference
caused President Kennedy to
examine his own thoughts on
the matter, and possibly his
own YOUTH
More Importantly, when a
Presidents own prestige is in
volved-or his own powers, pos
ture or re-election-or when
an issue is too important for
anyone else's word to be ac-
cepted, or too sensitive, or too
Unprecedented. or too likely to
result In damage beyond repair
then a presidential decision
is usually essential.
Matter of Conflict
II I were to name the one
quality which characterizes
most issues likely to be brought
to the President, I would say
It was conflict-conflict be-
tween departments, between the
views of various advisers, be-
tween the administration and
Congress, between the United
States and another nation, or
between groups within the
country: Labor versus manage
ment, or race versus race, or
State versus Nation.
Presidents may even encour-
age such clashes within the
Government - by deliberately
overlapping authority or invit-
ing dissent, as Franklin Roose-
welt did to make certain he
heard the alternatives.
But conflict rarely needs a
stimulus. The claims of domes-
tic and foreign policy sooner
or later collide. Congressional
checks and balances are writ
ten into law. Public and polit-
ical needs will often be incom-
patible. Competing policies or
interest groups are sometimes
equally deserving. And the heat
that is generated by all of this
friction will naturally rise to
the top-to the presidential Of
flee.
Just as conflict will bring is
sues to the President, so lack
of conflict may sometimes keep
them from him even when he
should be involved.
Disagreement Absent
For example: Had there been
some disagreement between n
White House and State Depart
ment officials on the contents
of this winters press statement
on nuclear warheads in Can
ada, it would have bee n
brought to the Presidents at
tention before it exploded in
the headlines.
To cite another case: Last
December's proposed regula-
tions on expense accounts, hav-
ing been approved by everyone
in Internal Revenue, were not
presented to the President un-
til they had been bitterly pro-
tested in public.
Some major issues do not
regularly come before the Pres
ident because they are low on
his list of priorities and he
chooses to rely on his appoint
ed authorities. Other issues are
decided without presidential in
tervention because the Con-
gress has placed plenary au-
thority elsewhere, usually ir
the so called independent
agencies and commissions
where presidential persuasion