| Show Marquis Childs Childs- Service Unity Shown Up as Myth V WASHINGTON T T h he e harsh facts are catching up with the convenient myth that the armed services have been unified Propaganda cannot cover er up the truth which Is that rivalry between between between be be- tween the services Is almost more acute than it was before passage of the national military military military mili mili- tary establishment bill The official damper put onby on onby onby by the White House may keep the current squabble over O the budget behind closed doors But it has hns not put an end to the dispute The civilian and military heads of the three services continued continued continued con con- to press pres their separate claims Within the bureau of the budget which must send final figures to congress they are complaining that no one Inthe in inthe inthe the Pentagon building seems to tobe tobe tobe be even close to resolving the quarrel The only answer r is to hint that the total must go above the ceiling ceiling ceiling ceil ceil- ing so that each service will get everything it asks for All this is pointed up by the report of the committee on the national security organization of the Hoover commission to reorganize t the h e government Chairman of that committee is Ferdinand Eberstadt who was frequently mentioned as secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary of national defense in the event Gov Dewey had been elected president Serious Obstacles Eberstadt and the majority of the committee recognize an improvement under the unification unification unification uni uni- bill but they also recognize recognize recognize rec rec- the serious obstacles in inthe inthe inthe the way of any real unification with the present top-heavy top set set- up Army navy and air force each has a separate secretary an undersecretary and two assistant assistant assistant as as- secretaries while the secretary of national defense supposedly top dog has no assistants assistants assistants as as- and no adequate staff The Eberstadt committee also recognizes the weakness in the joint chiefs of staff where each service chief has the veto power and there is no over-all over military military military mili mili- tary chief Timidly and tentatively tentatively tenta tenta- t Eberstadt and the committee committee committee com com- propose that the secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary of defense be given ghen a principal principal prin prin- principal cipal military assistant and that thata a top military man also be named to represent the secretary secretary secre secre- tary on the joint chiefs of staff As representative of the secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary he would act as umpire in referring disputes to his boss but he would not have power to end those disputes Two dissenters on the Eberstadt Eberstadt Eber Eber- Eberstadt stadt committee are much more forthright and courageous and it happens that the two dissenters dissent dissent- ers know far more about the military establishment through direct experience than any other committee members One is John J. J McCloy who served as assistant secretary of war to Henry L L. L Stimson on throughout World War Var Ir II Chief of Chiefs McCloy proposes a chief of staff for the joint chiefs who would have final authority p to resolve major service differ differ- He points out that the same arguments now being used against such a No 1 chief were used when the army was reorganized reorganized reorganized and three separate chiefs of infantry artillery and cavalry were merged into one At the same time McCloy scoffs at the man on horseback horseback horse horse- back argument which is often raised to question the extraordinary extraordinary power of such an indi indi- vidual As he lac points out most men on horseback in in recent times have been civilians and more often than not military men ha have tended e to be a re restraining restraining re- re straining force But the really vigorous dissenter dissenter dissenter dis dis- dis- dis senter is Robert P. P Patterson who was undersecretary to Stimson and secretary of war prior to unification Bluntly Patterson says that the present setup may have created more than unity It has certainly not brought about the economies that are possible he headds adds With the forthrightness that characterized his wartime service service ice Patterson recommends that I the top-heavy top system of three separate secretaries undersecretaries undersecretaries undersecretaries and assistants be abol abel fished In its place he would have merely the secretary of ot defense who would have two undersecretaries and one or more assistants The latter would not be special pleaders for army navy nary and air force Backed cd for tor Defense Post Patterson is favored by some influential groups as successor to Secretary of Defense James Forrestal if and when the latter resigns In his zeal to prosecute the war with every pery possible ounce of energy that tha t could be spared from the civilian economy economy my Patterson often offended those who were plugging business business business busi busi- ness and pleasure as usual It is hard to see Bee how the present setup can continue A recent magazine article by Forres For For- res restal tal suggesting that all all or or nearly all was all was sweetness and light has caused wry laughter in the Pentagon The bickering and divisiveness eness would seem to invite another Pearl Harbor Congress returns in less than a month with signs that an accounting accounting ac ac- counting counting- will be demanded Copyright 1948 1918 by United Feature Syndicate |
