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Show Truman Might Have To Eat His Words President Truman sharply answered critics of America's past defense planning plan-ning and far eastern foreign policy, who have been demanding that Secretary of State Acheson and Secretary of Defense Johnson be removed, by telling reporters at a news conference the other day that the two cabinet members would stay in office as long as he is president. . We are not sure that it would be a good move to ouat Acheson and Johnson John-son at the present time, although events in Korea have amply demonstrated policy errors on the part of these two key officials. of-ficials. But we do think the president was extremely unwise in making such a positive posi-tive statement relative to their future. Mr. Truman is not clairvoyant On many occasions he has demonstrated that fact quite understandably, for no one, particularly in a period such as this, can read what the future holds with unfailing unfail-ing accuracy. Yet the president has now committed himself to retaining Acheson and Johnson in office so long as he is president regardless of future circumstances. circum-stances. The day may very easily come when' the nation's best interests would be served by a change in one or both of these cabinet posts. If that day should come, will Mr. Truman stubbornly bold 1 to his thoughtless commitment of today, or will he eat his words? Either course would be bad for the country. Stubbornly keeping men in office of-fice after they have outlived their usefulness use-fulness could be a national calamity. And the spectacle of a president eating hia words is not one that encourages either American or world respect for, and confidence in, the presidential office. |