Every Citizen a Soldier by Taylor William A.;

Author:Taylor, William A.; [Taylor, William A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
Published: 2014-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

9

A Program for National Security

I want you to be known as the President’s Advisory Commission on Universal Training. I want that word ‘military’ left out. The military phase is incidental to what I have in mind.

—Harry S. Truman

After nearly 6 months of the most intensive study, the members of this Commission have arrived at the unanimous conclusion that universal training is an essential element in an integrated program of national security.

—President’s Advisory Commission on Universal Training*

Concurrently with the army’s establishment of the UMT Experimental Unit at Fort Knox, Kentucky, President Truman prepared to name an advisory body to investigate UMT thoroughly and make specific recommendations to him on the matter. Secretary of War Robert P. Patterson submitted a plan for the advisory body on October 7, 1946, and recommended “that the Council be appointed as soon as possible and that it be asked to make its report by 1 February 1947.” Patterson hoped that the commission’s report would be a clarion call to action for a Congress that had proven hesitant to enact UMT even when called upon to do so. Patterson knew that the selection of the advisory body would be crucial. It had to be composed of civilians in order to avoid charges of militarism that were being levied at the army because of its marketing efforts. In addition, the members would have to represent significant segments of American society, in order, it was hoped, to overcome opposition from various quarters. As Patterson recommended to Truman, “It is particularly important that the three large religious groups be represented and that there be a Negro representative.” Patterson suggested James B. Conant, president of Harvard University, as “an excellent choice” to serve as the body’s chairman. Truman wanted the commission to be a who’s who of personalities, with each member intended to represent a particular segment of society. For example, Maj. Gen. Harry H. Vaughan, military aide to the President, drafted letters of invitation that actually assigned each member to a specific interest group such as “International Affairs,” “Education,” “Religion,” “Science,” “Labor,” “Industry,” and “Minorities.”1

On December 19, Truman publicly announced the creation of a commission to advise him regarding UMT. Nine members composed the President’s Advisory Commission on Universal Training. They were chairman Karl T. Compton, prominent physicist and president of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); Joseph E. Davies, former ambassador to the Soviet Union and author of the popular book Mission to Moscow; Harold W. Dodds, president of Princeton University; Truman K. Gibson, Chicago attorney and previous civilian aide to the secretary of war; Daniel A. Poling, president and editor of Christian Herald; Anna M. Rosenberg, regional director of the War Manpower Commission; Samuel I. Rosenman, presidential speechwriter for both Roosevelt and Truman; Edmund A. Walsh, American Jesuit Catholic priest and founder of Georgetown University School of Foreign Service; and Charles E. Wilson, chief executive officer of General Electric. Truman’s selection of the commission immediately sparked criticism. Some claimed that his intention was to create “a rubber stamp Committee,” more interested in advocating UMT than in impartially ascertaining whether UMT was truly required.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.