President Dwight D. Eisenhower's Reaction to the Theodore Repplier Proposal

ADMINISTRATIVELY CONFIDENTIAL THE PRESIDENT'S REACTION TO THE REPPLIER PROPOSAL The President pointed out that he had already indicated to the world that savings realized through disarmament would go into this kind of effort. He anticipated difficulties with putting this effort in a United Nations context, saying that the U. N. already has some such fund to which we are supposed to contribute. He said that as he saw it the special usefulness of the proposal was in the re-phrasing of U.S intentions and special emphasis that might be given to this single idea. He said that in general he was in complete agreement and that it represented his long-time thinking, in illustration of which he read passages from CRUSADE IN EUROPE which indicated his conviction that the war against Communism would not be won by military means but through combatting the deprivations of humanity on which Communism By feeds. The President felt he had used the U.N. platform often enough. His mind went to an upcoming bar association speaking engagement for the John Marshall anniversary. He felt he might use this occasion to emphasize the ideas in Repplier's proposal. The President requested Repplier to meet with Messrs. Streibert, Washburn, Rockefeller, McCann, Pyle, and any others who might be appropriate "possibly some State Department people. 11 He said this should be a "good long meeting, perhaps an hour before lunch, through lunch, and a half hour thereafter, " with secretarial service, the purpose of which should be to crystallize thinking as to changes in doctrine or how to apply the emphasis. He contemplated that out of such crystallization could come a talk by him of 20 to 25 minutes to amplify before the world this re-statement of United States position. He suggested the group also consider how the planned pronouncement could best get support from such groups as the Advertising Council, NAM, etc. August 3, 1955 ADMIINISTRATIVELY CONFIDENTIAL