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San Diego Council, Navy League of the United States, San Diego, CA, April 1, 1970
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San Diego Council, Navy League of the United States, San Diego, CA, April 1, 1970
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Gerald R. Ford Congressional Papers
Speeches
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Department of Defense. 9/18/1947-
Federal budget
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1970
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1970
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The original documents are located in Box D28, folder "San Diego Council, Navy League of
the United States, San Diego, CA, April 1, 1970" of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press
Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Minuty Teah House
You. Vergin Doll
Information
DIEGO COUNCIL, NAVY LEAGUE OF THE
UNITED STATES, SAN DIEGO, CALIF
8
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1, 1970.
"Wison
Mary
Community
Wilson musty.
GOOD EVENING, GENTLEMEN:
WHEN I ADDRESS YOU AS REPUBLICAN
LEADER OF THE HOUSE, YOU PROBABLY EXPECT ME
TO TALK POLITICS. TONIGHT I AIM TO STAY AS
CLEAR OF POLITICS AS И IS POSSIBLE FOR A
POLITICIAN TO DO.
with your undulgence, 2 will
WHAT 1 AM GOING TO DO ts TALK
In Am Diego
NAVY. THAT SEEMS TO ME TO BE APPROPRIATE.
1
I AM GOING TO TALK NAVY
FROM THE WASHINGTON
ANGLE AND FROM A NATIONAL ANGLE.
INCIDENTALLY, I FEEL VERY MUCH
AT HOME HERE
I've been my good friend Bob Webris quit n mumber Two and,
IT'S NOT THAT HAVE SPENT line attend
several desiress
MUCH TIME IN SAN DIEGO BUT I DID SPEND TWO which
in honor whe 2
YEARS AS A DECK OFFICER ABOARD THE AIRCRAFT feorge
CARRIER U.S.S. MONTEREY DURING WORLD WAR
I
Murphy.
SO I DON'T FEEL AT ALL OUT OF PLACE HERE
B.FORD & LIBRARY GERALD
Digitized from Box D28 of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
-2-
NOT LIKE THE YOUNG MAN OF DOUBTFUL ORIGIN
WHO SHOWED UP AT A FAMILY REUNION.
I MIGHT MENTION THAT IN A FEW
DAYS MY 12-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER, SUSAN, IS GOING
TO BE CHRISTENING A NAVY PATROL GUNBOAT--THE
U.S.S. GRAND RAPIDS--AT TACOMA, WASHINGTON.
WHEN I GOT THE INVITATION FOR SUSAN TO BE
THE SPONSOR, I TOLD HER ABOUT THE GUNBOAT
LAUNCHING AND ASKED HER IF SHE HAD ANY
QUESTIONS. "YES," SHE SAID, "HOW HARD DO I
HAVE TO HIT IT TO KNOCK IT INTO THE WATER?"
SERIOUSLY, IT'S A GREAT PLEASURE
TO BE HERE WITH YOU IN THIS BEAUTIFUL CITY
--
ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL IN THE ENTIRE
COUNTRY.
AND IT'S A PLEASURE TO BE WITH
BRARY
A GROUP OF AMERICANS WHO ARE DEEPLY DEVOTED
TO THE IDEALS THAT HAVE MADE THE UNITED STATES
When 2 see
FOREMOST AMONG THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD
your done - your Thongs remand
The
WHEN I THINK OF SAN DIEGO, I SEE mn
Thom havely
partnots
-3-
A CITY WHICH HAS GIVEN MUCH TO THIS COUNTRY.
I THINK OF PEOPLE LIKE THE 60 SAN DIEGANS
WHO ARE WIVES AND PARENTS OF FIGHTING MEN
MISSING OR IMPRISONED IN SOUTHEAST ASIA.
MORE THAN 1,450 U.S. SERVICEMEN
ARE PRISONERS OF WAR OR ARE MISSING IN ACTION
IN SOUTHEAST ASIA. I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT
WE IN WASHINGTON CARE ABOUT THOSE MEN, MEN
WHO WE KNOW HAVE BEEN TORTURED AND ABUSED.
the Pressdent The Sh. noy. the 1 that xthe Rapers
AND SO WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING IN OUR POWER
TO BRING THE PRESSURE OF WORLD OPINION TO
BEAR ON THEIR NORTH VIETNAMESE AND VIETCONG
CAPTORS.
CURRENTLY ONLY ABOUT 430 OF THE
1,450 MEN ARE BELIEVED TO BE PRISONERS OF
WAR. THERE REMAIN MORE THAN 1,000 MEN WHO
ARE MISSING IN ACTION. AT THIS TIME, THERE
IS NO WAY OF KNOWING WHETHER ANY OF THESE
MEN ARE DEAD OR ALIVE. SOME HAVE BEEN LISTED
AS MISSING FOR MORE THAN FIVE YEARS.
GERALD
AIBRARY
-4-
OF THE TOTAL WHO ARE MISSING OR
CAPTURED, NEARLY 800 WERE DOWNED IN NORTH
VIETNAM; 450 LOST IN SOUTH VIETNAM; AND NEARLY
200 IN LAOS.
LITTLE WAS SAID PUBLICLY ABOUT
THE PRISONER ISSUE PRIOR TO 1969. TAKING
THAT APPROACH PRODUCED NO PROGRESS. AS A
RESULT, THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION HAS ADOPTED
A NEW POLICY OF PUBLIC CONDEMNATION OF THE
NORTH VIETNAMESE, THE VIETCONG, AND THE
PATHET LAO FOR THEIR INHUMANE TREATMENT OF
OUR PRISONERS OF WAR.
IT IS NOT ONLY PEOPLE AT HOME WHO
HAVE EXPRESSED SUPPORT FOR THESE DEMANDS
FOR HUMANE TREATMENT OF OUR PRISONERS. IT IS
SIGNIFICANT THAT SUCH SUPPORT HAS ALSO BEEN
VOICED BY THE OFFICIALS OF MANY FOREIGN
COUNTRIES.
GERALD FORD LIBRARY
RECENTLY, THE CONGRESS OF THE
UNITED STATES ADOPTED A RESOLUTION CALLING
-5-
FOR PROPER TREATMENT OF THESE MEN. THIS
WAS A GESTURE OF SUPPORT FOR THE THOUSANDS
OF RELATIVES WHO LIVE IN CALIFORNIA AND IN
EVERY OTHER STATE OF THE UNION. AND A FEW
WEEKS AGO THE PRESIDENT SIGNED A BILL WHICH
PERMITS PRISONERS AND MISSING SERVICEMEN TO
ACCUMULATE AN UNLIMITED AMOUNT OF PAY AND
ALLOWANCES IN SPECIAL 10 PER CENT SAVINGS
ACCOUNTS.
THE PLIGHT OF THESE MEN ALSO HAS
BEEN TAKEN UP BY HUNDREDS OF NON-GOVERNMENT
ORGANIZATIONS AND CONCERNED CITIZENS
THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY. 2 appland all much demonstrations
ofconcern. and
BECAUSE OF THIS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
EMPHASIS, THE PLIGHT OF OUR MEN HAS BECOME
AN ISSUE NOT ONLY AT HOME BUT ABROAD. AND
I CAN TELL YOU THAT EVEN THOSE NATIONS
SYMPATHETIC TO THE NORTH VIETNAMESE GOVERNMENT
HAVE LITTLE PATIENCE FOR THE ENEMY'S CRUEL
AND INHUMANE TREATMENT OF OUR MEN AND THEIR
FAMILIES.
-6-
TODAY HUMANE TREATMENT OF
PRISONERS OF WAR HAS BECOME A BURNING ISSUE
THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. TO THAT EXTENT THE
Our government
NIXON ADMINISTRATION HAS MADE PROGRESS ON
THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE.
AS YOU KNOW, PRESIDENT AND MRS.
NIXON MET THIS PAST DECEMBER WITH 26 WIVES
AND MOTHERS WHO REPRESENTED ALL THE FAMILIES
OF THE MISSING AND CAPTURED MEN. THE
SECRETARY OF STATE AND THE SECRETARY OF
DEFENSE ALSO HAVE DISCUSSED THE PRISONER
PROBLEM WITH SCORES OF RELATIVES WHO HAVE
WAITED SO LONG TO LEARN ABOUT THEIR HUSBANDS,
SONS AND FATHERS.
WE ARE CONTINUING TO EXPLORE EVERY
POSSIBLE MEANS TO RESOLVE THE PRISONER
QUESTION. WE ARE SEEKING THE EARLIEST
POSSIBLE RELEASE OF ALL PRISONERS.
FORD is LIBRARY GERALD
THE VIETNAM WAR IS A TERRIBLE
HANGOVER FROM THE SIXTIES. WE ARE DEALING
-7-
WITH IT IN THE BEST WAY WE KNOW HOW -- IN A
WAY THAT I BELIEVE WILL ULTIMATELY PRODUCE A
JUST PEACE IN VIETNAM.
THE SIXTIES ARE HISTORY. WE LOOK
NOW INTO THE SEVENTIES -- A DECADE OF
DECISION -- AND WE GIVE THOUGHT TO SOME OF
THE GREAT CHALLENGES THAT FACE US AT HOME
AND ABROAD.
WHILE WE CONTINUE OUR PROGRESS
TOWARD PEACE IN VIETNAM, WE ALSO ARE ATTACKING
A HOST OF DOMESTIC PROBLEMS.
WE ARE ENGAGED IN WHAT I CALL A
REORDERING OF OUR PRIORITIES -- AND THIS IS
However
A MOST DELICATE TASK
AM FEARFUL LEST
THOSE WHO ARE SHOUTING ABOUT NEW PRIORITIES
WILL SHUT THEIR EYES TO CONTINUING
PRIORITIES -- THE CONTINUING NEED, FOR
EXAMPLE, FOR THE LEVELS OF STRENGTH AMERICA
MUST HAVE TO PRESERVE THE GREATEST POSSIBLE
LEVEL OF PEACE IN THE WORLD.
GERALD LIBRARY
-8-
AS PRESIDENT NIXON SAID IN HIS
FOREIGN POLICY REPORT TO THE NATION:
"DEFENSE SPENDING
MUST NEVER FALL SHORT OF
THE MINIMUM NEEDED FOR SECURITY. IF IT
DOES, THE PROBLEM OF DOMESTIC PROGRAMS MAY
BECOME MOOT 2 for one will never depend on henatorial
rhetric to preserve peace, to stave of appression on WIN a warm
AS YOU KNOW, THE DEFENSE
DEPARTMENT IS GOING THROUGH A PAINFUL PERIOD
OF TRANSITION.
THE FISCAL 1971 DEFENSE BUDGET
HAS BEEN CUT TO $71.8 BILLION. THAT
GNP GUBSER $
REPRESENTS THE SMALLEST SHARE OF OVERALL
Constant
54
GOVERNMENT SPENDING IN 20 YEARS.
THE NEW DEFENSE BUDGET IS
$5.2 BILLION BELOW THE SPENDING ESTIMATE
FOR THE CURRENT FISCAL YEAR -- WHICH IN
TURN IS $4.1 BILLION BELOW THE SPENDING
LEVEL FOR FISCAL 1970 PROJECTED ORIGINALLY
BY THE JOHNSON ADMINISTRATION.
GENALD R,FORD LIBRAR,
THAT SHOULD GIVE YOU SOME
-9-
CONCEPTION OF THE TREMENDOUS TURNAROUND IN
SPENDING THAT HAS BEEN TAKING PLACE IN
WASHINGTON.
WHERE ARE THE CUTS IN DEFENSE
DEPARTMENT SPENDING OCCURRING? A
SUBSTANTIAL PORTION IS IN PLANNED REDUCTIONS
OF 300,000 MILITARY MEN IN THIS FISCAL
YEAR'S BUDGET AND 252,000 MEN IN THE BUDGET
FOR FISCAL YEAR 1971. WITH CIVILIAN
REDUCTIONS ADDED IN, OUR MANPOWER CUTS
TOTAL 682,000 FOR FISCAL YEARS 1970 AND 1971.
AS YOU KNOW, THE REDUCTIONS IN
MILITARY SPENDING ALSO HAVE MEANT A CUT IN
OUR NAVAL FORCES OF 140 SHIPS OVER THE PAST
TWO YEARS -- MANY OF THEM HOME-PORTED IN
SAN DIEGO.
WE REALIZE THIS HAS HAD A GREAT
IMPACT ON SAN DIEGO. YOURS IS A CITY WITH
CLOSE TIES TO THE NAVY AND ALSO A CITY
GERALD FORD LIBRARY
WHICH RECOGNIZES THE NEED TO MAINTAIN A
-10-
STRONG NAVY -- AS I DO. LET ME EMPHASIZE,
HOWEVER, THAT THE SHIPS WE ARE MOTHBALLING
ARE 20 TO 25 YEARS OLD. WHAT WE NEED NOW IS
MODERNIZATION. THERE IS A DRAMATIC NEED TO
MOVE AHEAD WITH FUNDS FOR NEW SHIP
CONSTRUCTION.
THE ONLY WAY WE CAN MODERNIZE
THE NAVY IS TO DO SOMETHING AFFIRMATIVELY
ABOUT THE BLOCK OBSOLESENCE PROBLEM. WE
CANNOT SOLVE THIS HANGOVER OF PAST ERRORS,
INDECISION, AND NEGLECT IN ONE YEAR, BUT WE
HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO MAKE A START AND
HOPEFULLY THE NEW BUDGET IS SUCH A BEGINNING.
I AM NOT BEMOANING OUR SHIFT IN
NATIONAL EMPHASIS TO THE HUMANITARIAN
PROBLEMS WHICH OUR PEOPLE ARE DEMANDING BE
TACKLED. WE MUST ATTACK WITH GREATER VIGOR
THE PROBLEMS OF HEALTH, EDUCATION, POVERTY
URBAN DEVELOPMENT, AND THE THREATS TO OUR
LIBRARY
ENVIRONMENT POSED BY AIR AND WATER POLLUTION.
-11-
BUT I MAKE THE POINT THAT WE ARE
BEING SHORTCHANGED ON MODERNIZATION OF OUR
MILITARY BECAUSE OF ATTACKS NOW BEING MADE
ON DEFENSE SPENDING IN THE NAME OF THE NEW
PRIORITIES. I SAY THAT THE COUNTRY NEEDS
YOUR HELP TO SEE TO IT THAT OUR FORCES ARE
PROPERLY EQUIPPED IN THE FUTURE -- WHATEVER
THEIR NUMBER.
BASICALLY, THE CUTS WE HAVE MADE
IN MILITARY SPENDING HAVE BEEN DIRECTLY
RELATED TO THE VIETNAMIZATION OF OUR STRUGGLE
IN SOUTHEAST ASIA. WE HAVE GRADUALLY BEEN
TURNING MORE OF THE BURDEN OVER TO OUR SOUTH
VIETNAMESE ALLIES, AND WE HAVE REDUCED OUR
ARMED FORCES ACCORDINGLY.
AT THE SAME TIME WE HAVE STRUCK
A HEAVY BLOW AGAINST THE FORCES OF INFLATION
BY HOLDING DOWN THE OVERALL LEVEL OF
we have attached one The basis cames anflation
FEDERAL SPENDING. WE HAVE MAINTAINED A
BALANCED BUDGET AND LIMITED THE EXTENT
-12-
TO WHICH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS HAD TO
GO INTO THE MONEY MARKETS.
WHAT I RESENT IS THAT THE SAME
INDIVIDUALS WHO VOTED FOR THE HUGE MILITARY
BUDGETS OF THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION NOW
ARE WIELDING THE AXE IN AN IRRESPONSIBLE
MANNER AGAINST NIXON ADMINISTRATION DEFENSE
BUDGETS ALREADY CUT TO THE BONE.
THESE ARE ALSO THE PEOPLE WHO
FUNDED PRIOR-YEARS WEAPONS PROJECTS NOW
SHOWN TO HAVE HUGE COST OVERRUNS -- PROJECTS
PROPOSED BY THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION.
THESE SAME INDIVIDUALS TREAT THE COST
OVERRUNS AS THOUGH THE PRESENT ADMINISTRATION
WERE TO BLAME FOR THEM 2 resent the infroence Sec. Defene
Land who hasto pay bills requed The contracts that cambal the problem.
IT OCCURS TO ME THAT HAD IT NOT
BEEN FOR GROSS MISMANAGEMENT BY THE PREVIOUS
ADMINISTRATION, RESULTING IN THESE COST
OVERRUNS, THERE WOULD BE FAR MORE FUNDS
FORD & LIBRARY GERALD
AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME FOR SUCH URGENT
-13-
PROGRAMS AS MODERNIZATION OF OUR FLEET.
THINK BACK, IF YOU WILL, TO
WHAT THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT'S CIVIL
MANAGERS OF THE SIXTIES -- THE SO-CALLED
WHIZ KIDS -- HATH WROUGHT.
WE HAVE THE F-111, FOR INSTANCE,
TROTTED OUT BY THE WHIZ KIDS AS THE GREAT
COMMON PURPOSE AIRCRAFT WHICH WOULD SUPERBLY
SERVE BOTH THE NAVY AND THE AIR FORCE AND
SAVE THE NATION A LOT OF MONEY.
AS YOU MAY KNOW, THE F-111 HAS
BEEN GROUNDED FOR WING FAILURE. BUT ITS
FAILURES EXTEND FAR BEYOND ITS WING FLAW
THE STORY OF THE F-111 IS A SAGA OF TRAGIC
MISMANAGEMENT.
by the Dyt. Difince
AND THE MESS ALL BEGAN WITH
THE INSISTENCE OF THE WHIZ KIDS THAT THE
NAVY AND THE AIR FORCE EMPLOY A SINGLE
MULTI -PURPOSE AIRCRAFT.
THE NET RESULT WAS AN AIRCRAFT
FORD QERALD LIBRARY
WHICH COULD NOT MEET ANYONE'S MILITARY
-14-
MISSION REQUIREMENTS. THERE WAS TOO GREAT
AN ORIENTATION TO COMMONALITY AND NOT
ENOUGH EMPHASIS ON MILITARY SERVICE NEEDS.
THE NAVY WAS LUCKY. THE NAVY VERSION OF
THE F-111 WAS CANCELLED AFTER $200 MILLION
WAS SPENT ON IT.
NOW THE AIR FORCE IS STUCK WITH
A PLANE THAT IS SADLY DEFICIENT BOTH AS A
FIGHTER AND A BOMBER AND IS COSTING NEARLY
FOUR TIMES AS MUCH AS THE ORIGINAL ESTIMATE.
THE ORIGINAL PER UNIT COST OF
THE F-111 HAS RISEN FROM JUST UNDER
$4 MILLION EACH TO NEARLY $14 MILLION
APIECE. AND IF YOU ADD IN NON-ACQUISITION
COSTS LIKE GROUND FACILITIES THE UNIT PRICE
GOES UP TO NEARLY $16 MILLION.
a
story book pottlem.
THIS F-111 FIASCO IS UTTERLY
FANTASTIC. TINITIALLY, PLANS CALLED FOR A
BUY OF 1,750 PLANES. NOW THE FIGURE IS DOWN RD
TO 547, WITH 493 UNDER CONTRACT
GERALD
LIBRARY
-15-
THE MOST FANTASTIC FACT OF ALL IS
THAT THE THEN-SECRETARY OF DEFENSE AND HIS
WHIZ KIDS KNEW AS EARLY AS 1963 THAT THE
F-111 COULD NOT MEET ITS PRIMARY AIR FORCE
MISSION -- THAT THE PLANE WOULD NOT DELIVER
THE SPECIFIED MANEUVER CAPABILITIES AT
SUPERSONIC SPEEDS AND THAT ITS DIRECTIONAL
STABILITY WAS EXTREMELY LOW AT SUPERSONIC
SPEEDS.
THEN WE HAVE THE C-5A GALAXY AIR
TRANSPORT, WHICH IS CURRENTLY RESTRICTED.
Cntres same are supper become
BECAUSE OF A STRUCTURAL DEFECT. THAT PLANE
WAS INTENDED TO BE A BREAKTHROUGH IN COST
SUPPRESSION. INSTEAD THE PLANE HAS BECOME
A PROCUREMENT SCANDAL! ON THE BASIS OF THE
problem of magnitude
ORIGINAL ORDER OF 121 PLANES, THE UNIT COST
WOULD NOW BE $42.7 MILLION INSTEAD OF THE
ORIGINAL $28.1 MILLION APIECE. THANK GOODNESS
THE ORDER HAS BEEN CUT BACK TO 81 PLANES.
WITH THE CUTBACK, THE UNIT COST IS $48.2 MILLION
-16-
AS COMPARED WITH $33 MILLION APIECE BASED
ON THE ORIGINAL COST ESTIMATE FOR THAT
VOLUME OF PROCUREMENT. WHAT IT ADDS UP TO
IS A $1.6 BILLION COST OVERRUN EVEN WITH
THE CUTBACK IN ORDERS. Bad contracting
AS FOR THE NAVY, WE HAVE
INHERITED AN OVER-AGE FLEET WHILE THE
SOVIET UNION HAS BEEN ENGAGED IN STREAMLINING
ITS NAVAL STRIKE FORCES.
LET ME ASSURE YOU, HOWEVER, THAT
THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION IS CONCENTRATING
ON QUALITATIVE PREPAREDNESS. VINTAGE COMBATANT
SHIPS ARE BEING REPLACED WITH NEW, MORE
FLEXIBLE AND MISSION-ORIENTED SHIPS.
DURING THE EARLY PART OF THIS
YEAR, U.S. SHIPS HAVE TWICE CONDUCTED
MANEUVERS IN THE BLACK SEA. THIS PROVEN
TECHNIQUE OF SHOWING THE FLAG IS BEING
FORD
EMPLOYED AS A USEFUL INSTRUMENT OF OUR
FOREIGN POLICY.
-17-
UNDER THIS ADMINISTRATION WE
WILL MOVE TOWARD A NAVY THAT IS MODERN,
POWERFUL, BALANCED AND FLEXIBLE.
THIS ADMINISTRATION RECOGNIZES
THAT WE ARE SUFFERING FROM A MODERNIZATION
DEFICIT -- THAT WE NEED A REGULAR UPDATING
OF OUR FORCES BY THE INTRODUCTION OF MODERN
SHIPS INTO OUR FLEET, BY THE ORDERLY
REPLACEMENT OF OUR OLDER SHIPS.
THE MODERNIZING OF OUR NAVY HAS
BEEN POSTPONED FAR TOO LONG. IN THIS TIME
OF TIGHT BUDGETS, IT IS ALL THE MORE
IMPORTANT THAT WE KEEP ABREAST OF TECHNICAL
ADVANCES AND MAKE THE MOST EFFECTIVE
POSSIBLE USE OF WEAPONS AND FORCES.
WHAT IS MOST DANGEROUS TO OUR
NATIONAL SECURITY AT THIS MOMENT IS THAT
CERTAIN MEMBERS OF CONGRESS ARE ATTACKING
OUR BARE-BONES DEFENSE BUDGET AS THOUGH
BILLION
FORD i LIBRARY GERALD
$10 OR $20 COULD BE CHOPPED FROM IT WITH
-18-
IMPUNITY. THEY OBVIOUSLY HAVE FAILED TO
THINK THROUGH OUR NATIONAL SECURITY NEEDS
FOR THE SEVENTIES.
TO THEM I SAY WE CANNOT MAKE
PROGRESS TOWARD PEACE BY ALLOWING AMERICA
TO BECOME WEAK.
TO THEM I SAY IT IS NOT ONLY
FOOLHARDY BUT SUICICAL FOR AMERICA TO RISK
BEING CAUGHT MILITARILY SHORT IN THE
Chankell
SEVENTIES AS WE WERE IN THE THIRTIES.
LOOK AT WHAT IS HAPPENING TO
OUR GREAT COUNTRY AS WE ENTER THE DECADE OF
THE SEVENTIES.
WE ARE EXPERIENCING A REVULSION
NOT AGAINST THE VIETNAM WAR BUT AGAINST ALL
THINGS MILITARY AND AGAINST DEFENSE-ORIENTED
INDUSTRY. THIS HAS LED TO ATTACKS
R.FORD
AGAINST THE DEFENSE ESTABLISHMENT, OUR MEN
LIBRARY
IN UNIFORM, AND WHAT IS GENERALLY LUMPED
TOGETHER AS "THE MILITARY-INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX."
-19-
IT HAS PRODUCED A CONCERTED
CAMPAIGN TO SLASH OUR DEFENSE BUDGET WITHOUT
ANY CONSIDERATION FOR WHAT THIS COUNTRY MUST
POSSESS IN THE WAY OF ARMAMENTS TO GUARANTEE
ITS NATIONAL SECURITY AND TO MAINTAIN SOME
DEGREE OF PEACE IN THE WORLD.
AS GENERAL GEORGE C. MARSHALL ONCE
REMARKED, THERE ARE INDIVIDUALS WHO CONFUSE
MILITARY PREPAREDNESS WITH THE CAUSES OF WAR
AND THUS INVITE A NATIONAL CATASTROPHE.
THERE ARE TODAY AMAZING
SIMILARITIES BETWEEN 1970 AND THE THIRTIES,
A PERIOD WHEN WE BELIEVED THAT THE BEST WAY
TO AVOID WAR WAS TO PRETEND IT JUST COULDN'T
HAPPEN.
IN THE THIRTIES SEN. GERALD P.
NYE OF NORTH DAKOTA PREACHED THE "FORTRESS
AMERICA" CONCEPT. THE ISOLATIONISM BEING
TALKED IN THE UNITED STATES SENATE TODAY IS
STRONGLY REMINISCENT OF THE SENTIMENTS VOICED
-20-
BY SEN. NYE.
IN THE EARLY THIRTIES AN
INVESTIGATION BY A SENATE COMMITTEE HEADED
BY NYE RESULTED IN THE NEUTRALITY ACT OF
1935. THAT LEGISLATION WAS SIMILAR TO A
RECENTLY-ENACTED SENATE RESOLUTION LIMITING
THE USE OF U.S. GROUND TROOPS IN LAOS.
NEVER MIND THE FACT THAT THE ADMINISTRATION
HAS NO INTENTION OF USING GROUND TROOPS IN
LAOS.
NYE BLAMED WAR ON THE INTERNATIONAL
BANKERS AND MUNITIONS MAKERS -- CALLED THEM
"MERCHANTS OF DEATH."
TODAY WE SEE MILITANTS BURNING
DOWN OR DAMAGING BANK BUILDINGS, LOOTING
THE FILES OF A NAPALM MANUFACTURER, AND
PREVENTING CAMPUS APPEARANCES BY RECRUITERS
FOR DEFENSE INDUSTRIES.
FORD i LIBRARY 938839
THERE WERE PROTESTS IN THE 30s
AGAINST COMPULSORY MILITARY TRAINING, AND SO
-21-
A NUMBER OF LAND GRANT COLLEGES MADE MILITARY
DRILL OPTIONAL. TODAY WE FIND STUDENTS
FORCING COLLEGE ADMINISTRATIONS TO DROP ROTC
FROM THE CURRICULUM. AND TODAY, TOO, WE
HAVE DRAFT CARD BURNING AND THE POURING OF
BLOOD ON DRAFT CARD FILES.
IN THE THIRTIES, AMERICA SLEPT.
LET US NOT MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE TODAY WE
MADE IN THE 1930s. LET US NOT TEAR DOWN
OUR NATIONAL SECURITY BY CONFUSING MILITARY
PREPAREDNESS WITH THE CAUSES OF WAR.
LET US ACCEPT THE GREAT CHALLENGE
THAT CONFRONTS US -- THE CHALLENGE OF MAIN-
TAINING OUR FREE INSTITUTIONS IN THE FACE
OF A COMMUNIST MOVEMENT THAT THREATENS TO
DESTROY THOSE INSTITUTIONS.
FORD LIBRARY
LET US REMEMBER THAT THE GREAT
OCEANS NO LONGER ARE SEAWALLS BEHIND WHICH
WE CAN HIDE WHILE WE BELATEDLY PREPARE TO
MEET AN ENEMY THREAT. THERE IS NO TIME LAG
-22-
IN WARFARE TODAY GIVING AMERICA THE KIND OF
OPPORTUNITY TO REARM WE ENJOYED IN 1941.
WE ARE CONSTANTLY STARING AT THE TIP OF A
NUCLEAR MISSILE -- AND WE HAD BETTER NOT
BLINK
I AM NOT ADVOCATING A REVIVAL
OF THE COLD WAR. BUT TO ABANDON PRINCIPLE
IN THE PURSUIT OF PEACE IS TO TAKE THE
SUREST ROAD TO ULTIMATE DISASTER.
LET US SEEK A DETENTE WITH THE
SOVIET UNION, BUT LET US NEGOTIATE FROM A
POSITION OF STRENGTH. WE CANNOT BUY PEACE
WITH A SHOW OF WEAKNESS.
THROUGHOUT AMERICA'S HISTORY
THE SOURCE OF OUR NATIONAL GREATNESS HAS
BEEN OUR ABILITY TO SEE WHAT HAD TO BE DONE
AND THEN TO DO IT. IN THIS DECADE OF THE
SEVENTIES, LET US AS AMERICANS DO WHAT HAS
TO BE DONE TO ACHIEVE PEACE IN THE WORLD.
WE CANNOT AFFORD TO DO LESS.
-- END --
Distribution: 10 copies Mr. Ford only
Office Copy
AN ADDRESS BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.
REPUBLICAN LEADER, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
BEFORE THE SAN DIEGO COUNCIL, NAVY LEAGUE OF THE UNITED STATES
AT SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
AT 8 P.M. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1, 1970
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY
Good evening, gentlemen:
When I address you as Republican leader of the House, you probably expect
me to talk politics. Tonight I aim to stay as clear of politics as it is possible
for a politician to do.
What I am going to do is talk Navy. That seems to me to be appropriate.
I am going to talk Navy from the Washington angle and from a national angle.
Incidentally, I feel very much at home here. It's not that I have spent
much time in San Diego but I did spend two years as a deck officer aboard the
aircraft carrier U.S.S. Monterey during World War II. So I don't feel at all
out of place here--not like the young man of doubtful origin who showed up at a
family reunion.
I might mention that in a few days my 12-year-old daughter, Susan, is going
to be christening a Navy patrol gunboat--the U.S.S. Grand Rapids-- at Tacoma,
Wash. When I got the invitation for Susan to be the sponsor, I told her about
the gunboat launching and asked her if she had any questions. "Yes," she said,
"how hard do I have to hit it to knock it into the water?"
Seriously, it's a great pleasure to be here with you in this beautiful
city--one of the most beautiful in the entire country.
And it's a pleasure to be with a group of Americans who are deeply devoted
to the ideals that have made the United States foremost among the nations of the
world.
When I think of San Diego, I see a city which has given much to this country.
I think of people like the 60 San Diegans who are wives and parents of fighting
men missing or imprisoned in Southeast Asia.
More than 1,450 U.S. servicemen are prisoners of war or are missing in
action in Southeast Asia. I want you to know that we in Washington care about
those men, men who we know have been tortured and abused. And so we are doing
everything in our power to bring the pressure of world opinion to bear on their
North Vietnamese and Vietcong captors.
(more)
GERALD FORD LIBRARY
-2-
Currently only about 430 of the 1,450 men are believed to be prisoners of
war. There remain more than 1,000 men who are missing in action. At this time,
there is no way of knowing whether any of these men are dead or alive. Some have
been listed as missing for more than five years.
Of the total who are missing or captured, nearly 800 were downed in North
Vietnam; 450 lost in South Vietnam; and nearly 200 in Laos.
Little was said publicly about the prisoner issue prior to 1969. Taking
that approach produced no progress. As a result, the Nixon Administration has
adopted a new policy of public condemnation of the North Vietnamese, the Vietcong,
and the Pathet Lao for their inhumane treatment of our prisoners of war.
It is not only people at home who have expressed support for these demands
for humane treatment of our prisoners. It is significant that such support has
also been voiced by the officials of many foreign countries.
Recently, the Congress of the United States adopted a resolution calling for
proper treatment of these men. This was a gesture of support for the thousands
of relatives who live in California and in every other state of the Union. And
a few weeks ago the President signed a bill which permits prisoners and missing
servicemen to accumulate an unlimited amount of pay and allowances in special
10 per cent savings accounts.
The plight of these men also has been taken up by hundreds of non-government
organizations and concerned citizens throughout the country.
Because of this public and private emphasis, the plight of our men has
become an issue not only at home but abroad. And I can tell you that even those
nations sympathetic to the North Vietnamese government have little patience for
the enemy's cruel and inhumane treatment of our men and their families.
Today humane treatment of prisoners of war has become a burning issue
throughout the world. To that extent the Nixon Administration has made progress
on this important issue.
As you know, President and Mrs. Nixon met this past December with 26 wives
and mothers who represented all the families of the missing and captured men. The
Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense also have discussed the prisoner
problem with scores of relatives who have waited so long to learn about their
husbands, sons and fathers.
We are continuing to explore every possible means to resolve the prisoner
question. We are seeking the earliest possible release of all prisoners.
(more)
-3-
The Vietnam War is a terrible hangover from the Sixties. We are dealing
with it in the best way we know how--in a way that I believe will ultimately
produce a just peace in Vietnam.
The Sixties are history. We look now into the Seventies--a decade of
decision--and we give thought to some of the great challenges that face us at
home and abroad.
While we continue our progress toward peace in Vietnam, we also are
attacking a host of domestic problems.
We are engaged in what I call a reordering of our priorities--and this is
a most delicate task. I am fearful lest those who are shouting about new
priorities will shut their eyes to continuing priorities--the continuing need,
for example, for the levels of strength America must have to preserve the
greatest possible level of peace in the world.
As President Nixon said in his Foreign Policy Report to the Nation:
"Defense spending must never fall short of the minimum needed for security.
If it does, the problem of domestic programs may become moot."
As you know, the Defense Department is going through a painful period
of transition.
The fiscal 1971 defense budget has been cut to $71.8 billion. That
represents the smallest share of overall Government spending in 20 years.
The new defense budget is $5.2 billion below the spending estimate for the
current fiscal year-which in turn is $4.1 billion below the spending level for
fiscal 1970 projected originally by the Johnson Administration.
That should give you some conception of the tremendous turnaround in
spending that has been taking place in Washington.
Where are the cuts in Defense Department spending occurring? A substantial
portion is in planned reductions of 300,000 military men in this fiscal year's
budget and 252,000 men in the budget for fiscal year 1971. With civilian
reductions added in, our manpower cuts total 682,000 for fiscal years 1970 and
1971.
As you know, the reductions in military spending also have meant a cut in
our naval forces of 140 ships over the past two years--many of them home-ported
in San Diego.
We realize this has had a great impact on San Diego. Yours is a city with
close ties to the Navy and also a city which recognizes the need to maintain a
(more)
-4-
strong Navy as I do. Let me emphasize, however, that the ships we are mothballing
are 20 to 25 years old. What we need now is modernization. There is a dramatic
need to move ahead with funds for new ship construction.
The only way we can modernize the Navy is to do something affirmatively
about the block obsolesence problem. We cannot solve this hangover of past
errors, indecision, and neglect in one year, but we have an obligation to make a
start and hopefully the new budget is such a beginning.
I am not bemoaning our shift in national emphasis to the humanitarian
problems which our people are demanding be tackled. We must attack with greater
vigor the problems of health, education, poverty, urban development, and the
threats to our environment posed by air and water pollution.
But I make the point that we are being shortchanged on modernization of
our military because of attacks now being made on defense spending in the name
of the new priorities. I say that the country needs your help to see to it that
our forces are properly equipped in the future--whatever their number.
Basically, the cuts we have made in military spending have been directly
related to the Vietnamization of our struggle in Southeast Asia. We have gradually
been turning more of the burden over to our South Vietnamese allies, and we have
reduced our armed forces accordingly.
At the same time we have struck a heavy blow against the forces of inflation
by holding down the overall level of Federal spending. We have maintained a
balanced budget and limited the extent to which the Federal Government has had
to go into the money markets.
What I resent is that the same individuals who voted for the huge military
budgets of the previous Administration now are wielding the axe in an irresponsible
manner against Nixon Administration defense budgets already cut to the bone.
These are also the people who funded prior-years weapons projects now
shown to have huge cost overruns--projects proposed by the previous Administration.
These same individuals treat the cost overruns as though the present Administration
were to blame for them.
It occurs to me that had it not been for gross mismanagement by the
previous Administration, resulting in these cost overruns, there would be far
more funds available at this time for such urgent programs as modernization of
our Fleet.
Think back, if you will, to what the Defense Department's civil managers
of the Sixties the so-called Whiz Kids--hath wrought.
(more)
-5-
We have the F-111, for instance, trotted out by the Whiz Kids as the great
common purpose aircraft which would superbly serve both the Navy and the Air Force
and save the Nation a lot of money.
As you may know, the F-111 has been grounded for wing failure. But its
failures extend far beyond its wing flaw. The story of the F-111 is a saga of
tragic mismanagement. And the mess all began with the insistence of the Whiz
Kids that the Navy and the Air Force employ a single multi-purpose aircraft.
The net result was an aircraft which could not meet anyone's military
mission requirements. There was too great an orientation to commonality and not
enough emphasis on military service needs. The Navy was lucky. The Navy version
of the F-111 was cancelled after $200 million was spent on it.
Now the Air Force is stuck with a plane that is sadly deficient both as a
fighter and a bomber and is costing nearly four times as much as the original
estimate.
The original per unit cost of the F-111 has risen from just under $4 million
each to nearly $14 million apiece. And if you add in non-acquisition costs like
ground facilities the unit price goes up to nearly $16 million.
This F-111 fiasco is utterly fantastic. Initially, plans called for a buy
of 1,750 planes. Now the figure is down to 547, with 493 under contract.
The most fantastic fact of all is that the then-Secretary of Defense and
his Whiz Kids knew as early as 1963 that the F-111 could not meet its primary
Air Force mission--that the plane would not deliver the specified maneuver
capabilities at supersonic speeds and that its directional stability was extremely
low at supersonic speeds.
Then we have the C-5A Galaxy air transport, which is currently restricted
because of a structural defect. That plane was intended to be a breakthrough in
cost suppression. Instead the plane has become a procurement scandal. On the
basis of the original order of 121 planes, the unit cost would now be $42.7 million
instead of the original $28.1 million apiece. Thank goodness the order has been
cut back to 81 planes. With the cutback, the unit cost is $48.2 million, as
compared with $33 million apiece based on the original cost estimate for that
volume of procurement. What it adds up to is a $1.6 billion cost overrun even
with the cutback in orders.
As for the Navy, we have inherited an over-age Fleet while the Soviet Union
has been engaged in streamlining its naval strike forces.
(more)
-6-
Let me assure you, however, that the Nixon Administration is concentrating
on qualitative preparedness. Vintage combatant ships are being replaced with new,
more flexible and mission-oriented ships.
During the early part of this year, U.S. ships have twice conducted maneuvers
in the Black Sea. This proven technique of showing the Flag is being employed
as a useful instrument of our foreign policy.
Under this Administration we will move toward a Navy that is modern, powerful,
balanced and flexible.
This Administration recognizes that we are suffering from a modernization
deficit--that we need a regular updating of our forces by the introduction of modern
ships into our Fleet, by the orderly replacement of our older ships.
The modernizing of our Navy has been postponed far too long. In this time
of tight budgets, it is all the more important that we keep abreast of technical
advances and make the most effective possible use of weapons and forces.
What is most dangerous to our national security at this moment is that
certain members of Congress are attacking our bare-bones defense budget as though
$10 or $20 billion could be chopped from it with impunity. They obviously have
failed to think through our national security needs for the Seventies.
To them I say we cannot make progress toward peace by allowing America to
become weak.
To them I say it is not only foolhardy but suicidal for America to risk
being caught militarily short in the Seventies as we were in the Thirties.
Look at what is happening to our great country as we enter the decade of
the Seventies.
We are experiencing a revulsion not only against the Vietnam War but
against all things military and against defense-oriented industry. This has led
to attacks against the Defense Establishment, our men in uniform, and what is
generally lumped together as "the military-industrial complex."
It has produced a concerted campaign to slash our defense budget without any
consideration for what this country must possess in the way of armaments to
guarantee its national security and to maintain some degree of peace in the world.
As General George C. Marshall once remarked, there are individuals who
confuse military preparedness with the causes of war and thus invite a national
catastrophe.
There are today amazing similarities between 1970 and the Thirties, a period
when we believed that the best way to avoid war was to pretend it just couldn't
happen.
(more)
-7-
In the Thirties Sen. Gerald P. Nye of North Dakota preached the "Fortress
America' concept. The isolationism being talked in the United States Senate today
is strongly reminiscent of the sentiments voiced by Sen. Nye.
In the early Thirties an investigation by a Senate committee headed by Nye
resulted in the Neutrality Act of 1935. That legislation was similar to a
recently-enacted Senate resolution limiting the use of U.S. ground troops in Laos.
Never mind the fact that the Administration has no intention of using ground troops
in Laos.
Nye blamed war on the international bankers and munitions makers--
called "merchants of death."
Today we see militants burning down or damaging bank buildings, looting
the files of a napalm manufacturer and preventing campus appearances by recruiters
for defense industries.
There were protests in the 30s against compulsory military training, and so
a number of land grant colleges made military drill optional. Today we find
students forcing college administrations to drop ROTC from the curriculum. And
today, too, we have draft card burning and the pouring of blood on draft card files.
In the Thirties, America slept. Let us not make the same mistake today we
made in the 1930s. Let us not tear down our national security by confusing military
preparedness with the causes of war.
Let us accept the great challenge that confronts us--the challenge of main-
taining our free institutions in the face of a Communist movement that threatens
to destroy those institutions.
Let us remember that the great oceans no longer are seawalls behind which
we can hide while we belatedly prepare to meet an enemy threat. There is no time
lag in warfare today giving America the kind of opportunity to rearm we enjoyed
in 1941. We are constantly staring at the tip of a nuclear missile--and we had
better not blink.
I am not advocating a revival of the cold war. But to abandon principle in
the pursuit of peace is to take the surest road to ultimate disaster.
Let us seek a detente with the Soviet Union, but let us negotiate from a
position of strength. We cannot buy peace with a show of weakness.
Throughout America's history, the source of our national greatness has been
our ability to see what had to be done and then to do it. In this decade of the
Seventies, let us as Americans do what has to be done to achieve peace in the
world. We cannot afford to do less.
# # #
Distribution: 10 copile Mr. Ford only
m office Copy
AN ADDRESS BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.
REPUBLICAN LEADER, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
BEFORE THE SAN DIEGO COUNCIL, NAVY LEAGUE OF THE UNITED STATES
AT SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
AT 8 P.M. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1, 1970
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY
Good evening, gentlemen:
When I address you as Republican leader of the House, you probably expect
me to talk politics. Tonight I aim to stay as clear of politics as it is possible
for a politician to do.
What I am going to do is talk Navy. That seems to me to be appropriate.
I am going to talk Navy from the Washington angle and from a national angle.
Incidentally, I feel very much at home here. It's not that I have spent
much time in San Diego but I did spend two years as a deck officer aboard the
aircraft carrier U.S.S. Monterey during World War II. So I don't feel at all
out of place here--not like the young man of doubtful origin who showed up at a
family reunion.
I might mention that in a few days my 12-year-old daughter, Susan, is going
to be christening a Navy patrol gunboat--the U.S.S. Grand Rapids-- at Tacoma,
Wash. When I got the invitation for Susan to be the sponsor, I told her about
the gunboat launching and asked her if she had any questions. "Yes," she said,
"how hard do I have to hit it to knock it into the water?"
Seriously, it's a great pleasure to be here with you in this beautiful
city--one of the most beautiful in the entire country.
And it's a pleasure to be with a group of Americans who are deeply devoted
to the ideals that have made the United States foremost among the nations of the
world.
When I think of San Diego, I see a city which has given much to this country.
I think of people like the 60 San Diegans who are wives and parents of fighting
men missing or imprisoned in Southeast Asia.
More than 1,450 U.S. servicemen are prisoners of war or are missing in
action in Southeast Asia. I want you to know that we in Washington care about
those men, men who we know have been tortured and abused. And so we are doing
everything in our power to bring the pressure of world opinion to bear on their
North Vietnamese and Vietcong captors.
(more)
GERALD FORD LIBRARY
-2-
Currently only about 430 of the 1,450 men are believed to be prisoners of
war. There remain more than 1,000 men who are missing in action. At this time,
there is no way of knowing whether any of these men are dead or alive. Some have
been listed as missing for more than five years.
Of the total who are missing or captured, nearly 800 were downed in North
Vietnam; 450 lost in South Vietnam; and nearly 200 in Laos.
Little was said publicly about the prisoner issue prior to 1969. Taking
that approach produced no progress. As a result, the Nixon Administration has
adopted a new policy of public condemnation of the North Vietnamese, the Vietcong,
and the Pathet Lao for their inhumane treatment of our prisoners of war.
It is not only people at home who have expressed support for these demands
for humane treatment of our prisoners. It is significant that such support has
also been voiced by the officials of many foreign countries.
Recently, the Congress of the United States adopted a resolution calling for
proper treatment of these men. This was a gesture of support for the thousands
of relatives who live in California and in every other state of the Union. And
a few weeks ago the President signed a bill which permits prisoners and missing
servicemen to accumulate an unlimited amount of pay and allowances in special
10 per cent savings accounts.
The plight of these men also has been taken up by hundreds of non-government
organizations and concerned citizens throughout the country.
Because of this public and private emphasis, the plight of our men has
become an issue not only at home but abroad. And I can tell you that even those
nations sympathetic to the North Vietnamese government have little patience for
the enemy's cruel and inhumane treatment of our men and their families.
Today humane treatment of prisoners of war has become a burning issue
throughout the world. To that extent the Nixon Administration has made progress
on this important issue.
As you know, President and Mrs. Nixon met this past December with 26 wives
and mothers who represented all the families of the missing and captured men. The
Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense also have discussed the prisoner
problem with scores of relatives who have waited SO long to learn about their
husbands, sons and fathers.
We are continuing to explore every possible means to resolve the prisoner
question. We are seeking the earliest possible release of all prisoners.
(more)
-3-
The Vietnam War is a terrible hangover from the Sixties. We are dealing
with it in the best way we know how-in a way that I believe will ultimately
produce a just peace in Vietnam.
The Sixties are history. We look now into the Seventies--a decade of
decision--and we give thought to some of the great challenges that face us at
home and abroad.
While we continue our progress toward peace in Vietnam, we also are
attacking a host of domestic problems.
We are engaged in what I call a reordering of our priorities--and this is
a most delicate task. I am fearful lest those who are shouting about new
priorities will shut their eyes to continuing priorities--the continuing need,
for example, for the levels of strength America must have to preserve the
greatest possible level of peace in the world.
As President Nixon said in his Foreign Policy Report to the Nation:
"Defense spending must never fall short of the minimum needed for security.
If it does, the problem of domestic programs may become moot. "
As you know, the Defense Department is going through a painful period
of transition.
The fiscal 1971 defense budget has been cut to $71.8 billion. That
represents the smallest share of overall Government spending in 20 years.
The new defense budget is $5.2 billion below the spending estimate for the
current fiscal year--which in turn is $4.1 billion below the spending level for
fiscal 1970 projected originally by the Johnson Administration.
That should give you some conception of the tremendous turnaround in
spending that has been taking place in Washington.
Where are the cuts in Defense Department spending occurring? A substantial
portion is in planned reductions of 300,000 military men in this fiscal year's
budget and 252,000 men in the budget for fiscal year 1971. With civilian
reductions added in, our manpower cuts total 682,000 for fiscal years 1970 and
1971.
As you know, the reductions in military spending also have meant a cut in
our naval forces of 140 ships over the past two years--many of them home-ported
in San Diego.
We realize this has had a great impact on San Diego. Yours is a city with
close ties to the Navy and also a city which recognizes the need to maintain a
(more)
-4-
strong Navy--as I do. Let me emphasize, however, that the ships we are mothballing
are 20 to 25 years old. What we need now is modernization. There is a dramatic
need to move ahead with funds for new ship construction.
The only way we can modernize the Navy is to do something affirmatively
about the block obsolesence problem. We cannot solve this hangover of past
errors, indecision, and neglect in one year, but we have an obligation to make a
start and hopefully the new budget is such a beginning.
I am not bemoaning our shift in national emphasis to the humanitarian
problems which our people are demanding be tackled. We must attack with greater
vigor the problems of health, education, poverty, urban development, and the
threats to our environment posed by air and water pollution.
But I make the point that we are being shortchanged on modernization of
our military because of attacks now being made on defense spending in the name
of the new priorities. I say that the country needs your help to see to it that
our forces are properly equipped in the future--whatever their number.
Basically, the cuts we have made in military spending have been directly
related to the Vietnamization of our struggle in Southeast Asia. We have gradually
been turning more of the burden over to our South Vietnamese allies, and we have
reduced our armed forces accordingly.
At the same time we have struck a heavy blow against the forces of inflation
by holding down the overall level of Federal spending. We have maintained a
balanced budget and limited the extent to which the Federal Government has had
to go into the money markets.
What I resent is that the same individuals who voted for the huge military
budgets of the previous Administration now are wielding the axe in an irresponsible
manner against Nixon Administration defense budgets already cut to the bone.
These are also the people who funded prior-years weapons projects now
shown to have huge cost overruns--projects proposed by the previous Administration.
These same individuals treat the cost overruns as though the present Administration
were to blame for them.
It occurs to me that had it not been for gross mismanagement by the
previous Administration, resulting in these cost overruns, there would be far
more funds available at this time for such urgent programs as modernization of
our Fleet.
Think back, if you will, to what the Defense Department's civil managers
of the Sixties--the so-called Whiz Kids--hath wrought.
(more)
-5-
We have the F-111, for instance, trotted out by the Whiz Kids as the great
common purpose aircraft which would superbly serve both the Navy and the Air Force
and save the Nation a lot of money.
As you may know, the F-111 has been grounded for wing failure. But its
failures extend far beyond its wing flaw. The story of the F-111 is a saga of
tragic mismanagement. And the mess all began with the insistence of the Whiz
Kids that the Navy and the Air Force employ a single multi-purpose aircraft.
The net result was an aircraft which could not meet anyone's military
mission requirements. There was too great an orientation to commonality and not
enough emphasis on military service needs. The Navy was lucky. The Navy version
of the F-111 was cancelled after $200 million was spent on it.
Now the Air Force is stuck with a plane that is sadly deficient both as a
fighter and a bomber and is costing nearly four times as much as the original
estimate.
The original per unit cost of the F-111 has risen from just under $4 million
each to nearly $14 million apiece. And if you add in non-acquisition costs like
ground facilities the unit price goes up to nearly $16 million.
This F-111 fiasco is utterly fantastic. Initially, plans called for a buy
of 1,750 planes. Now the figure is down to 547, with 493 under contract.
The most fantastic fact of all is that the then-Secretary of Defense and
his Whiz Kids knew as early as 1963 that the F-111 could not meet its primary
Air Force mission--that the plane would not deliver the specified maneuver
capabilities at supersonic speeds and that its directional stability was extremely
low at supersonic speeds.
Then we have the C-5A Galaxy air transport, which is currently restricted
because of a structural defect. That plane was intended to be a breakthrough in
cost suppression. Instead the plane has become a procurement scandal. On the
basis of the original order of 121 planes, the unit cost would now be $42.7 million
instead of the original $28.1 million apiece. Thank goodness the order has been
cut back to 81 planes. With the cutback, the unit cost is $48.2 million, as
compared with $33 million apiece based on the original cost estimate for that
volume of procurement. What it adds up to is a $1.6 billion cost overrun even
with the cutback in orders.
As for the Navy, we have inherited an over-age Fleet while the Soviet Union
has been engaged in streamlining its naval strike forces.
(more)
-6-
Let me assure you, however, that the Nixon Administration is concentrating
on qualitative preparedness. Vintage combatant ships are being replaced with new,
more flexible and mission-oriented ships.
During the early part of this year, U.S. ships have twice conducted maneuvers
in the Black Sea. This proven technique of showing the Flag is being employed
as a useful instrument of our foreign policy.
Under this Administration we will move toward a Navy that is modern, powerful,
balanced and flexible.
This Administration recognizes that we are suffering from a modernization
deficit--that we need a regular updating of our forces by the introduction of modern
ships into our Fleet, by the orderly replacement of our older ships.
The modernizing of our Navy has been postponed far too long. In this time
of tight budgets, it is all the more important that we keep abreast of technical
advances and make the most effective possible use of weapons and forces.
What is most dangerous to our national security at this moment is that
certain members of Congress are attacking our bare-bones defense budget as though
$10 or $20 billion could be chopped from it with impunity. They obviously have
failed to think through our national security needs for the Seventies.
To them I say we cannot make progress toward peace by allowing America to
become weak.
To them I say it is not only foolhardy but suicidal for America to risk
being caught militarily short in the Seventies as we were in the Thirties.
Look at what is happening to our great country as we enter the decade of
the Seventies.
We are experiencing a revulsion not only against the Vietnam War but
against all things military and against defense-oriented industry. This has led
to attacks against the Defense Establishment, our men in uniform, and what is
generally lumped together as "the military-industrial complex."
It has produced a concerted campaign to slash our defense budget without any
consideration for what this country must possess in the way of armaments to
guarantee its national security and to maintain some degree of peace in the world.
As General George C. Marshall once remarked, there are individuals who
confuse military preparedness with the causes of war and thus invite a national
catastrophe.
There are today amazing similarities between 1970 and the Thirties, a period
when we believed that the best way to avoid war was to pretend it just couldn't
happen.
(more)
-7-
In the Thirties Sen. Gerald P. Nye of North Dakota preached the "Fortress
America' concept. The isolationism being talked in the United States Senate today
is strongly reminiscent of the sentiments voiced by Sen. Nye.
In the early Thirties an investigation by a Senate committee headed by Nye
resulted in the Neutrality Act of 1935. That legislation was similar to a
recently-enacted Senate resolution limiting the use of U.S. ground troops in Laos.
Never mind the fact that the Administration has no intention of using ground troops
in Laos.
Nye blamed war on the international bankers and munitions makers--
called "merchants of death. "
Today we see militants burning down or damaging bank buildings, looting
the files of a napalm manufacturer and preventing campus appearances by recruiters
for defense industries.
There were protests in the 30s against compulsory military training, and so
a number of land grant colleges made military drill optional. Today we find
students forcing college administrations to drop ROTC from the curriculum. And
today, too, we have draft card burning and the pouring of blood on draft card files.
In the Thirties, America slept. Let us not make the same mistake today we
made in the 1930s. Let us not tear down our national security by confusing military
preparedness with the causes of war.
Let us accept the great challenge that confronts us--the challenge of main-
taining our free institutions in the face of a Communist movement that threatens
to destroy those institutions.
Let us remember that the great oceans no longer are seawalls behind which
we can hide while we belatedly prepare to meet an enemy threat. There is no time
lag in warfare today giving America the kind of opportunity to rearm we enjoyed
in 1941. We are constantly staring at the tip of a nuclear missile--and we had
better not blink.
I am not advocating a revival of the cold war. But to abandon principle in
the pursuit of peace is to take the surest road to ultimate disaster.
Let us seek a detente with the Soviet Union, but let us negotiate from a
position of strength. We cannot buy peace with a show of weakness.
Throughout America's history, the source of our national greatness has been
our ability to see what had to be done and then to do it. In this decade of the
Seventies, let us as Americans do what has to be done to achieve peace in the
world. We cannot afford to do less.
# # #