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183391243
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Memorandum from Secretary of State Dean Acheson to James Webb
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183391243
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Memorandum from Secretary of State Dean Acheson to James Webb
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Dean Acheson Papers
Secretary of State Files
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1949-12-16
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1949
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275
DECLASSIFIED
E. O. 11652, Sec. 3(E) and S(D) or (E)
Dept. of State letter, Aug.,5,1973
2-23-75
Bg NLT- He NARS Date 4.29.76
. ARCHIVES 'NATIONAL SERVICE" RECORDS AND
Cork
is CONTINUED
327
SECRET
December 16, 1949
MEMORANDUM FOR MR. WEBB:
With reference to my memorandum of conversation of today with
Mr. Hoffman, I called him back and said that if he would like me to do
so I would go over to the Bureau of the Budget and see Mr. Pace with
him. I said that I would be somewhat embarrassed to argue for the
figure of $3,175,000,000 which Mr. Hoffman, I understood, wanted to
stand out for. This was because in the NSC we had all agreed that
the figure for foreign aid should be $3 billion. There was to be a
contingency item of $200,000,000 included in the $3 billion. As I
understood the present idea of the Bureau of the Budget, what they now
are doing in cutting to $2,900,000,000 is taking out half of the
contingency fund. Therefore we would be arguing over a figure of
$100 million. I said I would be willing to argue on this $100 million
if Mr. Hoffman thought that it was important.
Mr. Hoffman said that it was his understanding that the $3 billion
which was agreed in the NSC did not include ECA administrative
expenses and military end use items; whereas now the $2,900,000,000
to which the Budget planned to cut ECA would include those items.
I said I knew nothing whatever about that and this was the first
time I had had that idea presented to me. Mr. Hoffman said he would
not worry so much about the $200 million cut but reiterated his fear that
the Congress would cut them still further; that, while they might be able
to operate with the $200 million cut, a $500 million cut would be
fatal, and he knew there was no way by which a guarantee could be
given him that this would not occur. He said that he did not feel his
figures were in any way padded and that he could justify his original
figure of $3, 175 million.
I said again that, while I was not qualified to argue as to whether
the $3 billion figure agreed on at NSC included or did not include ECA
administrative expenses and military end use items, I would be very glad
to go over to the Bureau of the Budget and state in strongest terms
possible my conviction that the foreign aid program was absolutely
vital and that nothing must be done to endanger it.
SECHI
DA
S.