Memorandum on the Loyalty Program

252-K NATIONAL TRUMAN A Filed by ARCHIVES AND mr. Dawbon RECORDS SERVICE October 30, 1947 may 31,1952 The loyalty program provided for in Executive Order 9835 is fully underway and a great deal of attention has been focused on it by the Congress, public and the press. Every effort must be made by all Departments of the Executive Branch to see that it succeeds. It will take the cooperation of every one for reasons that are too obvious to mention. In developing the program it was not my belief that a full investigation should be made of every employee now on the rolls of the X252 Government from the standpoint of building up a file of intelligence information on each employee, and the Executive Order did not provide for that. It did provide that the FBI would check its records in con- X10-B nection with each incumbent employee and if derogatory information from the standpoint of loyalty were uncovered, then an investigation would be made. In transmitting to the Congrees the estimate of funds needed to carry out the program, it was indicated that all loyalty investigations would be made by the FBI. The testimony before the House Appropriations Committee was to this same effect. In a letter to the Civil Service Commission I pointed out that the FBI would conduct all loyalty in- vestigations, and the Bureau of the Budget in compiling its estimate x79 for the appropriations did not allow funds for any Department other than the FBI for the purpose of making loyalty investigations. The Attorney General has issued a letter to the Departments under date of October 7 in which he points out that where evidence of disloyalty is uncovered in connection with any present employee, that (kep) Read To Peyton Fnat arther 10/31/47 dour over phone print. to Cabinet principles x 10 x2 born not filed 6/4/52.