811.24 Raw Materials/1057a
The Chairman of the Executive Committee on Commercial Policy ( Grady ) to President Roosevelt
My Dear Mr. President: The Executive Committee on Commercial Policy has, as you know, been giving continuing and serious attention to the problem of our agricultural surpluses with particular reference to diminishing markets for these products in Europe. It has also, a: have many other Departments and agencies of the Government, bee concerned with the problem of acquisition of adequate supplies of strategic and critical materials.
[Page 259]At its meeting this morning the Committee considered a report of one of its subcommittees on a possible method of dealing with both of these problems simultaneously and after discussion of the proposal, it was the consensus of the Committee that the plan be approved in principle and that such a plan could be implemented by a measure along the lines of the enclosed draft bill.13 Briefly, this proposal would authorize the President to enter into agreements with foreign countries providing for an exchange of not more than 3½ percent of the present gold stocks, to be taken from the stabilization fund, for an emergency reserve supply of imported strategic and critical raw materials, with the proviso that under such agreements foreign countries would be permitted to obtain title to the gold, in advance of the actual delivery of the strategic and critical raw materials, if such gold is used exclusively for the purchase of raw and manufactured agricultural products produced in and exported from the United States.
If the principle embodied in the foregoing proposal and the enclosed draft should appear desirable to you and to the Cabinet, the Committee would be glad to give some further consideration to the details of the suggested bill as well as to incorporate such changes as you or the Cabinet might consider desirable.
It is not the thought of the Committee that this suggested plan should conflict with or act as a substitute for any other plan for the speedy acquisition of strategic materials which may be under consideration.
Faithfully yours,
- Not printed.↩