611.00/10–3054
No. 371
Memorandum of Conversation, by the
Counselor (MacArthur)
[Extracts]
eyes only
Participants:
- The President
- Secretary of State
- Under Secretary of State
- Asst. Secretary of State—Mr. Merchant
- Douglas MacArthur II—Counselor
- Colonel Goodpaster
The following is a summary of the meeting1 at the White House this morning:
. . . . . . .
5. The Secretary made reference to his meeting with Deputy Secretary Anderson and the JCS yesterday and mentioned that some of the Chiefs did not seem to be at all familiar with the constitutional requirements relating to the employment of U.S. armed forces in hostilities. The President said Col. Goodpaster2 had given him a report on the meeting yesterday from which it seemed clear that there was not complete understanding of the constitutional responsibilities of the President. The Secretary said he thought his briefing had helped to give the Chiefs a better understanding of this problem. The President then referred to the Secretary’s discussion yesterday with the Chiefs and said that under the present circumstances if the Chinese Communists attacked Formosa he felt he should order the Seventh Fleet to intervene defensively between the Communists and Formosa. At the same time he would call an immediate session of Congress. This procedure from the constitutional standpoint, he felt, would be the best way at the present time, in the absence of a treaty, to meet a Chinese Communist attack. In other words, this would not permit our military authorities to retaliate against the Chinese mainland from Peking to Canton on the massive retaliation theory pending Congressional consideration of the matter. Our action until the Congress had considered this matter would be purely to defend Formosa from invasion by interposing U.S. forces between the Communist attacking forces and the Island.
. . . . . . .