Foreign Relations of the United States, 1955–1957, National Security Policy, Volume XIX

145. Memorandum of a Conference With the President, White House, Washington, October 8, 1957¹

Washington, October 8, 1957

PRESENT

• Secretary Wilson
• General Randall
• General Goodpaster

The agenda of the meeting is attached.²

Rate of expenditures. Mr. Wilson showed the President several charts on the trend of employment and wage rates in the aircraft industry illustrating the source of the “run away” on expenditures. He then showed charts indicating that, in September, expenditures were brought below the “manageable” figure of $3.4 billion per month. He said that expenditures would balance out at $250–275 million above the target for the first quarter in this fiscal year, but should be at or below the target next quarter. He said Defense could probably hit a $20.7 billion figure for the first six months, but not a $20.1 figure.

FY ’59 Budget. Mr. Wilson said he had arbitrarily divided the funds estimated to be available as among the three services, and had based the division on a force of 2.5 million men. One question to be considered was whether to put a $38 billion budget to Congress and let them cut it half a billion, or to put up a $38.5 billion budget. In this connection he said all services will say that the funds allowed are too small. The President said he is willing to adjust the figure to take care of rising costs; but to do so would contribute to further inflation and a further rise in costs. Mr. Wilson recommended as future budgetary procedure, projecting a continuation of the same general figures, then adjusting from that projection. He would let the services plan within such projections.

Cordiner Committee³ implementation. Mr. Wilson referred to a memorandum⁴ I had shown him recording the President’s general thinking in this matter. He thought that the Defense proposals would be in accord with that memorandum, and said that in fact they would be very close to what he proposed early last spring. The President said he had hoped that, if we are able to institute the Cordiner recommendations, we could stand sizeable personnel cuts without decreasing combat potential (through retention of trained personnel). He went on to say that he thought we must include some adaptation of the report in the program for the coming year.

Jupiter-Thor. Mr. Wilson recalled that, in starting the IRBM programs, he had put in the Army-Navy effort (from which the Navy has since dropped out) to see if they could make more rapid progress than the Thor project, which is a “fall out” from the ICBM. To date the test results of the Jupiter are substantially the best. The Air Force approach with Thor is to tool up on a substantial basis and correct and improve the missile as work goes along. He said if it were necessary to decide the matter today he would have to decide in favor of the Army missile. However, the actual warhead and actual guidance⁵ have not yet been incorporated. The choice is to go ahead on the present basis and spend several million dollars more on the two programs or to chop off one program now. The President said he did not feel in position to make such a decision, not being a technician. He said also that Defense certainly could not stop the Jupiter at the present time. Mr. Wilson asked whether the President thought he should decide the matter before he leaves his office, and the President asked how long it would take to be in position to make a decision. Mr. Wilson said it should run several more months—perhaps as far as March next year. The President thought Mr. Wilson should not try to decide the matter before leaving his post.

Army 500-mile Redstone. Mr. Wilson said there was a split in the JCS on the Army’s developing this weapon. Although there is a solid propellant weapon in prospect, it is at least three to five years away. Redstone is based on a 6500 pound warhead; with a smaller warhead the additional range could be attained. The President said he felt the Army should not be stopped from having the 500-mile missile if they are close to achieving it. Operationally, it could be put 200 to 300 miles back from the front line—this is very apropos, since the front will be extremely fluid. The President interjected at this point that the probable sound course of procedure would be to abolish the Army, Navy and Air Force and Marines and go to task forces under Defense—but such an idea is probably twenty years away. Mr. Wilson said there was much to commend this proposal as a better means of decentralization than we have now. In summing up on this point, Mr. Wilson proposed to tell the Army they could put their 500-mile missile in the 1959 program, seeing what they can take out to provide the $45 million needed. The President agreed.

Anti-missile missile. Mr. Wilson said that trouble is rising between the Army and the Air Force over this missile. The Army has been assigned the missile, with Air Force having the long-range detection, but the Air Force is now initiating an approach involving an “area weapon.” The President interjected, with some vigor, that he thought we are going to have to go to a “Manhattan District” type approach in order to get forward in this matter. Mr. Wilson said that is exactly what he had wanted to propose to the President. The President added that he is coming to believe that perhaps we should do this for all missiles—not just the anti-missile missile.

Overseas deployments. Mr. Wilson said that to reach a force of 2.5 million it would be necessary to bring back something of the order of an additional 40,000 personnel from overseas. Even so, it would be possible to keep two divisions in Japan and five in Europe, running them under strength, however, as the British have done on the continent.

Earth satellite. Mr. Wilson said that a result of the Soviet achievement is to throw more emphasis on the missile program. He thought he had better remove certain overtime restrictions now in effect. These are of minor influence and cost, but some people will charge a slow-up in the program because of these restrictions. The President told him he could go ahead, but asked that the removal be very precisely defined. (He asked me to inform Mr. Brundage of this decision, and I did so.) With regard to the Vanguard, Mr. Wilson suggested letting it run on for a few months more. If the Navy should fail with its missile, however, or substantially slip in its timing, he thought we had better have a back up missile. The President said the use of the Redstone as the back up had been mentioned to him earlier in the day.⁶ He thought that Mr. Holaday should keep track of the program day by day, and do what is necessary to have the Redstone ready as a back up.

Defense Department organizations. Mr. Wilson reported that all the principal jobs are filled. The only change which he would recommend would be to clarify Roles and Missions and thought that this would need to be done before too long.

Regular Appointments with the President. Mr. Wilson thought it would be well for Secretary McElroy and General Twining to have regular appointments with the President for some time, inasmuch as they are new to their duties, and the President agreed.

G

Brigadier General, USA

1. Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, DDE Diaries. Secret. Drafted by Goodpaster on October 8.
2. Not printed.
3. The Cordiner Committee, officially known as the Defense Advisory Committee on Professional and Technical Compensation, was chaired by Ralph J. Cordiner, president of General Electric Company. Created to study personnel and pay practices in the military, the committee reported on May 8 that a significant gap existed between the structure of military pay, which had not changed since World War II, and rapidly changing military strategy. Many of the committee’s recommendations initially delayed for budgetary reasons were implemented in 1958. See Report of the Defense Advisory Committee on Professional and Technical Compensation (2 vols., Washington, 1957). Eisenhower’s comments on the Cordiner Committee recommendations at his press conference on June 19 are printed in Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1957, pp. 474-475.
4. Not found in the Eisenhower Library or Department of State files.
5. The word “guides” was deleted and “guidance” inserted in handwriting on the source text.
6. Reference is to a meeting at 8:30 a.m. among the President, administration officials, and scientists. For text of a memorandum of this conference, dated October 8, see vol. XI, p. 755. Another memorandum of this conference, drafted by Goodpaster, is in the Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, DDE Diaries.