DR–20. Editorial Note
In a letter to President Eisenhower, dated April 21, 1960, Edwin N. Clark reported on his conversation with Generalissimo Trujillo on March 27 in the Dominican Republic. The letter stated in part, “I believe we can conclude that a) Generalissimo Trujillo is in real trouble and he knows it best of all; b) he desires to retire but at this moment does not quite know how to bring it off, and c) although Trujillo is disappointed that he has received no assistance from the United States in his present difficulties, he has not yet reached the point where he is resentful or angry at having to go it alone; however, these emotions, further aroused by the pressure of events, may create an increasingly deteriorating situation so far as we are concerned.” (Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, Name Series, “Clark, Edwin Norman”)
Clark discussed the situation in the Dominican Republic with the President and Secretary of State Herter at the White House on April, 25, 1960. According to a diary entry for that day, dictated by Eisenhower, the three men discussed “a plan for removing Trujillo from control of that country, and to establish in his position a controlling junta which could immediately call for free elections and make the attempt to get the country on a truly democratic basis. Any plan to be successful would have to be skillfully executed and would have to have the approval of a big majority of the members of the OAS. However, the Secretary of State has undertaken to follow through to determine whether something could be done that would not plunge the country into anarchy or throw it under communist control. Necessarily the plan should be one that would not place the United States in the role of ‘interventionists’.” (Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, Whitman Diary)