TO CREATE A DEPARTMENT OF PEACE THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1945 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS, Washington, D. C. The committee met at 10:30 a. m., Hon. Sol Bloom (chairman) presiding. Chairman BLOOM. The committee will kindly come to order. The committee has under consideration this morning H. R. 3628, introduced by Representative Jennings Randolph, to create a Department of Peace. (The bill is as follows:) [H. R. 3628, 79th Cong., 1st sess.] A BILL To create a Department of Peace Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That (a) there shall be at the seat of the Government an executive department to be known as the Department of Peace, at the head of which shall be a Secretary of Peace, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall receive compensation at the rate of $15,000 per annum. (b) There shall be in the Department of Peace an Under Secretary of Peace, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall receive compensation at the rate of $10,000 per annum. In the absence of the Secretary, the Under Secretary shall perform the duties of the Secretary. The Under Secretary shall also perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Secretary or by law. SEC. 2. The Secretary of Peace shall have the duty (a) Of formulating and publicizing educational programs for promoting better understanding of the other peoples of the world and better understanding of the fundamental principles of international relations and of cooperation among nations; (b) Of encouraging the interchange of ideas and persons between colleges, churches, civic organizations, and other institutions, organizations, and groups in the United States, on the one hand, and other similar institutions, organizations, and groups in other countries, on the other hand; and (c) Of assisting educational institutions and religious organizations in the United States in formulating educational programs dealing with international relations, international cooperation, and the problems of peace. Chairman BLOOM. We have with us this morning Representative Randolph, who has been active for many years in the crusade for understanding among the peoples of the world-working toward permanent peace. He has introduced legislation to effect better relationships among peoples everywhere-and this bill is a further measure intended, as he sees it, to accomplish leadership for America in this vital field. Mr. Randolph, you will proceed. 1 STATEMENT OF HON. JENNINGS RANDOLPH, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA Mr. RANDOLPH. Chairman Bloom and members of the committee: At the outset, and my words are weighed carefully, I state that I personally have very keen appreciation of the contribution which is made to the United Nations Conference and ultimate organization by Mr. Bloom, as chairman of this committee, and the ranking minority member, Mr. Eaton, of New Jersey. I feel that our discussion today of this type of legislation is very definitely woven into the fabric of peace which we want to weave for our own country and for all other nations of the world. I am happy that on this committee are members who have been very closely associated with the development, over the past few months, in connection with leadership of our own Republic and other countries of the earth on the building of a basis from which we might establish a permanent and proper peace, What I have said about the two gentlemen applies to other members of this committee, several of whom have traveled in countries thousands of miles from the locale for this meeting today. They have seen the effects of this war with its destruction, its devastation, and its death. They have come back, therefore, able to give us a clearer picture of some of the problems that we must face in the immediate future. Mr. Chairman, we have two departments within our Federal structure that are charged with the responsibility of the over-all planning and the direction of any war in which this country is engaged: Those are the War and Navy Departments with a secretary for each serving in the Cabinet of the President of the United States. I believe, without exception, that during my almost 13 years as a Member of the House of Representatives I have supported the appropriations and the proposals which have passed to strengthen the defense of our Nation. I have not always agreed with the details and the manner in which it was proposed, but on the over-all development I have always supported those propositions. I feel that the time has come, and perhaps is long overdue, when in the Cabinet we should have a secretary who would be definitely charged with the leadership of the United States of America in connection with the vigorous formulation of policies for peace. I believe that billions of dollars would have been saved, disastrous duplication eliminated, and that greater efficiency would have resulted if we had consolidated prior to the present war the War and Navy Departments into a Department of Defense. That, however, is not the subject matter for our immediate consideration but I inject it here as an indication that in the past we have had two departments concentrating their attention on building devices and systems which would operate during the tragedies of war. Certainly if we do away with one such department we would have given a very nice niche for the Department of Peace. In this unit the money expended certainly would be infinitesimal compared with the expenditures which have been made for war. Mr. EATON. May I ask the gentleman a question? Chairman BLOOM. Yes, Mr. Eaton. Mr. EATON. How would you function this new department in connection with the State Department, for instance? |