3 Ike Speeches Give Idea of What's Up
He Looks to Future For Improvements
President Dwight D. Eisenhower has made his Report to the Nation, but those parts of his talk which would actually qualify as a report were outweighed by a great amount of hinting and suggesting—clues which said, in effect, that he would have a far more important message for the American people in his annual State of the Union speech.
Mr. Eisenhower didn't slight his listing of the new administration's achievements, but he indicated that a greater record will be on the books next year if the Congress will take "quick and effective steps to enact his program."
The work of readying the administration's forces for embarking on a program to have the federal government use "every legitimate means to sustain the prosperity" now being enjoyed by the country was named by the President as the most significant accomplishment of the first Republican administration in two decades.
This is, as we see it, a pretty big order, and one which will take something a little more down to earth than the resource the President expects to tap: the American people's "persistent and reasoning faith in the growth of America."
Certainly, this faith exists, but it often manifests itself in unexpected ways. No matter how universal is the desire to put the country on a solid economy that will function well during a time of peace, the Congress houses numerous factions and individuals who probably will feel that the people's "persistent and reasoning faith" won't be rewarded by the particular legislation the President has in mind.
Here, then, is reason for withholding applause for Mr. Eisenhower's look to the future. The second installment came Thursday, and the third (and most significant) installment may never be made if the Congress doesn't want to go down the line with the President's proposals.
In the cataloging of the past year's achievements, the President did a little fudging, for several of what he listed as definite accomplishments are in actuality unfinished, untested, or unpopular.
For instance, he mentioned the bid he made on behalf of the United States for immediate steps to have the world's atomic powers meet and plan for gradual weaning of the atom away from its wartime uses so that it might be used almost entirely for constructive purposes. He made this offer in a speech recently before the United Nations, and although we believe it to be a fine ambition, we feel that he hadn't (and still hasn't) been granted the approval of the American people on the matter.
Another questionable claim made by Mr. Eisenhower is that the personnel of government now is of improved caliber. He said the administration is being manned by those who have an "intellectual understanding" of their jobs, and also a "grasp of what is just and humane." Such persons are the best public servants, he said.
Thus, it can be seen that careful analysis negates a large part of the administration's alleged accomplishments for its first year in office. It can also be seen why Mr. Eisenhower preferred to have his report emphasize what he dreams of instead of what he can point to as unshakable, concrete accomplishment. —Tom Stewart
Split Congress Hears Firm Stands Taken
President Dwight D. Eisenhower officially opened his second year in office as he addressed the almost evenly politically divided joint session of Congress Thursday.
The President ran the gamut of the nation's ills, ranging from proposed tax cuts to securing votes for all 18-year-olds.
Much of the speech shows a progressive platform, but as the President said himself when leaving the building, why even make the speech, there were copies of it on all of the Senate chairs.
The reason is to let the people know just where we stand, and the President really committed himself this time.
Perhaps one of the most startling measures the President mentioned was that of communism in the United States. In brief, he proposed that legislation be passed to strip U.S. citizenship from Communists convicted of conspiring against the government in the future.
This is the closest any official has come in the past to outlawing the Communist party. In the past many have spoken against any such measure fearing that it might drive Communism underground.
As far as the voting matter is concerned the President probably speaks as an "old soldier" on this. For it is in the armed forces that the passage of a law permitting 18-year-olds to vote has been most desired.
In other points of the speech the President said, "slowly but surely, the free world gathers strength. Meanwhile, from behind the Iron Curtain, there are signs that tyranny is in trouble and reminders that its structure is as brittle as its surface is hard."
We can all remember the war years when the slogan was advanced, "If they are old enough to fight they should be old enough to vote."
Continuing the cheerful tone, he said new tax cuts can and will be made. He also predicted a federal spending budget of about $66 billion for the fiscal year, starting in July.
Thus another year under Eisenhower begins. All the world is waiting to see just what events the year will bring, peace or war, sound economy or a depression, a continuance of the Red scare or internal peace. —Ken Coy
Farm Plan Resembles Democratic Forms
It appears to the casual observer that President Eisenhower either is a very liberal President, or that he has become convinced the Democratic policy of 1948-49 on farm supports is the wisest policy to follow at the present time.
For Mr. Eisenhower's recommendations to Congress are almost in complete accordance with the policy set up under ex-President Truman. Mr. Eisenhower's major recommended policy changes have to do with parity, either increased, lessened, loosened, or completely dropped.
Concerning parity, he said in his speech Monday describing his program for achieving agricultural stability:
"Modernized parity is to become effective for all commodities on Jan. 1, 1956, as scheduled by law. Provision should be made for moving from the old to modernized parity in steps of 5 percentage points of the old parity per year until the change from old to modernized parity has been accomplished."
The section of his speech devoted to parity and price supports is mere repetition of the conditions and provisions of the agricultural acts of 1948 and 1949 and Mr. Eisenhower readily admits that that is the case.
His primary changes with concern to parity are: "That after the 1954 crop, the level of price support for wheat be related to supply." But. "The Secretary of Agriculture will use his authority under the agricultural act of 1949 to insure that year-to-year variations in price support levels will be limited."
He would like to set the price support of wheat to the supply, yet desires to keep supports from changing significantly. At the present time, according to the speech, the governments' holding in commodity stocks amounts to a full year's supply of wheat for the nation.
Part of the solution is the reduction of acreage planted in the crops. The President suggests that instead of planting the land to those crops, it be planted to other crops.
"The problem is one of unbalanced farm production, resulting in specific surpluses which are unavoidable under the present rigid price supports."
Your proposed loosening of parities is supposedly so that the foreign market can be exploited to aid the farmers in getting benefits, not all from the government, for their crops. At least that is one reason, but yet there is not much opportunity to accomplish this if we are going to furnish our world neighbors with some of our excesses.
—Ed Howard
Page 2 University Daily Kansan Tuesday. Jan. 12. 1954
LITTLE MAN ON CAMPUS by Dick Bibler
"Id better go in now, Worthal—I see the housemother got back."
Letters
To the Editor:
Last year the ASC's constitution was re-written with the hope that a more representative and efficient, and also praise-worthy, student government would be organized. It was the goal of the Council members to make the Council more responsive to student needs and desires. The Council, in short, wanted the "power" to DO something. Well, it certainly has assumed the power.
This Student Council issue has been in the air for some time, at least two years to my knowledge, yet the majority of the students didn't believe that the All Student Council would or could do such a thing as "take" over the YMCA-sponsored Rock Chalk Revue.
Since when has it become right to "take" that which does not belong to you? It is an accepted fact today that a governing body (All Student Council) can legally do such a thing without the consent of the owner (YMCA).
the
I understand that the AWS, foreseeing the need for student "education" and opinion on this issue, asked their representatives to take a vote on it in their houses. In our house the vote was overwhelmingly against the seizure. We considered
the fact that the funds might be redirected for more general student use, but rejected that reason as an excuse for an action that is down right tyranny.
I must register protest on this ASC decision because:
1) The ASC does not have a legal or ethical right to effect this change.
or ethical right to effect this change. 2) The ASC did not educate the students on this issue and consult or represent them in its decision.
Students, what do you think?
Winkie Stewart,
College junior.
UNIVERSITY DAILY Hansan
University of Kansas Student Newspaper
News Room KU 251    Ad Room KU 376
Member of the Kansas Press Assm., National Editorial Assm., Inland Daily Press, Represented by the National Advertising Service, 420 Madison Avenue, N.Y. City, Represented by the National Advertising Service, 420 Madison Avenue, N.Y. City, $4.50 year (add $1 a semester if in Lawrence). Published in Lawrence, Kan., every afternoon during the University of Kansas University holidays and examination periods. Entered second class master Sept. 17, 1910, at Lawrence, Kan., Post Office under act
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