Presidential Papers, Doc#1999 To Arthur Larson, 26 September 1956. In The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower

Document #1999; September 26, 1956
To Arthur Larson
Series: EM, AWF, Administration Series

The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, Volume XVII - The Presidency: The Middle Way
Part X: Cracks in the Alliance; May 1956 to September 1956
Chapter 21: "Grave difficulties in the Suez crisis"

 

Dear Arthur:1 Possibly one of the things that bothers me about the early part of this talk is that we have grouped together both specific goals for 1960 (for example, 70 million workers on the job), along with things that are accomplished and realized in day by day planning and effort. (For example, a 1960 in which long and costly strikes will be rare. This is something that we work for all the time. Or a 1960 which will see the working out of special measures to insure the competitive position of small business.)2

Furthermore, I think it is undoubtedly true that the average human would rather have his today's problems solved tomorrow than to be told that his problems will be solved much better in 1960. Take disease--it would be small comfort to a cancer patient today if he knew that by 1960, nobody else was going to die of cancer. However, I am still sure that we should outline the things that we know can be done during the next Administration if we follow the course already charted.

I think this talk has really great possibilities. If I am to put it over, it must be succinct, hard-hitting and logically arranged.

In any event, I send you herewith two sentences I scrawled--one to go at the top of the page and one in the introduction to the three questions. Mrs. Whitman has typed them out and appended them hereto.3

I hope that I shall be free by four o'clock tomorrow afternoon, but even if I am delayed a little bit, I will see you after the NSC so that we may try to agree on further developments.4 Sincerely

1 Larson (B.A. Augustana 1931) had served as Under Secretary of Labor since 1954. He had joined the faculty of Cornell Law School in 1944 and in 1953 had become dean of the University of Pittsburgh Law School.

2 Larson was assisting with a campaign speech the President would deliver in Lexington, Kentucky, on October 1, 1956. The final version of the speech listed goals, but eliminated any specific reference to their achievement by the year 1960. For the text of the televised speech see Public Papers of the Presidents: Eisenhower, 1956, pp. 838-47; see also New York Times, October 2, 1956.

3 We were unable to find the attachments in AWF.

4 Larson would meet with the President as planned. For Eisenhower's further comments on the draft see no. 2004.

Bibliographic reference to this document:
Eisenhower, Dwight D. To Arthur Larson, 26 September 1956. In The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, ed. L. Galambos and D. van Ee, doc. 1999. World Wide Web facsimile by The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission of the print edition; Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, http://www.eisenhowermemorial.org/presidential-papers/first-term/documents/1999.cfm

 


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