<--PREV Doc #1450  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1452 Document #1451; March 10, 1960 To John Charles Doerfer Series: EM, AWF, Administration Series The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, Volume XX - The Presidency: Keeping the Peace Part IX: Shattered Dreams; March 1960 to July 1960 Chapter 21: "Progress in a knotty problem"   Dear Mr. Doerfer: I have your letter submitting your resignation as Member and Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.1 I regret the circumstances which have led you to your conclusion but they do, in my opinion, indicate your decision to be a wise one.2 Your resignation is, accordingly, accepted effective, as you suggest, at the close of business on Monday, March fourteenth. In the discharge of your duties first as a member and then as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission you have served tirelessly, loyally, effectively--and with dedication. For your public service over many years at local, State and Federal levels you have earned the appreciation of your fellow citizens and of the Administration.3 I wish you every success in your future undertakings.4 Sincerely 1 Doerfer (B.A. University of Wisconsin 1928) had resigned after testifying before a House investigating committee on March 4 that he had accepted a broadcaster’s hospitality while on vacation in Florida (Doerfer to Eisenhower, Mar. 10, 1960, AWF/A). It was the second such investigation of inappropriate conduct since he had been appointed by Eisenhower to the commission in 1953 (see no. 219). On March 9 Eisenhower had called David W. Kendall, the President’s Special Counsel, to his office to discuss the allegations of influence peddling. The President had said that Doerfer could meet with him if he wished and "have his day in court," but if the story was true, then the staff should immediately ask Doerfer to resign. Referring back to his 1952 campaign promise "not only to avoid evil, but the appearance of evil," the President said that members of regulatory commissions are in "the most sensitive spots in government and should control their affairs in such a way as to be above suspicion" (Ann Whitman diary, Mar. 9, 1960, AWF/A: FCC). Ann Whitman, the President’s secretary, had written that the President had "literally demanded" that Doerfer resign, but the staff, in her opinion, took "its own sweet time" and the resignation did not take place until 48 hours later (Ann Whitman memorandum, Mar. 9, 1960, AWF/AWD). 2 Doerfer had told the investigating committee that a commissioner ought to be free to choose his friends and social activities as he saw fit (New York Times, Mar. 3, 4, 5, 10, and 11, 1960). In his letter of resignation he had said that a commissioner’s job required day-to-day contact with industry people, which did not imperil his integrity, or theirs, despite appearances. 3 Doerfer had served as a city attorney and chairman of the Wisconsin Public Service Commission before joining the FCC. His term was not due to expire until July 1, 1961. 4 Eisenhower would designate commission member Frederick W. Ford as chairman of the FCC and would appoint New Jersey lawyer Edward K. Mill, Jr., to replace Doerfer (New York Times, Mar. 11 and 24, 1960). Bibliographic reference to this document: Eisenhower, Dwight D. To John Charles Doerfer, 10 March 1960. In The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, ed. L. Galambos and D. van Ee, doc. 1451. 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/second-term/documents/1451.cfm <--PREV Doc #1450  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1452

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