TRUMAN SAYS CIA WAS DIVERTED FROM ITS ORIGINAL ASSIGNMENT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00149R000700640003-5
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 17, 2004
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: December 21, 1963
• Content Type: NSPR

DEC 2 1 a9b3
SP1USGU EM,MASS.
X
Date: t'i''t'ff + 1V V~1
Policy Masking Arm?
IM-rCUr f .7-UU t 47rS U f UUU4UUUJ-.J
Truman Says CIA Was' Dive'rted
I . think It is fairly obvious to coordinate and consolidate thel
that by and large it Presddent's1late, thus preventing the ad flow of kiformation so that it areas.
performance in office is as of-' lion of course of action noses- would reach the President withl. I never had any thought Ni It
fictive as the information he has nary to protect our security. no intervening steps in that pro} when I set up the CIA that It
pefte&
and the information he. seta. In this new kind of world In cess. It was to he directly under time che Inlet -led into oiler l
That is to say, that. agsuming which the United States occupies the President and sorely respon- time loa k and tlAfifier allca
bison- some of the rnmptirnlitxta;
.Fro m Its Uriginal Assignment,
By HARRY S TRUMAN w>ufd possess the capacity to
(Copyright, 1963, by Harry S Truman) work on the highest level of gov-
INDiWENDENCE,. Mo. (NANA)-I think it has become. ernment responsibility and to
have no involvements of any
necessary to take another look at the purpose and operations of kind of partisan palitics.
our Central Intelligence--CIA. At least, I would like to submit l i wanted to make sure that
here the original reason why I thought it necessary to organize CIA was not to be another over-
this agency during my administration, what I expected it to do lapping facility. Quite to the cat-
trar - it was Intended to pro-
and how it was to operate as an arm of the President. 1 tent It. As I visualized it, it. was
it knowledge of our history. a. the free nations. faulty ingot, in this wny, the Central Intel- we have exprr1rnced are in part.
sensitive understanding of our [nation, calciess intelligence. or ligence Agency would function attributable to the fact that.thia
institutlons. and an insight Into unintelligent reports on inlelli- as it source of continuing vital uiet inlelli~encc arm of this
q
ible conclu-
irations of the
intelli
nd
d
i
d
g
asp
gence, or un
un
n-
the nee
s a
Information. unedited an
removed
people, he needs to have avail- ions, can prove very damaging terpreted for the use of the tfrom its s hen wise[ to that at iis
able to him the most accurate to our policy-making decisions fro in ' nret Intended
President, thus enabling him to hci~ig inle?pretcd as s a a aytt111ol of
f
... .... as+y unnK
available to him al! the informs, ? treatment" of interpretations. ap+x+w+vu.ty fur
cosy sin wrm?r. If there is anviWeis[. the last thing we needed
and up to the minute informa- and to the conduct of foreign re- be informed on everything cur- sinister and i csterious foreign
[ion on what Is going on every- lations which, is the personal rat and without the usual pro-
Cold[
where in the world, and particu- responsibility of the President, cedural delays. intrigue - and a subject for
larly of the trends and devel- Therefore, I decided to set No President has the right towar enemy propaganda.
opments in all the danger spots up a special organization abdicate his responsibility for With all the no sctise' put OVA
In the contest between Past and charged with the collection of administering the operations of by Com mutnist propaganda
West. This is an immense task all intelligence reports from ew the Executive Branch of the gov- about "Ytuikee imperialism,"
and requires it special kind of er~? available source and to have emment. He can delegate but he,"exploitive capitnlisnt," "war,
an intelligence fricildty. ? those reports reach ^ me As
cannot, escape the personal re- mongering," "monopolists," is
11. islenci. 1?ep.artments of Stale. state and in its comprehensive ery, of Never rndtaR homeaork,jverting influence In the a4`fairxl
Defense. Commerce Interior and a volume As it was practical for ; it is the Presidency of the Unit-~ of other people.
ethers are constantly engaged in ore to make full use of it. But
ed States. I well knew the first Mmtxt
extencive information gathering the most important thing about
and have done excellent work. this move was to guard against. It is not only the loneliest job rary Director of the CIA, At{-
Rut their collective information the chance of intelligence being i In the world - It is one of con-1 miral Snucrs, and the Miler
reached the President All too used to influence or to lead the tinual soulsea'rching and of deep permanent Directors of the. CIA,
frequently In conflicting conclu-I President into vide decisions and sustained thought. A Presi-eneral Hoyt Vandenberg and
sions. Al times the intelligence, and I though it was necessary' dent is in the grip of events thattAllen Dulles. These were -men
that the President do his own never seem to let go. He is in of the hlghesteharacter, patriot-
reports tended to he slanted to
thinking and evaluating. Since every sense the captor of the ism and integrity - and I as-
conform to established poaitMna
of a given depatment. This be- President into unwise . decisions most exacting office in the gift some this is true of all those
comes confusing_ and what's making was his-then he had to of a free people.. But with all who continue in charge. +t
rl.?,. 1. t. - -As-find anr4 in., P,,t tharw are now settle
little use to a Pretsident in reacn- kept. from him for whatever
ing the right decisions. reason at the discretion of any
Cause of Pearl Harbor one department or agency, or
I have seen Instances where that unpleasant facts be kept
the Army. Navy and the State from him. There. are always
Department were duplicatidg those who would want to shield a
their Intelligence coverage- President from had news, or mis-
which resulted in inaccurate judgments to spare him from be-
conclusions. I have always felt trig "upset.' -
that the Pearl Harbor disaster Alen of Integrity
Was partly the result of that Now. this at best was it most
kind of intelligence iOn. It difficult requirement. to meet,
scented to me that much much of the and the only thing I could think
rea llchthe rthee fop levels gathered In taped ed to gov- about that would give it some
tea idI reasonable assurances of suc-
it was t-- not and in that t proper when form. In cess is that the people placed in
it was I int charge of this new Intelligence
er-
.cperaiing, ed it Is exhilarating. ll nbe answered..I, therefore, would
'I` is it n;; and l
thati like to see the CIA be restored
It is it moment in in history ry than to its original assignment as the
i anahies a broad man and comp to comprehensivemankivel intelligence arm of the Fresh
ver else it
h
t
h
w
a
e
at
way and In shape the course of dent , and t
the world towards a happier ex- can properly perform In that
istence and its hope for a life in special field -- and that Its. op -
peace. centional duties be terminated or
CIA "Diverted" properly used elsewhere.
For some time I have been - We have grown up As .a na-
distrurbed by the, way the CIA tion. respected for our free In-
has been diverted from its origi- st.itutions and for our ability to
nal assignment. It has become maintain it free and open so-j
an operational and at times a clety. There is some4hing atxrut
policy-making arm of the gov- the'wnythr. CIA has been.func
ernment. This has led to trouble ?trorritii; that is casting a shadow
and may have compounded our over our historic position and I
5ifjiG#AeRV)P b1 tY8 - to eot't?eot it.
critical times certain mil
tacit[,t ,v for the President were
bits of information c`!AOPW I~It mFeUtl ReWaaen t(W1q