TESTIMONY ON NATIONAL SECURITY ACT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00610R000100090019-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 17, 2002
• Sequence Number: 19
• Publication Date: April 3, 1947
• Content Type: MEMO

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TO The Director.
FROM Chief, Legislative Liaison Division.
SUBJECT: Testimony on National Security Art.
DATE: 3 April 1947.
1. Your attention is drawn to the following quotation from the
Washington Merry-Go-Round by Drew Pearson this morning:
"The White House is taking no chances that Government witnesses
who testify at the Senate hearings on the armed forces merger bill
will talk out of turn. Secretary of War Patterson and Secretary of
Navy Forrestal were required to submit their prepared testimony to
the White House before testifying on Capitol Hill and lesser fry
officials are doing the same."
2. While this column ryas not directly cited, both Admiral
Sherman and General Norstad were asked, during their testimorCr before
the Senate Armed Services Committee this morning, whether the above
was the case.
3. Admiral Sherman stated that hirepared statement ryas
delivered exactly as he wrote it, but tt he understood that copies
had been furnished in advance to the Secretary of the Navy, the Mute
House and the Bureau of the Budget.
4. In answer to the same question, General Norstad stated that
his statement was exactly as he had written it, and that no one out-
side the War Department had had a hand in it or had made any sugges-
tions. He stated, however, that he understood that an information
copy had been supplied the White House.
5. It is suggested that you might explore informally the
question of whether your statement must be cleared by anyone prior
to its delivery.
STAT
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 DIREECZ
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Mr Chairman and ;embers of the Committee: I y appearance before your
Commi..tte'this morning is in support of Section 202 of the proposed National
Security Action of 1947. This section of the bill provides the United -States,
for the first time in our history, with a central intelligence service created
by act of Congress. rThe O.S.S. -- which was in some measure a move toward the
centralization of intelligence -- was an emergency creation of the war and came
to an end shortly after the fighting ceased.) The Central Intelligence 4froup,
which I have the privilege of heading, has been in existence since January
1946, by authority of an Executive Directive of the President.
Since the day that the Central Intelligence Group was established, the
Directors of Central Intelligence - my predecessor and I -- have looked for 'arc
to the time when we could come before the Congress, and request that we be
given permanent status thru legislative enactment. That day has arrived. I
sincerely urge adoption of this section of the bill. The United Stater
must have an intelligence service second to none. It must never again be
stunned by surprise attack. To assure against such disaster, we :must .Lave
full knowledge of the intentions and capabilities of the other nations and
explosive areas of the world.
I Imow that you gentlemen understand that the nature of the intelligence
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