Clearing the Decks

Last week was one of those times in the war when the pattern of great affairs is revealed for a moment before it submerges again beneath the mass of everyday concerns.

With grand strategy fixed at Quebec, it was evident in the President's doings that he was now occupied with actual tactics, military, diplomatic and political. Foremost in the array of tactical problems before him was personnel in his top command. In this area he made changes and moves of transcendent importance. In certain of these changes Harry Hopkins' influence was plain.

George Marshall. Unannounced, but confirmed by highest sources, was the imminent appointment of General George Catlett Marshall as chief of Anglo-American forces in Europe.

What did this mean? It meant what General Marshall said at Omaha last week:

". . ..Preparations have now been practically completed. . . . Now at last we are ready to carry the war to the enemy, all overseas, thank God, with a power and force that we hope will bring this conflict to an early conclusion. But please remember that this phase is just about to begin. . . ."

In short, Allied strategy has been fixed: to defeat Germany first, then Japan. General Marshall's job in Washington is about over--training, preparations, the early logistics period of the war. A Deputy Chief of Staff could now manage the Washington end, permit the top U.S. general to apply himself to operations.

In view of this simple realism, the extravagant newspaper stories which attacked General Marshall's shift fell flat.

Averell Harriman. The President had decided on suave, handsome W. Averell Harriman as the new U.S. Ambassador to Russia, replacing gruff, blunt old Admiral William H. Standley, (TIME, Sept. 27). But it seemed probable that snow-haired Cordell Hull, if his health permits, would make the long trip to Moscow for the coming tripartite conference (see p. 36).

Edward Stettinius. The President, reshuffling drastically all along the line, now definitely dumped out Sumner Welles, who had resigned weeks ago (TIME, Sept. 6). In a move that surprised many he replaced him with Edward Reilly Stettinius, 42, ex-vice president of General Motors, ex-chairman of U.S. Steel and now ex-Lend-Lease Administrator. Cordell Hull himself, said Washington wise men, had asked for the steelman who looks like a tall Charlie Chaplin.

No "Dear Sumner" letter was published. The text of Welles's resignation was not released, a possible indication that it was too hot to handle. There was no hint of a new post for Welles. There was only Presidential politeness, and a regret that "the state of Mrs. Welles's health" made the resignation advisable. This refrigerated treatment, to the man who invented the Good Neighbor policy, by the man who adopted it, was unprecedented --and mysterious.

What did the appointments of Harriman and Stettinius mean?

Both are very close friends of Harry Hopkins, who exhibited them in Washington as New Deal-tamed capitalists, thus giving some luster to the bumbling Business Advisory Council--to counteract the steady attacks from most businessmen on the Roosevelt policies. Both are personally attractive, able administrators. Neither has a record of great creative achievement nor a reputation as a man of ideas. Ed Stettinius' record, indeed, in the early defense-production days, was so badly spotted that he was kicked upstairs to the check-signing job as Lend-Lease Administrator, (TIME, March 10, 1941, et seq.). Behind him, in OPM, he left 18,500 applications for priorities unacted on. But he has since impressed many with his careful administration of Lend-Lease.

To the Right. The President, moving steadily to the right as the U.S. moved to the right, was shoring up his administration with businessmen and conservatives, such as he had available. Although the views of Messrs. Harriman & Stettinius are more New Dealish than those of most U.S. industrialists, the President in 1944 will be able to point to them, as well as to Businessmen Frank Knox, Jesse Jones, Leo Crowley, James V. Forrestal, Bernard Baruch, Donald Nelson, Chester Bowles, Robert A. Lovett, as representatives in the administration of the business viewpoint. (To Conservatives he can point out Cordell Hull, Henry L. Stimson, the Southern Democrats--and he can always manage to get rid of New Dealers *Harry Hopkins.

Henry Wallace and Frances Perkins.

Leo Crowley. To the newly created Foreign Economic Administration the President appointed Leo Crowley. This, too had a special significance (see below).

Herbert Lehman. The President abolished Herbert H. Lehman's ten-month-old Office of Foreign Relief and Rehabilitation, made Lehman his own special assistant. The plan: to make Lehman relief chief of the United Nations.

Jimmy Byrnes. The President also set up a new joint Army & Navy production-survey committee, which henceforth will take all major military and production-supply problems directly to Jimmy Byrnes, Czar of the Office of War Mobilization. This meant: 1) a new further bypassing of WPB's ineffective boss Donald M. Nelson, who was speechmaking last week in London; 2) confirmation of Byrnes as the final authority on keying war production to civilian economy.

In all these moves the President moved with both the present and the future in mind--diplomatically toward an economic viewpoint in foreign affairs (Crowley, Stettinius, Harriman); militarily toward action (General Marshall); domestically toward conservatism, sensible production-scheduling, less red tape.

It had been a week of hard work, high doings and high hopes. Now the decks were cleared for action.

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