https://declassified.library.utoronto.ca/files/original/98cff41fc2672561e2c206fff1e4e849.pdf 5fa92b672b50873ca065b93c2aa6c3e1 PDF Text Text yJlAZr DrarfnejrfcNscMsed under the Access to InformationActTacces a'information diyulgue ew^ufffafflsiir DEPARTMENT OF EXTERNAL 'sa ..M../X, Subject. Date AFFAIRS'. HL*?/*?. FORD DENOUNCES WEAPONS CRITICS i He Suggests They Advocate Unilateral Disarmament By JOHN W. FINNEY Special to The New York Times WASHINGTON, April 29— Tempers began fraying in the missile defense debate today as the House Republican leader, Gerald R, Ford, suggested that Congressional " critics of the Pentagon were advocating unilateral disarmament. Mr. Ford registered his complaint against critics of the antiballistic missile defense system and other weapons programs at the White House following the weekly meeting of Republican Congressional leaders Vith President Nixon. There was no indication that Mr. Ford, spoke with Presidential endorsement or that the White House was promoting the "unilateral disarmament" charge against its Congressional critics/ It is a line of argument that Defense Secretary Melvin R< Laird has broached but never pressed in his confrontations with critics on Cap; itol Hill. ,. From Mr. Ford's somewhat heated reaction on the White House steps, however, it became increasingly evident that political emotions were rising in the ABM debate, and that Republicans more and more were attempting to cast the issue in partisan terms. Ford Asks Question Asserting that he saw a "certain concert" in the Congressional opposition that has developed against the ABM, a new manned strategic bomber and chemical-biological warfare, Mr. Ford asked: "Where are they going to stop? Do'they want to unilaterally disarm America in the face of a serious threat from the Soviet Union?" He specifically referred to Representative Richard D. McCarthy, Democrat of upstate New York, who has been particularly critical of the Army's chemical - biological warfare program. Mr. McCarthy retorted that Mr. Ford's charge "smacks of my late and in some cases unlamented kin," referring to his "fellow clansman," the late Senator Joseph R. McCarthy, Republican of Wisconsin. Publication. HEW Mr. Ford's charge, however, could apply equally as well to some of his fellow Republicans, such as Senator John Sherman Cooper of Kentucky who a year ago initiated the Senate opposition to deployment of an ABM system. Questioned about Mr. Ford's statement, Senator Cooper said that he did not see how the missile critics could be accused of advocatingunilateraldisarmament in view of the "overwhelming superiority" that Mr. Larid and other Administration officials say the United States now possesses in nuclear arsenals. ' Mansfield Makes Rebuttal From the Democratic side of the aisle came the rebuttal by the Senate majority leader, Mike Mansfield, that "I know of no one, certainly not in the Congress, seeking to unilaterally disarm the country." "I hate to see the matter becoming involved in politics, because it's too big an issue to be used by either party," the Montana Democrat said. With his own Republican ranks deeply divided on the missile issue, the Senate minority leader, Everett McKinley Dirksen, declined to associate himself with Mr. Ford's complaint, although he did so in a manner that left himself free to revive the charge later in the Senate debate. Senate Dirksen predicted that the Administration's Safeguard missile program would win in the Senate by "a very comfortable margin" — a political appraisal that he said he had given the White House. But Senator Mansfield, a missile opponent, said that the vote outlook in the Senate was "50-50" — which at this point Is probably the more accurate .estimate. r With ' the" outcome in the Senate far from certain, there was no indication that the White" House was engaging in any political arm-twisting on fcdividual Senators. Sales Work Stepped Up But the White House obviously was stepping up its^sales work on Capitol Hill. Indicative was a luncheon briefing that Deputy Defense Secretary David Packard gave to the Senate Republican Policy committee, composed of all Repiibli can Senators. Mr. Packard opened the door to one possible concession by acknowledging that from the standpoint of national security it was not essential to buy land now for all 12 proposed sites in the Safeguard system. ._. YORK TIMES Under its "phased"" approach, the Administration is proposing; to construct only two bases — at Malstrom Air Force Base in Montana and Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. But in the legislation pending In the House and Senate, the Administration is asking for authorization and funds to purchase land for the 10 other bases planned for the cornbases planned for the completed system. Senator Cooper described the Packard briefing as "a factual, low-keyed presentation of the Administration's viewpoint." ?\ / 000232 �Document disclose! under tk&Access to tnUSrmatio&Act • ocument divulgue e i verjBOde/la'Lo/'suf Tames a Tinformation DEPARTMENT OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS /98MU Subject. Date EHkJ9/& Publication.. ENTER DEBATE OYER ABi Ally Is From M.I.T. His ally in the debate, Dr George W. Rathjens of the Massachusetts Institute of Tech nology, served as chief scientist of the Pentagon's Advanced Research Projects Agency and also served with the Institute for Defense Analyses. He argued that under Presi dent Nixons proposed Safe' guard System the protection of each Minuteman missile would cost $100-million. This would be a gross Waste of money, he said, for even without Safeguard no enemy could expect, simultaneously, to knock out all American land, sea and airbourne retaliatory capability. On the other side;Dr. Donald G. Brennan of the Hudson Institute in Harmon, N. Y., cited the danger of a "catalytic" attack. This would be launched, at a time ef csisis, by a submarine of a nation desiring to provoke nuclear war between two of its enemies. As an example, he cited the Cuban missile crisis, in which the United States told the Soviet Union that any missile atack from Cuba would bring retaliation against the Soviet homeland. Suppose, said Dr. Brennan, that a Chinese submarine had launched a group of missiles from near Cuba. "A MOTS Flan Opposed and Defende at .Ssssion of Society By WALTER SULLIVAN Special to The New York Times WASHINGTON, April 29— Debate on the proposed antiballistic missile system, wh'ich has been conducted largely in political forums, moved this evening to center stage of the American Physical Society. . Despite the nonpolitical tradition of the society, a session on "technical aspects" of the controversial system was put on the program of its spring meeting. The action was taken in response to agitation by a considerable portion of its membership—primarily the younger faction. Petitions opposing the antimissile system were circulated among those attening 'the sessions at the Sheraton-Park Hotel. An informal poll of the members on the subject is being conducted, and a "march on the White House was planned for noon tomorrow. The leaders of the march hoped to confer with Dr. Lee A. DuBridge, science adviser to President Nixon. Activists Rebuffed A rebuff to the activist element among the physicists was announced today. By a vote bf roughly 8,500 to 6,400, the members, in a mail ballot, rejected a move to shift the site of a meeting scheduled for next year in Chicago. The proposal for a shift was in protest against the behavior of the Chicago police during the Democratic convention last year. Ironically, the two opponents of the system in this evening's discussion were men who, at least ostensibly, have been close to the policy making aspects of the American defense effort. Dr. Hans Bethe of Cornell University, a Nobel laureate in physics, has for 12 years been on a White House panel concerned with decoys and other devices for evading missile defenses. His argument against such defenses is that they can always be overcome^ System Called Unnecessary Dr. Bethe conceded that in such a situation, a missile defense would be useful. He also said that "in theory" he did not oppose the development of a system to protect Minuteman sites, jsince it would not upset the ability of one side to deter attack by the other. However, he argued that such a costly system was unnecessary. The other supporter of the system was Dr. Eugene P. Wagner of Princeton University, another Nobel laureate who is an advocate of a large-scale bomb shelter . program. He quoted belligerent statements by Soviet military men as evidence that the Russians might attack, despite reasoning to the conrary. Furthermore, he spoke of-a'n"elaborate evacuation systeni"f to clear Soviet citizenry from the cities, arguing that only someone 'contemplating a first strike could profit by such a scheme. Dr. Bethe noted, however, that evacuation could not precede a sneak attack, since it r " ' M alert the other side. NEW YORK TIMES 00. .y.s 000233 �ent disclosetd undep-ftte^Accessfto htformatidn Act nt divulgue dn vertflwle'la Loi4ur Tacces a Tinformation D E P A R T M E N T OF E X T E R N A L AFFAIRS Subject tflMk Date April.30/6?v 7 £HURCHMENSCOEE: f MISSILE SYSTEM r Nixon Comment on Religion Assailed by ABM Critics President Nixon's religious views were attacked as "escapist" yesterday by a spokesman for a group* of liberal churchmen and theologians who announced their opposition to the Safeguard antiballistic missile system. Dr. John Bennett, president of the Union Theological Sem inary, said: "The kind of religion to which the President gives official sanction is somewhat on the escapist side." - Another spokesman, Rabbi Abraham Heschel. said, that practice of religion was tied inextricably to action on social issues. "It is a way of thinking," he said, "and not only a way to promise oneself comfort for eternity." .Rabbi Heschel, a professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary New York, ,said that if Mr. Nixon reversed his position and come out against the mis sile system he could make clear his stated belief that religion has relevence in national life. 26 Sign ABM Appeal . The comments were made at a news conference in the Roosevelt Hotel during which a statement was released announcing the formation of a National Religious Committee Opposing ABM. The statement was signed by 26 churchmen, including five Protestant bishops and two Roman Catholic auxiliary bishops. Mr. Nixon, a Quaker, has reintroduced Sunday morning interdenominational services to the ' White House. At last Sunday's service, he commented that one of the country's troubles was that the young shy away from religion be cause it is not considered "in." He; expressed the hope that young people could find in religion answers to their "crisis of the spirit." At yesterday's hews conference, Michael Novak, the Catholic theologian who is dean of the State University of New York at Old Westbury, said that young people were forced to! turn away from the established answers because they had come to feel that "there istio moral or visionary leadership given us by our Government." Mr. Novak doubted that clergymen of his persuasion would be invited to conduct the White House services. -The President "will invite only those who will bless what is going on," he said. Move for Undecided ..Publication .JEW.. YORK.. TIMS. The spokesmen for the group expressed the hope that an appeal against the missile system on religious grounds could have an important impact upon laymen who have been unable to make a decision on the issue. A Harris poll published yesterday in The New York Post asked 1,561 adults in a na• tional survey if they^ "tend to approve or disapprove of President Nixon's decision to go ahead with the anti-missile missile system." The results showed 47 per cent in favor of the system, 26 per ,cent opposed and 27 per cent undecided. In addition to Dr. Bennett, Rabbi Heschel and Mr. Novak, those signing and anti-ABM statement were: ' Dr. Reinhold Niebuhr, professor emeritus, Union Theological Seminary. Dr. Robert McAfee Brown, professor of religion, Stanford University. • Bishop John J. Dougherty, president, Seton Hall University. The Rev. Channing Phillips, Lincoln Memorial Congregational Temple, Washington, D. C. Dr. S. Loren Bowman, general secretary, General Brotherhood Board of the Church of the Brethren. Dr. Balfour Brickner, Union of American Hebrew Congregations. Dr.- J. Edward Carothers, associate general secretary, United Methodist Board of Missions. Dr.; Harvey Cox, professor of divinity, Harvard University. The Right Rev. William Crittenden, Episcopal Bishop of Erie, Pa. Bishop Charles F. Golden, bishop of the San Francisco area, United Methodist Church. Dr."-Dana McLean Greeley, President, Unitarian-Universalist Association of America. The Most Rev. Thomas Gumbleton, Auxiliary Bishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit. Dr. David R. Hunter, deputy general secretary, National Council of Churches. Bishop John Wesley Lord, Bishop of-the Washington Area, United Methodist Church. Dr^'Martin Marty,, professor of church history, University of Chicago. Bishop Vames K. Mathews, Bishop of* Boston Area, United Methodist Church.. Dr." Patrick McDermott, S.J., assistant director of the Division of World Justice and Peace, the U.S. Catholic Conference. The Right Rev. Paul'Moore, Suffra.: gen '3jishop,* the Episcopal Dioce"se df-Washington. . The Re.v. Richard John Neuhausb St. John the Evangelist Lutheran Church, New York, N. Y. Dr. Culbert G. Rutenber, president American Baptist Convention. The Most Rev. John Shannon, Auxiliary Bishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis. William P. Thompson, stated clerk of the General Assembly, the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S. The Rev. John Boyles, assistant _chaplain, Yale University. j- 000234 � Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context CDBM00239 Title A name given to the resource Transcript from NYT Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 4/29/1969 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived RG25-A-3-c, file 27-11-7, "DEFENCE - CONVENTIONAL AND NUCLEAR ARMAMENTS - ANTI - BALLISTIC MISSILES (ABM) = DEFENSE - ARMEMENTS DE TYPE CLASSIQUE ET NUCLEAIRE - ENGINS ANTIMISSILES (ABM)," vol. 10357, part 6, Library and Archives Canada, (LAC). Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource External Affairs Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Canadian Crown Subject The topic of the resource Anti-ballistic missiles Description An account of the resource Ford Denounces Weapons Critics Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Canada Declassified Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Language A language of the resource en