Office of the Historian

235. Letter From the Chairman of the Planning Coordination Group (Rockefeller) to the Director of the Bureau of the Budget (Hughes)1

Washington, September 23, 1955.

Dear Rowland:

This is to confirm our conversation in which I recommended to you that the Planning Coordination Group be abolished, and that I resign as Vice Chairman of the Operations Coordinating Board. We are preparing an informal memorandum for you setting forth the problems that must be considered in regard to the functions of the Group.

I would suggest that December thirty-first be considered the termination date as this would give time to arrange for the orderly transfer of existing responsibilities and completion of the work in progress.

I am sorry to make this recommendation. However, it is clear after six months experience that this mechanism will not be able to accomplish the objectives set forth in the memorandum of March 3, 1955,2 which was approved by the President.

A meeting of the Planning Coordination Group members will be held next week. At that time I will discuss this recommendation with them.3

Sincerely,

Nelson A. Rockefeller
4
Special Assistant
  1. Source: National Archives, RG 59, S/S–NSC Files: Lot 66 D 148, PCG, Coordination of Psychological and other Warfare Activities. Confidential.↩
  2. Document 210.↩

  3. Rockefeller informed the PCG of his intention at the Group’s September 26 meeting. Item 4 of the minutes of this meeting reads:

    “The Chairman announced his conviction that after six months’ experience the PCG cannot discharge its functions and made a recommendation that it be abolished on December 31, 1955. The CIA representative indicated no objection to this recommendation and discussed briefly methods by which the coordination of major covert programs could be handled after the abolishment of PCG. The State and Defense representatives reserved position on the recommendation by the Chairman. Copies of a letter from the Chairman, PCG, to the Director, Bureau of the Budget, dated September 23, 1955, recommending the abolishment of PCG, were furnished the PCG members.” (Minutes of Third Meeting, September 26; National Archives, RG 59, S/S–NSC Files: Lot 66 D 148, PCG, Coordination of Psychological and other Warfare Activities.)

    ↩
  4. Printed from a copy that indicates Rockefeller signed the original.↩