66. Memorandum for the Record0
SUBJECT
- President’s Meeting with JCS on January 3, 1962
At the meeting with the President, besides the Joint Chiefs of Staff (with General Smith in place of General LeMay), were the Vice President, [Page 233] Secretary McNamara, General Taylor, General Harkins, and myself. There follows a summary of the discussion which took place during the meeting:
DOD Budget for FY ‘63
At the suggestion of Mr. McNamara each of the Chiefs commented on the results of the budget review and the budget itself as to be presented to Congress.
General Lemnitzer declared himself generally well satisfied with the military budget with one reservation, namely, the reduction in the proposed appropriation for military assistance from $1.7 to $1.5 billion. At the President’s suggestion General Taylor telephoned Budget Director Bell on this point and reported that Mr. Bell had personally reviewed the MAP budget, particularly with reference to uncommitted and unspent funds, anticipated recoupments from changes in programs, and other aspects of the MAP financial situation, and was sure that the reduction of $200 million in NOA for MAP in 1963 could be made without any reductions in planned programs.
In the course of the discussion on MAP the President emphasized the importance of military assistance to Latin American countries and the care that should be taken in selecting Military Attaches and MAAG’s in that area.
General Decker stated that the Army had been “done well by” in the proposed budget although he considered the personnel ceiling fairly tight and regretted that the PEMA appropriation would not be larger. He noted the Army’s position as favoring the earliest possible go-ahead on Nike-Zeus production. He agreed that the program for reorienting the Reserves had military advantages but pointed out the difficulties that would be encountered in reducing the number of National Guard or Reserve Divisions. In response to the President’s inquiry, General Decker discussed the problems related to the early release of the 32d Infantry and 49th Armored National Guard divisions.
General Smith expressed the reservation of the Air Force on the long-range plans for strategic forces which he believes will result in dangerously lowering in the time period after 1965 the present U.S. nuclear superiority in strategic weapons. In particular, he made the point that in FY ‘63 an additional 100 hardened and dispersed Minutemen should be funded1 plus some $95 million new obligational authority for long-lead time construction for sites for missiles that would be ordered in future years, and the further point that at the very least the B-70 development [Page 234] should be permitted to proceed immediately on a full weapon system basis.
In commenting on General Smith’s statement the President said that he would be happy to hear General LeMay’s presentation on the subject of the strategic force structure, but he pointed out that the Air Force should be prepared to support its position by showing how additional strategic forces would improve the overall military posture of the U.S. vs. the USSR. He and Mr. McNamara made it clear that the decision on strategic force levels was not dictated by availability of funds or other budgetary considerations.
General Smith expressed the gratification of the Air Force that the new budget would provide it with five more fighter wings and significant increases in airlift capacity.
On the subject of overseas dependents both the President and Mr. McNamara stressed the significance of the balance of payments problem and the alternatives which the U.S. faces if military contributions to the current balance of payments deficit were not reduced.
Admiral Anderson said that the new budget will support a “better Navy” and that the Navy can “live with the budget” although maintenance and personnel funds will continue to be tight. He also stated the case for the new carrier proposed in the budget and summarized the reasons for accepting conventional rather than nuclear propulsion for the carrier. Admiral Anderson commented on the shortage of military construction funds and the consequent adverse impact on shore stations. He also discussed the problem presented by the recent expansion of 40 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) ships and 18 ASW squadrons which are not provided for in the 1963 budget.
General Shoup stated that the current budget had been better prepared than any previous military financial program he had witnessed in the last seven years. He expressed his concern which Mr. McNamara and General Lemnitzer shared, over the importance of proof-testing new weapons (including warheads).2
[Here follows discussion of Vietnam; see Foreign Relations, 1961–1963, vol. II, Document 2.]
- Source: National Defense University, Taylor Papers, T-138-69. Top Secret. Drafted by Gilpatric on January 9.↩
- That is, 100 in addition to the 200 for which the administration had decided to request funding in FY 1963.↩
- In a memorandum for record of the White House daily staff meeting on January 5, 1962, Ewell stated that he briefed the group on the Palm Beach conferences. “I deliberately told them about Shoup’s comments on not knowing whether missiles would work, and added that this was kicked around the table a bit and there was general agreement that there would be some systems tests in the new testing program.” (National Defense University, Taylor Papers, Daily Staff Meetings Jan-Apr 62)↩
- Printed from a copy that indicates Gilpatric signed the original.↩