Foreign Relations of the United States, 1961–1963, Volume IX, Foreign Economic Policy

257. Memorandum From Secretary of the Treasury Dillon to President Kennedy⁰

Washington, January 24, 1963.

SUBJECT

• Suggested Course of Action to Implement the Export Expansion Program

The program submitted to you by the Cabinet Committee involves a modest increase in expenditures, approximately $11 million, for the purpose of improving our export expansion program. These funds are contained in the budget requests which you have forwarded to the Congress. The chief difficulty in obtaining acceptance of this program will be with Congressman Rooney who has been consistently averse to any personnel increases in non-political activities abroad. Without some special effort on your part it is certain that he will sabotage this program.

I recommend that you arrange to see Mr. Rooney at the White House on this matter at an early date, either alone, or with Secretary Hodges and me present. The object would be to point out to him the extreme gravity of our balance of payments situation and the contribution which can and must be made by expanded exports. This being the case, any doubts about the efficacy of a modest program such as has been recommended must, in the overall national interest, be resolved in favor of acceptance of the full program.

I would also suggest that you formally approve the report of the Cabinet Committee on Export Promotion, and forward it to Commerce, State and the Export-Import Bank for prompt implementation preferably accompanied by a brief memorandum indicating your personal interest in export expansion.¹ It could then be transmitted to the Congress in the most appropriate fashion for use in the appropriation hearings, stressing that it has your full support, as well as that of the entire Cabinet Committee on Balance of Payments. This should give Mr. Rooney an adequate excuse to reverse his long-standing position on this matter.

Since appropriation hearings will start very soon it would be helpful if you could see Mr. Rooney some time next week.

Douglas Dillon²

0. Source: Kennedy Library, Dillon Papers, Memoranda to the President. No classification marking.
1. On January 29, President Kennedy sent a brief memorandum to Secretary Dillon and all the members of Cabinet Committee on Balance of Payments, informing them that he had read the memorandum on the Export Expansion Program and that “it has my full support and I would like you to give top priority to carrying out its recommendations, in view of the importance of exports to our balance of payments.” (Kennedy Library, Herter Papers, Balance of Payments, 1963)
2. Printed from a copy that indicates Dillon signed the original.