Correspondents' Correspondence

...Coreespondents' Correspondence BRIEF TAKEOUTS OF MORE THAN PERSONAL INTEREST FROM LETTERS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS RECEIVED BY THE EDITORS McNamara's Bank Washington-Some observers here are beginning to wonder if Robert S McNamara is not handling the worldwide struggle for economic development about the same way he handled the war m Vietnam In fact, this disturbing thought is being expressed with increasing frequency, even by some of McNamara's subordinates at the World Bank The Bank has grown impressively since 1968, when Lyndon Johnson moved McNamara out of the Pentagon and into the Bank's presidency In an address to his Board of Governors last fall, McNamara poited with pride to an unprecedented expansion loans up 87 per cent, borrowing up 55 per cent, profits up $172 million But during that one year the professional staff doubled, and the paperwork is said to have multiplied astronomically To continue this enormous growth, McNamara seems to be pushing dollars like Fords (it is tempting to say Edsels, but he reportedly advised against that bust when he was a Ford executive) Bank divisions now have quotas of money to dispense and deadlines by which to dispense it There is, moreover, a tendency to concentrate on the issues currently fashionable in the United States Urbanization, pollution and ecology are all enjoying a new emphasis, large loans for population control have been made to small countries In some instances the Bank has been in the odd position of selling a loan to a reluctant country The reluctance may be due to domestic politics, to disapproval of the particular project, to fear of being overburdened by debt, or to sheer, cussed self-reliance Whatever the reason, the job of the Bank is to loan money, and so it does Like the U S Agency for International Development (aid), the Bank has even been accused of creating "super ministries" that virtually take over segments of a supposedly independent government Should these trends continue, undeveloped countries may find themselves faced with some unpleasant realities Hastily drawn up, fiscally unsound projects may flounder Debt repayment may eat up all hardcurrency earnings from both trade and aid And then, touring dignitaries may be greeted by signs reading, "World Bank Go Home " Back home, both hawks and doves are beginning to reappraise McNamara's performance as Secretary of Defense A straw m the wind is that one of Washington's senior correspondents is at work on a book that will blame the former Pentagon chief for most of the mistakes made m Vietnam According to this rather widely held theory, President Johnson had final responsibility, but for several years he was so awed by McNamara's energy and intellect that he followed his advice blindly Through it all, however, no one has doubted McNamara's good intentions Nor could anyone doubt his determination to move mountains to improve man's lot Yet as Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn observed in Cancer Ward "Everyone who acts breeds both good and evil With some it's more good, with others more evil"-Walter R Gordon Chinese Phantom Tale Taipei-the recent U S congressional decision not to give Taiwan a $54 5 million gift squadron of Phantom jet fighter-bombers was attributed by pundits here to efforts of the Senate's "anti-China lobby " Senator J William Fulbright was cast as the heavy in this piece, although Harvard Professor John King Fairbank retains top ranking in Taipei as chief Nationalist China hater "Free China got caught in the bind of U S congressional politics," lamented one editorial Senators siding with Fulbright did not constitute a majority, it added, but managed to sway enough votes to block the 1970 foreign aid bill amended to channel the highly sophisticated aircraft here Taiwan still will receive 20 F-104 Starfighters the Defense Department had quietly agreed to release from "excess stocks " And the editorial predicted that the squadron of Phantoms would find its way to Nationalist air bases "sooner or later, too " The funny thing, of course, is that it probably will The Defense Department has the authority to designate any equipment as excess without congressional approval Such designation and transfer of U S military hardware normally is completed with no fuss Were it not for the congressional flap over the Phantoms-an appropriation request apparently not initiated at Administration behest-the Starfighter turnover would not have caused much stir Taiwan's Nationalist regime still has many friends in Washington to help government officials determine the allocation of excess stocks, which are not counted in foreign aid or military assistance appropriations Moreover, as the Taipei editorial noted "To change the view of Senator Fulbright is not to be expected Not all the other senators who voted with him feel that strongly, however"-Arnold Abrams Taking on the Pentagon Washington-the fledgling congressional coalition that fought the abm and other Defense Department proposals last year is regrouping Its initial effort, like a baby's first attempt at walking, was useful more for its confidence-building than for its modest successes Having gained experience from past battles, the coalition promises to launch a stronger operation this session President Nixon's surprise decision to expand the abm system, announced almost as an afterthought at a press conference, gave new impetus to the loosely organized group, but it intends to become involved in many other issues as well Plans are under way to challenge such Defense Department favorites as the Main battle tank, the Poseidon missile, and Minuteman III In addition, there will be scholarly evaluations of the assumptions of the entire U S defense posture Although the coalition receives its greatest strength from liberal Democrats, Republicans are conspicuously involved, too, and it would not be at all surprising to see several economy-minded conservatives joining the group A staff member of one key Democratic senator known for his economy-m-government outlook emphasized the potential breadth of the coalition by saying at a meeting a few weeks ago "I think it should be made clear that we are not trying to cut down every defense budget item m the book Maybe there are some that should be strengthened, and more money spent I myself think we're wasting a lot of money on this worldwide PX system, and that we should be spending more on the infantry " If "moving toward world peace" is too lofty a concept for most congressmen, economic restraint and technical rehability are something they can grasp A recent memo from one senatorial sponsor said "It is our general belief that the proposed defense budget must be examined with regard to national security needs and fiscal responsibility It might be appropriate to mesh last year's analysis of specific weapons systems into a broad overview of our defense posture, including various options m terms of policies, weapons, and force levels " Leaders of the congressional movement are attempting to farm out specific budgetary studies, which they hope will form the basis of a unified study of defense expenditures "This would result," the memo said, "in a cogent statement of a range of alternatives in defense spending, with various options evenly weighed " Detailed examination of the country's basic defense assumptions is also to be made, and could produce the most interesting findings of all This will include an analysis of the old "two-and-a-half war" concept, envisaging simultaneous engagement m two substantial wars and one bushfire conflict Other questions up for consideration are What key factors determine the number of land forces required'' What determines the type of land combat forces needed' How should the units be designed9 The senators, congressmen, and young aides who constitute the coalition will be taking on a vast bureaucracy which has to date been pretty well able to bluster through and get whatever is wanted They are optimistic, however, feeling this may not be the Pentagon's year-Carrol W Cagle Vietnam Timetable Washington-New York's Senator Charles Goodell, who is spending much of his time these days mending fences in anticipation of the upcoming gop primaries, is finding unexpected support for his Vietnam stand m unlikely places Sharply criticized by Governor Nelson Rockefeller when he introduced his bill in the Senate demanding that a specific timetable be drawn up for the withdrawal of all American troops from the Vietnam conflict, he was prepared for further hostile reactions to the proposal m conservative upstate precincts Instead, it is receiving warmer praise and support than almost any other issue he has raised On Capitol Hill, meanwhile, a similar situation has been developing The Goodell bill is virtually without backing m the Senate At the moment, in fact, there is serious doubt that it could win even a handful of votes But the heaviest flow of mail arriving at Senate offices these days is m support of a Vietnam timetable, and the bulk of it is from rural and suburban areas All of which is giving many Senators second thoughts on what the silent majority is really thinking-B S J...