STATEMENT OF MRS. WILLIAM D. LEETCH, NATIONAL-DEFENSE CHAIRMAN, NATIONAL SOCIETY OF NEW ENGLAND WOMEN AND THE NATIONAL SOCIETY, WOMEN DESCENDANTS OF THE ANCIENT AND HONORABLE ARTILLERY COMPANY, AND SECRETARY OF THE AMERICAN COALITION OF PATRIOTIC AND CIVIC ORGANIZATIONS

Mrs. LEETCH. I will be happy.

Thank you for your courtesy in hearing this short statement and permitting me to bring you the resolutions of the American Coalition of 90 patriotic and civic societites, together with the resolutions of the National Society of New England Women and the National Society, Women Descendants of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery company. That names makes some people smile, but the men were the first defenders of this country in Boston, Mass., in 1634.

At its annual convention in Washington, D. C., on January 29, 1953, the American Coalition adopted the following resolution entitled "Treatymaking Power and Executive Agreements":

Whereas the American Coalition at its annual convention in Washington, D. C., January 24, 1952, resolved that the Constitution of the United States be amended to strengthen provisions governing the treatymaking power and to define further limitations on executive agreements; and

Whereas the American Bar Association has, after exhaustive studies by its standing committee on peace and law, published suggested proposals for such constitutional amendments: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the American Coalition, in annual convention assembled, supports the principle involved in Senator John W. Bricker's Senate Joint Resolution No. 1, introduced at the 1st session of the 83d Congress January 7 (legislative day, January 6) 1953, which carried with it the endorsement of 55 United States Senators.

The American Coalition also adopted a resolution opposing world government as follows:

Whereas numerous individuals, selected groups, and organizations are vigorously promoting the idea of ultimate world government comprised of all the nations of the world; and

Whereas full participation in such a governing body would mean the relinquishment of many of the sovereign rights which are dear to the American people and protect their liberties: Therefore be it

Resolved, That, while the American Coalition is strongly in favor of friendly and constructive cooperation with foreign nations, nevertheless it opposes any and all attempts to establish a world government.

The other two societies named have consistently opposed any form of world government in resolutions adopted in annual conventions for several years.

The National Society of New England Women adopted the following resolution to limit the treaty-making power (May 14, 1952):

Whereas the United States Constitution provides that treaties shall become the supreme law of the land when ratified by two-thirds of the Senators present; Whereas proponents of world government are using this clause of the Constitution (art. VI, clause 2) in an effort to supersede national and State laws by ratification of international treaties: Therefore be it

Resolved, That the 39th Congress of the National Society of New England Women urge the adoption of Senate Joint Resolution 130, introduced by Senator Bricker and 58 other Senators, and House Joint Resolution 325, introduced by Mr. McDonough, to protect the rights of citizens, the laws of the several States, and of the United States and urge the respective Judiciary Committees to report these resolutions out of committee favorably. (These are not companion resolutions, but the intent is the same.)

The National Society, Women Descendants of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company in annual meeting April 8, 1952, opposed the proposed covenant on human rights because, among other things, "such international covenant would become a treaty and thus supreme law of this land, superseding our Bill of Rights," and the society resolved that (it) reaffirmed its faith in the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights for the security, defense, and preservation of this Republic and its sovereign people.

It is apparent that the members of all these societies are greatly exercised over the abuse of the treaty-making power.

They are grateful to Senator Bricker and his associates for the opportunity to support him in the common interest of us all for the survival and continuation of this Republic as we have known it.

Perhaps in part as a result of the educational campaign conducted by the patriotic societies, 18 of the 23 States that originally adopted world-government resolutions have rescinded them. It would seem fair to say that when our people understood the loss of freedom of action and the dangers to their personal liberties involved, the proposition was rejected.

But now comes the oblique manner of accomplishing the same thing through the abuse of the treaty-making power through the United Nations which was described by Mrs. Roosevelt as the "incubator for world government." (January 29, 1948.) Dr. Clyde Eagleton, of New York University, testified on February 13, 1950:

I would like to start with the belief that everyone who is interested in strengthening the United Nations believes in world government.

Assertions like these and many others disclose the intentions of many U. N. backers, and completely alienate those hopefuls who thought the U. N. might do some good, but who are unwilling to surrender the right to be the arbiter of our own destiny to any international organization or foreign country. Our sons are paying in blood in Korea now because we are prohibited from resolving this tragedy in the interest of the United States of America. As U. N. tragic failures mount, advocates clamor for a larger and more grandiose edifice for peace built upon the same old sand foundation.

We are grateful to Mr. Frank Holman, past president of the American Bar Association, for his years of study and leadership in this field. We know that constitutional lawyers will arrive at the proper language to (1) prevent any international treaty or executive agreement from superseding domestic law and to provide (2) as set forth in section 2 that no foreign nation or group of foreign nations shall control the domestic affairs of this country or the sovereign rights of its citizens, and (3) that the treaty or executive agreement must be implemented-gentlemen, I give you that word in section 3 gratuitously-must be implemented by appropriate legislation by the Congress.

The growth of Executive power is always at the expense of legislative power. We urge that the Congress take back some of the power it has delegated to the Executive and suggest (4) that any treaty, convention, agreement, or exchange of notes containing a contractual obligation of the United States should be subject to ratification by the majority of the Senate body. I am aware of the twothirds present provision, but while amending, this is an important

point to cover. We see the danger when 2 conventions and 1 treaty can be approved by the presiding officer and 1 member, as occurred June 14, 1952. The people are everincreasingly vigilant against such ruthless disregard of constitutional processes. These also include the many votes when billions of dollars of taxpayers' money is spent and the confirmation of a High Commissioner for Western Germany is named with 4 votes for and 2 against.

The people repudiated the so-called Fair Deal and look to this administration for leadership in integrity and regard for constitutional processes.

Mr. Chairman, just as a prediction from a lay person, if this administration does not provide that leadership, I think you will not be here 4 years from now.

Thank you very much.

The CHAIRMAN. Senator Watkins, any questions?

Senator WATKINS. No.

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Holman, do you desire to ask any questions? Mr. HOLMAN. No.

The CHAIRMAN. I will call Mrs. Ernest Howard.

State your name and address, please, and whom you are representing.

STATEMENT OF MRS. ERNEST W. HOWARD, WASHINGTON, D. C., LEGISLATIVE CHAIRMAN, THE WHEEL OF PROGRESS

Mrs. HOWARD. I am Mrs. Ernest W. Howard. I am representing today as legislative chairman the Wheel of Progress, which is a patriotic organization made up of lawyers, patriotic women, and it is 25 years old.

Now, we are affiliated with what is known as the Women's Patriotic Conference on National Defense, Inc. That is an autonomous body that is made up of 38 organizations. We have just come out of convention. Each affiliated organization or participating organization may go back and then speak for their own organizations on the different resolutions, all participating in the conference.

As the resolutions chairman of that conference, I am prepared today to give you just off the press our resolutions.

In our resolutions at that conference I think you will be pleased to know, Mr. Chairman, that we reaffirmed in that conference our American principles:

Whereas the United States of America was founded as a Christian country by men and women seeking freedom from oppression in their native countries in Europe, and seeking freedom to worship God; and

Whereas past events have shown the prevalence of organized crime in our country and have shown also the lack of moral integrity in high places: Therefore be it

Resolved, That the Twenty-seventh Women's Patriotic Conference on National Defense pledges itself to devote its every effort to furthering a return to the vision and ideals of our forefathers-courage, integrity, self-reliance, and faith in God.

Now, our resolutions-one opposing world government, you will find that some of these when you read the resolutions will sound as if they are repetitious. You will find though in going through them that they are not, but we planned and did so deliberately. We wanted to

say and to give you and to our country and to the world, as far as that is concerned, our definite opposition to world government in any form or shape whatsoever and so we have said so in many different resolutions. We have the one on world government, a constitutional amendment to limit and define treaty-making powers of Congress.

Whereas, unlike other nations, the United States Constitution makes foreign treaties become the supreme law of this land, thus superseding the Constitution and all Federal and State laws; and

Whereas Frank E. Holman, ex-president of the American Bar Association, in his address to the Veterans of Foreign Wars at Yakima, Wash., July 10, 1952, explained why our constitutional liberties are endanger: Therefore be it

Resolved, That the Twenty-seventh Women's Patriotic Conference on National Defense urges passage of a constitutional amendment to do at least three things, as suggested by Mr. Holman :

1. It should provide that no treaty is valid which conflicts with the Constitution of the United States. (In other words, our treaties should be subject to the Constitution.)

2. No treaty is to be effective unil implemented by legislation. (This merely puts the United States on a par with other nations as to initial effect of a treaty.) 3. No such legislation shall be valid if contrary to or in excess of the powers delegated to the Congress by the Constitution.

Resolution No. 34 is an amendment to the Constitution on treaty and/or agreements:

Resolved, That the Twenty-seventh Women's Patriotic Conference on National Defense expresses its strongest opposition to the adoption of any further treaties by the Senate and to the adoption of any further agrements of any kind with a foreign power or group of foreign powers by the President, or by any department, or agency or by diplomatic notes of our Government unless such treaty or agreement contains reservations unmistakably providing that our own State and National laws shall prevail in case of conflict with the terms of any such treaty or agreement; and be it further

Resolved, That we most strongly support an amendment to the Constitution of the United States which would prevent any treaty, convention, or executive agreement or diplomatic notes from authorizing United States participation in any world or regional governments, and which would prevent also the impairment by any treaty, executive agreement, or diplomatic notes of any rights or freedoms specified in the Constitution of the United States.

We have a resolution of opposition to converting military Atlantic Pact into a political Atlantic Union or any other form of world government:

Whereas most governments have unlimited powers, unlike the United States Constitution, which limits the powers of government and guarantees the liberties of its citizens; and

Whereas an Atlantic Union supergovernment without these powers-

1. Authority and ability to use force;

2. Power to write and enforce laws;

3. Control of money;

4. Power to tax in order to raise money could not function: and

Whereas it is the function of government to write laws and to exercise the authority to interpret and enforce laws; and

Whereas a good law can, by arbitrary and brutal, unjust enforcement become tyrannical and evil; and

Whereas an Atlantic Union constitution, even though it copies the exact wording of our United States Constitution, would be interpreted and enforced by foreigners, as the United States would be hopelessly outnumbered:

United States and its possessions, 155,694,426;

Atlantic Pact nations and possessions, many in Asia and Africa, approximate figures from World Almanac, 1952, 397,000,000-Great Britain and possessions figure of 140,000,000 included in the 397,000,000 does not include the Dominions of Australia, New Zealand, and the Union of South Africa; and

Whereas under an Atlantic Union supergovernment, taxes, fines, exile, imprisonment, death penalties, and all our liberties would be beyond the jurisdiction and

therefore beyond the protection of our Federal Constitution, as the Constitution of the United States only among the nations contains the unique provision which makes all treaties ratified by the United States Senate become the supreme law of the land: Therefore be it

Resolved, That the Twenty-seventh Women's Patriotic Conference on National Defense reminds Congress and our citizens that such schemes should be denounced as treasonable and subtle attempts to persuade our great country to commit national suicide by destroying our national independence as declared in 1776.

Resolution No. 24, United States independence in danger:

Whereas events have justified the solemn warnings of the American Bar Association in their resolution of September 20, 1950, which stated that the Draft International Covenant on Human Rights was not in such form or of such content as to be suitable for approval and adoption by the General Assembly of the United Nations or for ratification by the United States of America; and

Whereas the dangers of treaty law were clearly defined by Frank E. Holman, ex-president of the American Bar Association, in his address to Veterans of Foreign Wars at Yakima, Wash., July 10, 1952; and

Whereas article I of the North Atlantic Treaty pledges its members "to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force in any manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations," thus becoming in effect a supplementing arm of the United Nations and a possible repetition of the present situation in Korea; and

Whereas the text of the Japanese treaty recently ratified puts the United States within the orbit of the objectives of the International Covenant on Human Rights and also the Potsdam agreements and thus within the jurisdiction of the United Nations regarding those programs; and

Whereas in the text of the Japanese treaty the United States agrees to accept the decisions of the International Court of Justice regarding interpretation of this treaty; and

Whereas future decisions of the International Court of Justice and future decisions of the United Nations could accuse the United States of breaking this treaty or any other treaty or convention and acting in such a manner as to be a threat to international peace and this could lead to direct action of United Nations armed forces against persons and property of the United States, such military action to be called an international police action to preserve world peace; and

Whereas in several States recent manueuvers of the United States Army, acting as agents of the armed forces of the United Nations have forcibly captured and imprisoned local mayors and other public officials and have taken over utilities, schools, and newspapers for the duration of such maneuvers (see Watertown, N. Y., Daily Times, August 21, 1952); and

Whereas such practice maneuvers would be an extravagance and an outrageous invasion of the military into the lives and liberties of our citizens unless such military maneuvers were a part of a plan not yet disclosed to the American people: Therefore be it

Resolved, That the 27th Women's Patriotic Conference on National Defense encourages a great educational campaign to acquaint all citizens with these alarming facts, such information now being imperative, since our continuing participation endangers our lives, our laws, and our liberties as the United States Constitution expressly states foreign treaties become the supreme law of the land. We have our resolution 13: Genocide Convention (reaffirmation). Whereas the Senate of the United States is asked to ratify as a treaty the so-called Genocide Convention designed to surrender to the United Nations, a foreign-controlled international body, the power to define and punish the newly conceived crime of genocide if and when the same shall be committed by the citizens of member nations of the United Nations, including citizens of the United States of America, without regard to the country or jurisdiction wherein such offense shall be committed; and

Whereas under the Constitution of the United States treaties have the unique position of “supreme law of the land" that they have in no other country; and Whereas the said Genocide Convention does not relate to any matters which under international law, have been or are ordinarily made the subject of the