711.652/143: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Italy (Phillips)
3. Your 522 and 523 of December 18, and Department’s 196 of December 18. Aside from the Constitutional question presented, which is still being studied, we have concluded that it would be inexpedient from a domestic standpoint to attempt at this time to enter into second modus vivendi which would include other articles of the proposed commercial treaty. The publicity attending the signing of the temporary arrangement of December 16, 1937, indicated that the arrangement was intended to bridge the gap between the termination of the old treaty and the signing of the proposed new treaty. If a second temporary arrangement embodying proposed treaty articles should be signed within the near future, we might be placed in an awkward position to explain the reasons therefor and there may be opposition in the Senate on the ground that we were attempting to accomplish by executive agreement that which, on the face of the record, was originally intended to be accomplished by treaty.