Editorial Note
On December 16, 1950, President Truman issued Proclamation 2914: Proclaiming the Existence of a National Emergency. Stating that “the increasing menace of the forces of communist aggression requires that the national defense of the United States be strengthened as speedily as possible,” the President summoned “all citizens [Page 478] to make a united effort for the security and well-being of our beloved country and to place its needs foremost in thought and action that the full moral and material strength of the Nation may be readied for the dangers which threaten us.” For the full text of Proclamation 2914, see Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Harry S. Truman, 1950, pages 746–747. Also on December 16, the President issued Executive Order 10193, creating the Office of Defense Mobilization which would exercise general authority over production, procurement, and manpower programs. Charles E. Wilson, President of General Electric, was appointed Director of the new agency.
The following events immediately preceded the Proclamation of a National Emergency. On the morning of December 13, President Truman and the Secretaries of State and Defense met with a bipartisan delegation of Congressional leaders to discuss the national emergency. The statement released by the White House following the meeting stated that there had been unanimous support for the rapid expansion of national military strength and that the declaration of a national emergency had been considered; for text, see ibid., page 741. On the evening of December 15, the President delivered a radio and television address to the American people, indicating his intention to declare a national emergency on the following day and outlining the reasons for that action; for text of the address, see ibid., pages 741–746.