February 6, 1973
Page 3507
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, I am honored to join my distinguished colleagues from Missouri in paying tribute to President Harry Truman, one of the truly great statesmen of our time and a man revered and liked by all Americans.
Harry S Truman was an uncomplicated man – a plain-talking, unaffected man faced with some of the most complex problems of 20th century America. He met the problems head on, developing in the process a foreign policy which still shapes America's thinking abroad, and offering a domestic program which formed the basis for progressive legislation in the postwar era.
Truman served ably and effectively in this body for 10 years – gaining stature as a watchdog over wastefulness in military spending. He did not seek the Vice-Presidency, and when he was nominated and then elected, he mourned–
I was getting along fine until I stuck my neck out too far and got too famous – and then they made me V.P. and now I can't do anything.
Eighty-three days later, with the death of Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman was President of the United States. He said:
I felt like the moon, the stars and all the planets had fallen on me.
But although he assumed the Presidency with the barest of preparation, President Truman immediately established a pattern of courage, directness of judgment, decisiveness, and self-confidence that became hallmarks of the Truman Presidency.
When Russia, our ally, became our adversary in the cold war, Truman found a simple solution – to make our World War II enemies our allies. In those tense, sometimes terrifying postwar days, Truman made the decision to develop the hydrogen bomb, broke the Soviet blockade of Berlin, laid out the Truman doctrine to meet a Soviet threat in the Middle East, formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to present a solid front in Europe, and through the Marshall plan helped avoid an economic collapse in Europe.
His tough, no-nonsense approach to foreign affairs has had many critics, but the economic strength of Europe in the 1970's and the rapprochement with Soviet Russia may have proved Truman right.
Truman is better known for his foreign policy decisions, but in domestic affairs he proposed major civil rights, labor, and social welfare legislation, began desegregating the Armed Forces by Executive order, and committed the Federal Government to a policy of high employment and a strong economy. And while he lost most of his legislative battles, the theme he sounded was picked up again in the 1960's.
What do these ideas and accomplishments tell us about the man? He was a man of conviction, and he was willing to stand by his convictions, whatever the pressures to change them.
He demonstrated an understanding of the uses and limitations of military and political power which has scarcely been equaled since his administration. He knew the effectiveness of military strength to prevent aggression. And, more importantly, he knew the limitations of military strength over conquered peoples.
In addition to his major accomplishments, Harry Truman possessed qualities which commanded the admiration of his supporters and the respect of his opponents. A fairminded, straightforward honest man, Harry Truman acted with conviction and accepted full responsibility for his actions.
He added a phrase to our language – "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen." And because of this same directness and strong sense of purpose, he was "Give-'em-hell Harry" to millions of fond Americans Here was a man who never quibbled and never stood on the sidelines waiting for events to determine his decisions or actions.
He gave me good counsel when I became a candidate for the Vice Presidency fn 1968. When I asked for his advice during a visit in Independence, he said "Tell the truth." When I replied that my way of telling the truth was not the same as his, he gave me a second piece of advice, "Be yourself," he said. Since then I have always tried to follow that advice
America and the world owe much to Harry Truman – the man who never lost touch with the man on the street and never forgot his Missouri roots. He was a great President and a strong, but compassionate man who directed America's energies into creative and constructive channels. In times of stress and anxiety he never faltered, never failed the American people. He served her well and brought honor to the office of the Presidency. He bravely led America into her new role of responsibility within the world community.
We shall all miss his quick wit, his disarming humility, and his deep and abiding faith in the intelligence of the American people. We must never forget what he stood for and loved: honesty, integrity, strength, and freedom.
When it was over, Truman himself summed it up better than we can, and provided history with a most fitting epitaph. He said:
I have tried my best to give the Nation everything I had in me. There are probably a million people who could have done the job better than I did it, but I had the job and I always quote an epitaph in a cemetery in Tombstone, Ariz.: "Here lies Jack Williams He done his damndest."