Smaller & Simpler

The President last week sent to Congress the smallest request for foreign aid--a little more than $3.1 billion--that any Administration has submitted in the 20 years since the adoption of the Marshall Plan. Johnson's message reflected his special regard for programs in education, health and agriculture, raising the total outlay in these areas 25% over last year. Of the $2.5 billion asked in economic aid, Latin America would get $624 million, the Near East and the Indian subcontinent $758 million, Africa $195 million, East Asia $812 million--with $650 million of the East Asian allotment for South Viet Nam alone.

Despite his relatively modest demands, which Congress will almost certainly slim still further, Johnson proposed some pragmatic innovations, mostly in the methods by which the U.S. doles out the dollars. He hopes to sweet-talk--or strong-arm--other nations and international organizations into cooperating to help needy nations and, in turn, to encourage recipient nations to cooperate with their neighbors in regional development programs.

Anticipating congressional resistance, Johnson noted that the U.S. gives less than seven-tenths of 1% of its national income to "reduce the chances of future Viet Nams"--less even than France and Belgium give away, mostly to their former colonies. "Nothing," he noted, "could be more shortsighted and self-defeating" than to cut the aid outlay still more.

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