WSP10564

• File Number: 8210.120
• Description: Colorado River Basin States Committee ‎(AKA Colorado River Compact Commission)‎
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Date: 9/20/1949
• Author: CRBSC
• Title: Proceedings of the Meeting of the Colorado River Basin States Committee
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Publication

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I say that someQody put that language in the President's message and to
that extent I b+lieve he was misled. And it seems to me that what we have "got to
do here in a C~ttee li~e this and the National Reclamation Association, is to
find out who th+se people are who are advising the President. And I rather suspect
that you can fi*d certain individuals in theiBureau of the Budget, possibly certain
individuals in ~he Department of Agriculture~ who dictated these messages.

And ~t lays this propositiondoWJf: Are we to rely upon the Department of
the Interior in!the future to determine and (recommend to Congress feasibility of our
reclamation projects? Or is that responsibIlity going to be transferred to the
Department of Attriculture without CongressHnal action or in spite of Congressional
action? I thin~ those are very serious questions, and I feel very keenly about this
because it came!home to me on a local project. But I think it is broader than a
local project o~ a local question. .

And~hatever committee is appointed, I think it ought to inquire thor-
oughly into the !facts and try to find out if there isn't some way the President can
get the right k~nd of advice instead of the wrong kind of advice when bills like
this are sent to him.

MR. WALLACE: May I ask a question off the record? (Discussion off the

record. )

MR. WALLACE, I would like to state for the record that I am soundly of
the belief thatla1l of the acts necessary to be accomplished.by the Bureau of
Reclamation hav~ been properly performed and that the approval of both Acts by the
President Should have been without qualification.

CHAI~AN STONE, I might say off the record--(Discussion off the record.)

MR. ImLANEY: May I ask a question: I aSSUllle that New Mexico has one or
more fairly abl~senators, and that New Mexico is vitally interested in determining
just why this th'ing came about, why a project in which your State was interested has
been rejected b~ the President for reasons that are not tenable.

I asM that question with this in view: I think as representatives of
o~ganizations i~~erested in the proper functioning of the Reclamation Law, we have
a right to know~ow our Executive Department is functioning; it shouldn't be a
secret. And so iJ: was going to suggest for your consideration that we pass a resolu-
tion here askin~ one of your Senators to confer with the President, and requesting
the other Senatob of the States here i.nvolved to participate, and find out just how
it is functioning and what information was laid before him. vvould that be proper or
not, Mr. Vvilson?:

MR, wtrLSON: I will answer YOl,l this way: Of course we have two very able
Senators. . And When I first heard of this veto message, I was modest or immodest
enough to wire the President direct and tell him that New Mexico was surprised and
disappointed an~felt he had been misadvised and to withhold his message if it had
not already beeci delivered. Later I advised our Senators that if the President
could be convinc~d that he had been misled, which I felt he. could, perhaps he would
permit passage or the bill over his veto. It was felt, how~ver, that was going a
little too far t~ ask the President to ~ack uP and say he was wrong. So they devi~
another bill, i~an effort to meet th~ req~irements of the President's veto message,

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