Page:Legislative History of the AAF and USAF.djvu/44

 �This Page Declassified lAW EO12958 crease in Iegislatmn pertaining to the armed œorces, and necessitate numerous other measures enacted by Congress for the prose- cut[on of the war. For example, m 1942 the second session of the 77th Congress passed at least 35 public laws dealing with the vast new mlitar¾ establishment and the war effort in general. The other war years were similarly productive of war legislation. Much of this legislation affected the AAF di- rectly or indirectly. Tn other ways Congress maintained close contact with the military, for example, through he committees which continued to carry on their investigations of the war effort and to exercise a large measure o more or les nofficial control over the activities of the c]wl and military agencies involved. This study will confine itself, however, to a ohscuss[on of those legislative developments which had the greatest significance for the AAF. After Congress declared war on Japan on 8 December, and on Germany and Italy three days later, that body went to work on legislation concerning the conduct of the great war effort:. One of the first meas- ures, and one of primary importance or all the military serracos, was the Joint Resolu- tion of 13 December by which the territorial restriction on the use of units and members of the Army of the United States were suapended for the duration of the war, and sx months thereafter. This legislataon also extended the period of service for all mem- bers of the Army of the Urnted States for the duration and six months. Thus the mih. tary services, including the AAF, were as- sured that their personnel would be avaiIa- hie for service wherever needed and for as long as necessaryJ THE WAR POWERS ACT: APPROPRIATIONS AND MATERiEL LEGISLATION Recognizing the importance of giving the President ample executive powers Ior the efficient conduct of the war. Con- gress revived the Overman Act of World War I in the form o the First War Powers Act, 1941, approved 18 Decembet' 1941. This gave the President the power to edistributo functions among the executive agenmos and to coordinate them, to shift the funds appropriated for their use, amd to abolish agencies and confer their powers on other agencies, provided these powers were excreted m matters re- lated to the conduct of the war. The Presi- dent and those acting for him were given practcally unlimited powers in making contracts and m modifying or amending them whenever it was doomed that such action would famhtate the conduct of the war. The President was also given broad powers to investigate, regulate, and prohibit trade with the enemy and to censor com- mumcartons between the Urnted States and foreign nations. . Meanwhile, Congress passed the Third Supplemental National Dererie Appropria- tion Act of December 1, 1941 by which it continued its support of the lend-lease pro- gram by making $2,000,000,000 of the mili- tary establishment approprmtions avafia- hie for Iend4ease pro'poses. This measure broadened the scope of lend-lease and m- creased its flemblity. In view of the world situation the Ar Corps appropriation of $799,000,000 seemed quite madequate,  a condtxon which was, however, remeched by ample grants made when the th Congress held ts second session m 1949.. On 6 January 1942 the President de- livered an address to the new Congress in which he emphasized the wtaI importance to victory of the production of weapons and other war materials. He said: "This pro- duction of ours m the Urnted States must be raised far above its present levels .... We must raise our sights all along the pro- ductxon line Let no man say it cannot be done It must ba done--and we have under- taken to do xt." He informed Congress that he had ordered immediate steps to be taken to ncrease the rate of airplane production in 1942 to 60,000 planes1D,000 more than the goal set a year and a half before. The rate of increase was to be continued so that the United States would produce 125,000 planes mcludxng 100,000 combat planes in 1943. He also presented the figures for the required production of tanks, guns, and ships. Mr. Roosevelt estimated that the war program or the coming fiscal year would cost $56,000,000,000J THIS PAGE Declassified lAW EO12958