Word: vinson
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...neither Vinson nor his adherents could really have been in much of a mood for self-congratulation. The fact was that for one of the few times in his 47 years on the Hill, Vinson was striking his colors-although with honor. He was giving way on his demand that the House should "direct" the Kennedy Administration to spend $320 million-which it adamantly did not want-toward development of the controversial RS-70 superbomber (see box). Now the House would merely "authorize" the expenditure...
Counting the Votes. Behind Vinson's setback was a fascinating week of political maneuvering. At first, Vinson seemed to have everything well in hand. His Armed Services Committee had voted unanimously-21 Democrats and 16 Republicans-to force the RS-70 issue. Vinson could count on the floor votes of most Democratic Congressmen unless President Kennedy personally intervened -and Kennedy, fearing to offend one of the Congress' most influential members, was reluctant to move. Vinson also thought he would have the support of most Republican Representatives on an issue that could only be embarrassing to a Democratic President...
There, Texas Democrat George Mahon was opposed on principle to Vinson's order-and-direct move; but Mahon, a cautious fellow, declined to fight Vinson openly. Instead, two of the subcommittee's ablest Republican members, Michigan's Gerald R. Ford and Wisconsin's Melvin Laird, threw themselves into the overt fight against Vinson. They enlisted the support of Republican Floor Leader Charles Halleck-who had never quite forgiven Vinson for helping round up Southern votes to liberalize the conservative House Rules Committee...
...same time, House Speaker John McCormack and Democratic Floor Leader Carl Albert were urging President Kennedy to oppose Vinson actively. Both the President's prestige and their own, they argued, would suffer if the White House remained silent under Vinson's assault. Finally, the President agreed to go to work. He had George Mahon called out of an executive meeting of his subcommittee, talked to him for over an hour in the White House. When Mahon returned to the Hill, he was committed to rounding up Democratic votes against Vinson...
...that time Vinson, one of the best vote counters in Congress, could sense possible defeat. He was beginning to look for an honorable way out-and the Administration was willing to offer him one. Invited to the White House, Vinson quickly came to terms, agreed to "authorize" additional RS-70 expenditures rather than "order" them. To help Vinson out of his hole, President Kennedy suggested: "Why don't we send a letter that you could make public?" Without a word, Vinson produced a draft of such a letter. Laughed Kennedy: "That's where you got the name Swamp...