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ST ~ RS adH . “ YOrs PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL he Attorney General ia ae ee : October 20, 19h7 eo Direotor, FEI DETENTION OF COMMUNISTS IN THE EVENT OF SUDDEN» DIFFICULTY WITH THE SOVIET UNIO c Reference is made to my memoranda to you of Marah 6, August 5 and September 5, 1916, concerning the captioned matter. Reference is also made to the various conferences between representatives of this Bureau and Messrs. “4 Peyton Ford and H. Graham Morison of the Department dealing with the formation of a policy to support a program of action for this Bureau in the handling of : Communists in the event of a national emerrpency or hostilities between the United {* States and the Soviet Union. ‘ As long ago as September 20, 1946, the Department had under considera- at tion a program for detention of Cummnists in the event of such emerrency through * Presidential directives which would empower the Secretary of War to define mili- ,* tary exclusion areas within which the President would rescind the power of the i courts to issue writs of habeas corpus and directives providing for the detention « of persons to bs held by the Bureau of Prisons of the Department. These tentative 1 mi plans as outlined by Messrs, Ford and Morison contemplated formal endorsement of \ We any such direotives by the President through joint Congressional resolutions and AS Ns through the enactment of legislation supporting and supplementing then. ~ { \) This broad program, which was strictly tentative in consideration, was Te to be discussed by Departmental representatives with representatives of the War De=- partment. The objections of this Bureau to certain features of this program, par= ticularly with regard to the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus were made known to Messrs. Ford and Morison and the Department's representatives advised that further consideration would be given to this provram and ag acon as my conclusive drafts were draw this Bureau's representatives would a:ain be called into exanine thaw SiGe wo ; “7 of slot AON, ett 0, —- Kr. Morison of the Department orally advised on March 15, 1947, that the War Department had been placed on notice withregard to the tentative program draw up by the Department ‘of Justice. This was seven months ago. PE Se eet a During the year which has passed since the Dopartment first commenced consideration of the above me~tioned program, the international aituation has de- tertorated to a marked degree. Furthermore, the administrative reorganization of the military forces of the United States has changed with the establishment of a Department of Defense. ; § oo ENCLOSURE “ I strongly urge that the problem of detention of Communists in the _ evant of an amargancy involving the Soviet Union and this country be disoussed by d ou ona Cabinet Level with the interested Secretaries, particul ularly Secratarias Lo tt ee tre ae - 3 oP ta eee ee abe wee we :; es we we ae <* State and Defense, and the President. . ”, a coRrDED (22 ow ee 5 ORS , Fo op. | | OY, , LW WOM: TD mi mt 29 1047. 32 MUL. TAL COPY FILED IN £6 22 2 an. © oer oa LN GE -