TOE SESET acceleration of the rate of modernization. If these Army recommendations were accepted, the result would be an increase of increase 53,000 men in the ranks of active Army personnel and in an of 736 million dollars for the Army FY 1959 Budget. At Secretary McELroy's suggestion Secretary Gates covered the presentation of the Navy Department Budget for FY 1959. He noted that if the recommendations of the Navy for programs which ought to be added to those now proposed under the 38 billion dollar ceiling were accepted, the result would be to raise the Navy Budget for FY 1959 by a figure of 1 billion 370 thousand dollars. Similarly, Secretary Douglas explained the Air Force program for FY 1959 under guidelines which established a ceiling of 18.1 billion dollars for the Air Force program in FY 1959. Thereupon Secretary Douglas suggested various add-on programs which the Air Force deemed it essential to include in the FY 1959 Budget. The total add-on programs suggested by Secretary Douglas involved sup- plemental appropriations for the Air Force for FY 1958 of 349.4 million as well as an additional appropriation for FY 1959 of 1.97 billion dollars. Secretary Douglas was followed by General White who emphasized the highlights of the Air Force FY 1959 Budget which in summary he said would cut out all the fat and quite a bit of muscle as vell. (At this point Secretary Dulles joined the meeting. 11:05 am) When General White had concluded his remarks,the President in- quired about the current status of the procurement of B-58 jet bombers and why we were continuing to procure B-52's while also procuring the improved B-58's. General White replied to the President by stating that we were giving these new bombers full and complete testa but that no B-58's had yet been put into operational units and would not be until we knew more about then. In his concluding remarks on the Defense Department presentation Secretary McElroy noted the intention of the Department of Defense to review all the several priority add-on programs suggested during the presentation. A final Budget for the Department of Defense would be presented at the next Council meeting on the 2lst or the 25th of a ee the month. REPRODUCED AT THE DWIGHT, D. EISENHOWER LIBRARY -” cr mR: 7 TOP SECRET The President then stated that he rather doubted the worth of the Council's digging into all these matters before the next meeting on the subject but he did have one or two points to make. He was troubled that none of the statements made in the course of the preBentation indicated that the implementation of the Cordiner Report voi, TOP Stans Pott i I Bh thc: ey inten At ol insen Lt gee ReEde punthig he oe See le an