Letter to President Meany Acknowledging AFL-CIO Support of the Government's Position on West Berlin.

[Released July 16, 1959. Dated July 15, 1959]

Dear Mr. Meany:

Thank you very much for your letter of yesterday. For a long time I have been keenly aware and appreciative of the firm stand taken by the AFL-CIO in support of the government's refusal to abandon either the free people of West Berlin or our rights and responsibilities respecting that city.

Your present letter should convince everyone, including the Soviets, that in the United States labor is free--and because it is free, it is part of the decision-making process in our country. When free citizens form their conclusions and convictions on matters that affect America's international position, they cannot be divided on the basis of vocation, creed or partisan politics. The efforts of any outsider to divide America are bound to fail when the basic beliefs and the vital interests of this nation are at stake.

I am grateful for your letter because even though I have had no doubt in my own heart or mind of AFL-CIO solidarity in this matter, I salute your entire membership for reaffirming this solidarity before the entire world.

With warm regard,

Sincerely,

DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER