St. Paul Recorder

Tobias Approved Despite Westbrook Pegler "Smear" Washington - (ANP) — Dr. Channing H. Tobias, director of the Phelps-Stokes Fund, last week was one of nine persons approved by a Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee as delegates to the United Nations General Assembly. Dr. Tobias was approved as an alternate delegate. Phillip C. Jessup, U. S. A. Ambassador at large, who has been the object of much criticism from senators, was rejected. President Truman, Oct. 22, gave him a recess appointment. The controversy centering on him had held up confirmation of the other nine nominees. The subcommittee voted 3-2 in rejecting Jessup and 3-0 in approving Dr. Tobias and the other eight nominees. Dr. Tobias was approved without any trouble despite attempts by Westbrook Pegler and others to smear him as being a Communist. He had testified that he had no Communist sympathies, and added that Communism always had been repugnant to him. Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt was reaffirmed as delegate. The senate approved nine nominees on the final days of Congress. The attempts of Pegler to label Tobias a "Red" had led many people to believe that he would never be confirmed. However. Pegler's smear campaign proved to be ineffective. as the subcommittee unanimously approved him. Pegler had used his syndicated column to attack Dr. Tobias and accuse him of being a member of several Communist front organizations. Walter White, executive secretary of the NAACP, had come to the Defense of Tobias and branded Pegler's attacks as slander.