Almost all week long, John Foster Dulles was busy explaining and elaborating on the "instant retaliation" policy. His explanations were directed at the press, at the Congress, and at the public.
For 40 minutes at his regular press conference, Dulles answered reporters' questions on the subject. His basic text was still his Jan. 12 speech. Said he: "In no place did I say we would retaliate instantly, although we might indeed retaliate instantly under conditions that call for that. The essential thing is to have the capacity to retaliate instantly. It is lack of that capacity which in my opinion...