The Congress: Uncle Carl Gets Mad

Carl Vinson, 78, of Milledgeville, Ga.has spent 45 years influencing military legislation in the House of Representatives, where he is known fondly as "Uncle Carl," "The Admiral" and "The Swamp Fox." Since World War II, Chairman Vinson of the Armed Services Committee has been doing a slow burn while Pentagon leaders under Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy refused to use money voted by Congress for specific projects. Examples: construction of a Navy supercarrier in 1949; ordering additional Air Force B-525 in 1961. Last week Uncle Carl finally lost his temper over the issue of how much...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!