steelworkers back to work. But Truman, needing labor's support in the 1952 presidential campaign, refused to do so. Wilson resigned as director of ODM on March 31, 1952, in protest against Truman's support of the union. Presidential aide John R. Steelman became Acting Director of ODM. Truman was unwilling to order Steelman to implement the wage increase for fear it would ruin his wage policies, but he was also unwilling to rein in the union. With no wage increase forthcoming, the union gave notice on April 4, 1952, that it would strike at 12:01 a.m. on April 9. A few hours before the strike was to begin, Truman issued Executive Order 10340, which directed Secretary of Commerce Charles W. Sawyer to take possession of and operate steel mills throughout the country. Truman sent messages to Congress on April 9 and again on April 21 announcing his action. The steel companies, led by Youngstown Sheet and Tube, filed suit in federal district court seeking a preliminary injunction preventing Sawyer from seizing the steel mills. The District Court for the District of Columbia refused to grant a preliminary injunction, and scheduled a trial to be held on April 25. Despite this initial setback, the steelmakers were successful: The district court granted a permanent injunction on April 25. The government appealed to the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The Court of Appeals, sitting en banc, stayed the permanent injunction on May 2 pending resolution of the case by the U.S. Supreme Court. A meeting between USWA and the steelmakers on May 3 nearly led to a tentative agreement on the union's terms. But during the meeting, word arrived that the Supreme Court had granted certiorari and accepted the case. The steelmakers backed out of the agreement, hoping that the court would rule in their favor. The Supreme Court heard oral argument for two days, May 12 and May 13. Arguing the case for the government was Solicitor General Philip B. Perlman, and representing the union was Arthur Goldberg, general counsel for the USWA and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (and a future Supreme Court justice). Former Solicitor General John W. Davis argued the case for the steelmakers. On June 2, 1952, the Supreme Court handed down its decision. In Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer, 343 U.S. 579 (1952)—a landmark case on the scope of presidential powers—the Court