Hoover 's conclusions were similar to those of the Council on Foreign Relations and those of General Clay when Hoover stated : " The whole economy of Europe is interlinked with German economy through the exchange of raw materials and manufactured goods . The productivity of Europe can not be restored without the restoration of Germany as a contributor to that productivity . " The findings of Hoover 's report that Germany should be made the engine of European recovery were endorsed by General Clay and the US War Department , but were resisted by the State Department which drafted a paper that fiercely attacked the report . The State Department position was that priority should be given to the economic and security requirements of Germany 's neighbors . President Truman 's assistant John R. Steelman expressed fear about reviving the " German colossus " . Edwin W. Pauley , who had been industrial and commercial adviser to the Potsdam Conference and until 1947 President Truman 's representative to the Allied Reparations Commission , expressed his strong dislike for the report . Pauley stated that to follow Hoover 's recommendations would entail a " major reversal " of US policy and warned about future German domination of Europe
Potsdam Conference
Potsdam Conference
The President's Economic Mission to Germany and Austria