Why was the Marshall Plan implemented while U.S. President Harry Truman was in office at the end of WWII?

At the end of WWII in 1945, much of Western Europe was devastated.

The Marshall Plan was an American initiative passed in 1948 for the provision of foreign aid to Western Europe. The U.S. transferred over $12 Billion (equivalent to $130 billion in 2019) in economic recovery programs.

As Secretary of State from 1947 to 1949, George Marshall (former Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army) advocated rebuilding Europe. When approved, the plan was operational for four years with the goal of rebuilding war-torn regions, removing trade barriers, modernizing industry, improving European prosperity, and preventing the spread of communism.

The distribution of assistance was divided to the participant states roughly based on a per capita basis.

To implement the Marshall Plan required negotiation among the 16 participating nations. Agreement was eventually reached and the European reconstruction plan was sent to Washington. When agreed to in 1947, President Truman signed the Economic Cooperation Act in 1948.

The U.S. Government delivered the material and provided the services, mainly through transatlantic shipping to the participating governments which then sold the commodities to businesses and individuals who had to pay the dollar value of the goods in local currency to special accounts set up in the country’s central bank.

For his leadership, George Marshall was awarded the 1953 Noble Peace Prize.