The Wilmington morning star., 1943-11-09
BY WESTBROOK PEGLER

NEW YORK-The denuniactlon of COM
pletely crooked and immoral CIO union boss
by Congressman Edward Herbert of New Or
leans in investigation of the sabotage of
plane production for the Navy in the Brewster
plants, will be the more shocking if it is thor
oughly understood that this montsrous, utterly
selfish opportunist and draft dodger, Harry
PoSner, who calls himself Thomas Vincent de
Lorenzo and other names, received his powers
directly from Congress and from the so-called
labor policy of the Roosevelt government which
has blocked every effort of Congress to limit
those powers. This man. who fatty said
Gently that he would rather let American sol
diers die at the front for lack of planes than
sacrifice "our rights, was legally the chosen
representative of the 10000 workers and the
management and the Navy had to deal with
him as such. The War Labor Board gave him
contract which deprived cement of
every shred of authority in the operation of
the plants and allowed him absolute right to
say which men should be certified as essen
tial war workers for deferment In the draft
The management has been derateo for ineffi-
cieny, but that charge cannot even be heard
much less proven because the management
was helpless under the contract. BY the terms
of the agreement this man could not only
certify himself for deferment at the age of 35
but could shake down other draft dodgers for
deferments and blackmail men who were ac-
Ludlly essential WIN a threat not TO recon-
mend deferment.
The Navy was helpless and finally was COM
PEELED to make candestine appeal, not to
the FB1 or the War Labor Board, but to in
dlvldual newspaper reporters to expose Posner
IN the hope that the publication of the crook S
record and character and the facts of the
Brewster situation would cause an explosion
that would blast him out. Mrs. Agnes Meyer,
the wife of Eugene Meyer, publisher of the
| Wa ShipotOp tbo oh in, rpnOrt which
covered whole page. 1t was an excellent
feat of coverage and presentation which did
| not fail to present the failures of the manage
/ ment and quickly resulted in call Tor Henry
Kaiser to take over as president of Brewster
and placate Posner fotE of which Kaiser did.
He also got a new contract, however.
If Mrs. Meyers fine work on the story could
be criticized at all the criticism would be that
she failed to run her man down. but that could
be excused in reporter who refuses to be-
leve that unionism IS infested with crooks.
The Army already knew that de Lorenzo was
actually Posner and had his police record, and
presumably the FBI had him catalogued But
such is the power of the union bosses IN league
with the government that much ln1or1natlon
OF this kind is merely filed away ana not put
TO use. The labor relation agencies and the
Department of Justice let them sc their way,
as legally they are justified in dong, because
the Wagner act takes the position that crook
is good as an honest man, communist
as good as a loyal American and certlfled
representative of a collective BARGAINING unit
must be met as such regardless OF his charac-
ter. Kaiser knew Posner's record out ne IS a
man who accepts the Wagner act as tne law
and deals the best he can with CROOKS VINO
are certified to him BARGAINING agents.
throwing the responsibility back TO congress
and the loss from union lootng OF Time vast
ing back to the treasury. He doesn't Try TO
fight them as the old Brewster management
| did.
Posner's record consists of one charge OF
automobile homicide and one indictment OF
turning out 2 900 rioters at an aVlatioh ptait III
1941, both dismissed, and Is tra11lc cnarges.
Much worse, however, was his declara'ion, on
file with the Navy, that 'our policy IS not 10
win the war at any cost The policy Oh our 10
cal union is to win the war withou! sacrlilc1 III
too many of the rights which we nave a' 'i'e
present time" ;oaors
He is only one of many upstdil 'ilo haue
elevated to power by the new ocai . VIZ o+h.
abandoned their original names anu 1aiac A.,
ers for reasons best known to .,o CIO Of.
other is Lewis Merrill president OF NC 10 con7-
flee Workers. Union which 1o1ow : W." ~ nlant
munst party line and is in p postum f;rms
communistSspes in American o'sii iol in the
n In one such case spy got 'o'