Evening star., 1952-12-28
House Committee Denounces
Communism in Lobor's Ranks,
Asks E nd to Taft Act Affidovits
Subversive Role
Of Some Unions Hit
AS National Disgrace


American Activities, denouncing
Communism in some trade unions
as "a national disgrace" last night
recommended repeal of the Taft
Hartley law requirement that nom
Communist affidavits be filed by
union officials.
In it's final year-end report to
Congress, the committee said:
This provision of the law. after
a start as intended by its authors,
is now working to the benefit of
members of the Communist Party
engaged in the field of labor"
The Hartley law requires
that before unions can invoke the
assistance of the National Labor
Relations Board in collective bar
gaining, it's officials must first
swear they are not Communists
in afidavitS filed with the board.
Red Influence Still Evident.
The committee said its evidence
showed "conclusively" that union
officials in many cases still were
Communists even though they had
filed the required affidavits.
The reason they are not prose-
cuted. the report added, lis under
standable when we realize that an
individual. in signing the nom
Communist affidavit, swears only
that he is not member of the
Communist Party on the day he
afflxes his signature" 1t said he
may be a member of the party on
the day before and the day after
he signs the affidavit.
The committee said union men,
bers do not understand this
technicality, with the result that
Communist officials are able to
take absolute control" of the
union.
The committee also renewed
previous recommendations that
spies and saboteurs be subjected
to the death penalty in peacetime,
as UIley are III WdIGIIIS.
Ask Alien Ban in U. S. Jobs.
Other recommendations in
cluded:
l. A requirement that all per-
sons employed by the Govern
ment under the Civil Service Act
in the United States or territories
be citizens of this country or owe
allegiance to the United States.
2. Legislation "to tighten up our
passport laws and thereby elimi-
nate fraudulent travel by Com
muniStS
3. A law making it a criminal
offense for any person to transport
in interstate commerce, without
official authorization, any Govern
ment document classified from
Restricted" to top secret"
The committee also renewed its
plea for admission of Wire-tapped
testimony as evidence in espionage
cases, and for more help from the
executive branch of Government
in opening secret files to congress
sional investigators.
Slap at Truman Edict.
Taking what was clearly a slap
at President Truman's order for
bidding congressional access to
Government loyalty files, the COM
mittee said:
'It is a tragedy that during the
past few years this cooperation
between the executive and Con-
gress) has been for the most part
one sided in that it was only con-
gressional committees which were
furnishing information to agencies
IN the executive branch.
The strongest demonstration
of the benefits of such co-opera-
ton is the case of William Walter
Remington in which, through the
sole and tirelesS efforts of this
committee, sufficient information
was secured to enable the execu-
tive branch to obtain an indict-
ment against Remington"
Remington. a former Commerce
Department economist, was con-
vlcted on a charge of lying to a
Federal grand jury about alleged
Communist affiliations, but the
United States Court of Appeals re-
versed his conviction.
He is scheduled to go on trial
in New York January 13 on a nav
Indictment charging that he lied
at his first trial.
Infiltrate in Defense Jobs.
The House committee laid major
emphasis this year on Communist
infltration of labor unions in de-
fense plants. Reporting on con-
dltions in the defense areas Of
Detroit, Chicago and Philadelphia,
the committe said it was shocked
to find domination of some unions
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