Opinion ID: 1474108
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: The Secretary's Power under the Act to Require the Disclosure of ALL Political Activities.

Text: A registrant's activities might be of four kinds: (1) political activities pursuant to his agency relationship with a foreign principal, (2) his political activities on his own behalf, not a part of the foreign agency, (3) nonpolitical activities in connection with a foreign agency, and (4) nonpolitical activities on his own, not a part of any foreign agency. Work in the first category is the kind that makes it necessary for a person to register, and, of course, when he registers he must make a full disclosure of all activities that fall within this category. In this case we are not concerned to what extent, if any, a registrant must reveal his activities in the last two categories. The question in this case is whether the registrant must make a full disclosure of activities within the second category. The Title reveals that the Statute is for the purpose of registering persons employed by agencies to disseminate propaganda, and for other purposes. [9] A reading of the Act shows that one of those purposes is disclosure. When the concern is with disclosure of propaganda, a measure would be a half-way one if it did not require one to reveal the propaganda he puts out on his own as well as the propaganda he puts out as an agent. Otherwise it could not be known in which of his dual capacities a registrant was acting. It seems that the Act in its broad structure has taken this logical policy into account. The specific provisions of the Act carry out the compass indicated by the Title. Section 2 says that the form shall set forth certain things. The emphasis here seems to be on the terms and conditions of the contract, written or oral, with the foreign principal, and upon the amount, source, and form of the agent's pay. Section 3, dealing with the supplemental registration (upon which this indictment is based) provides that the material under Section 2 is to be kept current and accurate, the compensation actually paid is to be stated, and by subsection (c) there shall be A statement containing such details required under this Act [subchapter] as the Secretary shall fix, of the activities of such person as agent of a foreign principal during such six months' period. [10] Clearly, this authorizes the Secretary to set the degree of generality or specificity of the disclosure of the registrant's business and activities. There might be some question as to whether in this provision the phrase, as agent of a foreign principal, designates the type of activities or the class of persons. Defendant's arguments, based on the Act, did not raise the issue and as a result the Government's construction did not develop this possible point. As the 1938 Act is printed there is more difficulty of construction because such person[s] is in the plural. [11] If as agent designates the activities, i. e., a statement of the agent-activities, it would have been better for agent to be in proximity with activities. If as agent designates the class of persons, then it is somewhat redundant for it is abundantly clear who such persons are, and grammatically it might have been well to introduce agent[s] of a foreign principal with who are. Since in the 1939 amendment person is in the singular as is agent, and since it seems a better construction of language to have as agent designate the class of person rather than the type of activities, we interpret the provision as follows: a statement of the activities of such person (an agent of a foreign principal) during such six months' period. This means that the phraseology is a little tautological, but we assume that is the result of seeking clarity, and in our view the redundancy being slight, a strained construction to avoid it is not justified. Thus we conclude that section 3 sub. (c) authorizes the Secretary to require a statement of all the activities (at least the political kind with which we are concerned) of a registrant. Sections 3 and 2 are not the only parts of the Act, however, which authorize the Secretary to call for material. Section 6 provides that the Secretary is authorized and directed to prescribe such rules, regulations, and forms as may be necessary to carry out the Act. In view of the logical necessity of knowing all of an agent's political activities either as an agent or on his own and in view of the fact that carry out must mean make workable, it appears that the Act authorizes the Secretary to require the full disclosure. Some such implementation of statutes is common and desirable. It is of interest to note that this authorization is running to the Secretary of State. The President, the Head of our Executive Branch, has the main power over foreign affairs. The Department of State is the cabinet branch through which the Executive works in problems of foreign affairs. This Act deals with agents who disseminate propaganda for foreign principals. While the registrant may be a citizen of this country, he may put himself under the Executive's power over foreign affairs when he acknowledges that he is a paid political agent of a foreign principal. Thus one can read a little more liberally the Act's authorization to the Secretary to do that which will make the statute work, [12] and a full disclosure of all political activities of an agent as agent or as his own is a sine qua non for feasibility. An object of the Act must be to know from all that is going on around the country that which may be subsidized by principals outside of the country. The foreign purse can have a lot to do with the convictions expressed under the smoke-screen of free speech.