LABOUR LOOKS AT RECORDS

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 18, 19 October 1936, Page 8

LABOUR LOOKS AT RECORDS

Hitherto the Labour policy in the United States political field has been to sell Labour vote's in return for concessions to Labour. That is to say, Labour has taken the general line that Labour votes will go — either spontaneously, or by the favour of the Labour machine wherever it is effective—to the Republicans if Republican legislation and administration have yielded more, and promise more, for Labour, than the legislation and administration of the Democrats; or, if the reverse is tHe case, then Labour votes will go to the Democrats. This policy of "votes in return for concessions" is reaffirmed today by the American Federation of Labour.. Its reaffirmation is more than usually interesting because a United States Labour Party is forecast aa being a new factor in the elections of 1940. Between the Federation's method of bargaining with the two old parties, and the principle of a Labour Party, I there is a great gulf. A Labour 1 Party gives no votes away wherever it has a candidate, and uses all" its votes for its own army of accredited representatives. A Labour Party seeks ever to increase its machinehold on votes, so that its voters may be organised and single-minded like an army. But the American Federation's method stops short of the political machine, and its influencing of votes to one or other of the older parties is opportunistic and hesitating. Last year may have found it Republican. Next year may find it Democratic. The new school seeks "Labour all the time."

These limitations are sufficiently indicated in the report of the President and executive published today, advising those under the Federation to "stand faithfully by our friends and elect them." TV vote for "friends" is 'good advice, but a Labour Party would say "vote for Brown" (or for Williams or for Robinson) and would have the,advantage of being completely understood. Who are the "friends" of Labour in the United States? In one constituency the Labour record and attitude of the Republican may seem to be better than those of the Democrat; the reverse may happen in another constituency. Even as between the two main candidates for Presidency the Federation of Labour report does not (according to the cablegrams) name the man. Instead, it recites the, Labour record of Mr. Roosevelt, and merely says nothing of Mr. Landon's record, if he has one. This looks like a nod and a wink in favour of Roosevelt, but the report is careful to add that Mr. Landon has declared in favour of "Labour's right to organise without interference." Meanwhile those Leftist factors who are not content that Labour members should choose between Democrat and Republican by comparing records and promises (with a few tips from the Federation Executive) are becoming more vocal in U.S.A. Industrial unionism (as against craft unionism) and political partyism (as against bargaining with old parties) are lifting their heads. But their time is not this year. President Roosevelt's whole immediate concern is the November elections. Confident that the New Deal will pull Labour, he now makes a gesture to the other side by declaring that, however ''much Wall Street may oppose him.^he is "not antagonistic to business."