AMERICAN COMMUNISTS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26841, 4 August 1948, Page 5

AMERICAN COMMUNISTS

SOVIET “FIFTH COLUMN” TESTIMONY OF FORMER LEADER N.Z.P.A.—Copyright Rec. 9 p.m. WASHINGTON. Aug. 3. The Communist Party of America was a “fifth column of Soviet Russia,’’ committed to the destruction of the American Republic said Mr Louis Budenz, a former American Communist leader, to-day. Mr Budenz, who renounced Communism in 1945 to become a Roman Catholic, told the Senate Committee which is investigating subversive influences in the United States Government, that the Communist Party’s status was proved by three factors—First, the party had never found any defect in Russian policy, and its leaders had to do what the Kremlin ordered at any specific moment; secondly, the party for years received direct subsidies from Moscow in the form of news; thirdly, 80 to 90 per cent, of the party’s leaders had been in trained in Moscow.

Mr Budenz, who is now a professor at Fordham University, New York, told the senators that the Communist Party operations were financed partly by dues and gifts from wealthy persons. He added: “ There was a very big ‘ take ’ from Hollywood.” The Communists were also receiving funds from abroad.

Mr Budenz replied: “ That’s right,” when asked if the avowed purpose of the Communist Party was the overthrow of the United States Government by force. Mr Budenz named the late Mr Jacob Golos as the former head of the highly-secret Communist Party Control Commission in the United States—an agency which Mr Budenz said was used to discipline party members and keep them in line.

Mr Budenz said that Mr Golos was chief agent with the party for Miss Elizabeth Bentley, who. has testified that she obtained military secrets from Government officials and workers, which were sent to Moscow. Mr Budenz estimated that possibly thousands of Communists had filtered into Federal employment. In the past, he said, several score had held jobs he considered fairly important, while “ there has been several hundred in relatively important places.” In addition, the party operated an “ underground lobby ” in Washington, vigorously attempting to influence Government policy. Mr Eudenz, who said he had to leave Washington to-day, told reporters that he was going out of the country on a confidential mission for the Government. He declined to elaborate.