LIBERALS OF ADA WELCOME SHOWDOWN, WILL LAY EMPHASIS ON 'EXTREMISM'

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP73-00475R000101140006-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 6, 2014
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: September 5, 1964
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

STATtar
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release i;t0-Yr 2014/01/06
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4
.94?DA Welcome Showdown
atm ia
-Lay, mphasis on aExtren,m,r
By LEE M. COHN ' tee, adding:
Star Staff Writer "Democrats should welcome
These are happy, Proud, busy this confrontation with open
days for the earnest liberals of arms, and the convention must
Americans for Democratic present a program as liberal
Action, and vital as the Republican
Senator Humphrey, ADA's program is reactionary and
favorite son, is the Democratic I moribund."
candidate for Vice President. ADA lays heavy emphasis on
'The Republicans have nomi- the "extremism" issue. The
nated Senator Goldwabir, organizatiOn's latest statement
ADA's favorite enemy, for9 of principles declares:
"With the resurgence and
coalescing of extreme right
wing organizations in the coun-
try and their support of the
Republican 1 ee for the
presidency, as assumed a
be difficult to imagine better F major respo bay in pointing.
'
circumstances. out the dangers inherent in
their ideology, _which is based
A hard fight is the best pos- on a distorted view of history
sible amplifier for the views of and which constitutes a threat
a small but articulate political
to our basic democratic con-
cepts."
President.
And the G. 0. P. Is attacking
ADA instead of ignoring it.
For an organization with only
50,090 membotsc yet claiming
vast political influence, it would
group.
A Special Campaign
ADA has forma0 indorsed
the Democratic ticket, as it
always does, and is waging an
enthusiastic campaign.
It is a very speeial camp
to the ADA, which sees i
showdown between libera
conservatives. ,
"For years now the (tfliC-
tionaries have been demanding
a confrontation with American
liberalism," ADA told the
Democratic Platform Commit-
G. 0. P. Hits Back
Republicans are striking back
on the extremism issue, using
ADA as their main target. They
have picked up the theme
sounded by Senator Goldwater
in 1962, when he said:
"The Americafis for Demo-
cratic Action, who talk about
peaceful coexistence, are in the
White House close to the Pres-
ident (Kennedy). There are 31
members of the ADA there . . .
I am not worried abo the
extreme right wing ur
country. They are not the
Government in Washington. I
am worried about the extrem-
ists to the left who are in the
Government."
ADA leaders note with satis-
faction that Republican attacks
on the organization have inten-
sified since the G. 0. P. conven-
tion
On Saturday, for instance,
Representative Miller of New
Work, the G. 0. P. vice presiden-
tial candidate, called ADA
"unquestionably the most in-
fluential organization in our
Nation's Capital attempting to
subvert and transform our
government into a foreign so-
cialistic totalitarianism."
Objectives Viewed
"It's obvious that the Repub-
licans have picked ADA as a
campaign issue," a spokesman
said, charging that they "are
trying to take the heat off the
Birchism issue by equating us
with the John Birch Society."
ADA emphatically disassoci-
ates itself from the extreme
left. Prospective MOnibers must
subscribe to the view that "all
forms of totalitarianism, includ-
ing communism, are incompat-
ible" with the objectives of ,
ADA liberals.
The organization "was born of
the postwar split between the,
American non-Communist left
and the Communists," accord-
ing to the ADA statement of
principles.
It was founded in 1947 "as al
political vehicle for political,
leaders, trade union leaders and
intellectuals who were liberal in
national affairs, international in;
world outlook and anti-Coin-I
munist by conviction."
Target of McCarthy
ADA leaders take pride in the
organization's role in exposing
Communist infiltration of Henry
Wallace's Progressive Party in
1948.
The late Senator Joseph R.
McCarthy attapred ADA as
"a n t i-anti-Communist," after
ADA had attacked him. More
recently, critics -'generally have
steered away from insinuations
that ADA is soft on commu-
nism.
Rather, the critic 4,11_ilcture
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UpntlhutZ
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release
CIA-RDP73-00475R000101140006-5 s slowly or exhibits timid-1
eaded ultr-
'ist tendencies. YCriticism was so strong dur-
`haliberals with Social-
ADA defines its brand of Ing the Kennedy administration
I
C liberalism a philosophy that ADA members in the Gov- ,
"re" ernment called for moderation. ,
?ceptive ideas or propos-
als Of re
For m y years, Lyndon B.
Johnson failed to measure up to
'ADA's standards of liberalism.
Scoring him on 13 Senate
votes in 1959, ADA gave him a
,"liberal quotient" of only 58 per
cent. All the other leading con-
tenders for the 1960 Democratic
presidential nomination scored
100 per cent.
Criticized Johnson
ADA assailed Mr. Johnson's
performance a s Democratic
leader of the Senate, charging
him with "surrendering" to
President Eisenhower.
Early in 1960, ADA charged:
"Senator Johnson, by his
record in the field of civil rights
and labor legislation, by his
faithful representation of mo-
nopoly interests' in oil and gas
and in other fields, has become
a symbol of compromise and
oliti c al opportunism, and
therefore has no fair claim to
be the standard-bearer of a
'beral Democratic Party."
Now, however, ADA supports
President Johnson enthusiasti-
cally. The indorsement resolu-
tion declared:
"Lyndon B. Johnson has su-
perbly carried forward the
;Meals of John F. Kennedy and
a s demonstrated his full
commitment to the liberal tradi-
tions of the Democratic Party
and the American people. He
has also moved boldly to ini-
tiate policies of his own, initia-
tives which indicate that the
Johnson administration. . . will
chart its own course toward the
vision of the 'Great Society.' "
Changes Are Seen
@50-Yr 2014/01/06:
tics are planned w neip rt. esi-
dent .1ohnson.
ADA is strongest in metropol-
itan areas of the Northeast,
notably Philadelphia, Boston
and Washington. The strength
of the New York chapter is
Dilemma Expressed somewhat diluted by the Liberal
? Samuel H. Beer, then ADA's Party there. Outside the North- ,
national chairman, expressed , east. there are strong chapters ;
t h e organization's dilemma ; in Chicago and parts of Cali-
thus: fornia.
"Our commitment to practi- Individual members, but not
cal politics means we must try chapters, are in the South.
to build strength for such an; ADA has an annual spending
administration.. On the other ' budget of about $150,000, raised
hand, the fact we have our own mainly through membership
program?that we are an inde- dues, individual contributions
pendent organization?m e an s and donations by labor unions.
that we cannot simply become a1 Union donations totaled $27,000
political arm of the admin- last year.
istration." , ADA makes no campaign
In criticizing the Kennedy contributions, although i n d i-
,administration, Mr. Be eri vidual members do.
,warned, ADA must "avoid I Members are mostly profes-
Tiling our own criticism on tops ors, lawyers, economists, union
of the antagonism generated by leaders and politicians.
I the forces of conservatism."
; An ADA spokesman said Mr. , Grassroots Activities
Kennedy and President Johnson i John P. Roche, a professor of
have welcomed ADA pressure.
Brandeis University, is national
as a counter-force to pressure
'from the right. ? chairman.
' Many politicians ridicule ADA's dominant concern now
ADA, calling it a noisy, inept1 is the presidential election.
;group without important power! Chapters are busy with State
or influence, and local elections.
1; ADA leaders admit?really Aside from that, the organiza-
boast?that their organization is tion 4now is concentrating on
small and never will grow suth issues as "reform" of
large. But they claim it has
r, rules and proce-
dures, civil rights and disarma-
ment.
Civil rights elWaYs- has been a;
influence out of proportion to
size because of the me
ship's eilklication and the
quality tr the leadership.
There are, indeed, highly i key issue for ADA, which!
c?laced individuals in ADA. Past'
and present officers include the '
late Eleanor Roosevelt; Demo-
er atic Senators Clark of
Pennsylvania, Douglas of Illi-
nois and Maurine Neuherger of
Oregon; David Dubinsky, *al-
ter Reuther, Joseph A. Beirnb
and other union leaders; such
scholars as James MacGregor
ADA leaders explain that they Burns, Arthur M. Schlesinger,
now like Mr. Johnson because jr., and Hans J. Morgenthau;
he has changed. They credit Joseph and Stewart Alsop,
him with pushing a strong civil Barry Bingham, Hodding Car-
rights bill and tax reduction ter, Elmer Davis and other
through Congress, and still have journalists; and such religious
hope for medicare. leaders as Reinhold Neibuhr
"He now is President of all and G. Bromley Oxnam.
the American people, not the
Senator from Texas," a spokes-
man said.
ADA also accepts as evidence
of Mr. Johnson's liberalism his
selection of Senator Humphrey
as his rurmingmate. Senator
C Humphrey was a founder and
Strongest in East
until recently, a vice chairman
Lobbying is a maiqr function.
of ADA. For years he has been
So is direct political action.
one of its most active members.
! After the election, if the DA e ADA members have been irn-
to portant in Citizens f9F ,Steven-
Democrats win, R 1, son and Citizens for Kennedy ,
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ADA counts on such opinion
eaders to disseminate its
,views. In addition, ADA distrib-
utes literature, conducts for-
ums and engages in other "edu-
cational" activities.
Q
clifins a big share of the cieN
for enactment of this year's
law.
Local chapters also are active
on civil rights. The Washington
chapter, for example, joined
last spring with the Congress of
Racial Equality (CORE) in
threatening a school boycott
here.
Joseph L. Rauh, jr.. of Wash-
ington is national leader of
ADA's civil rights campaign.
Upholding its claim to in-
fluence, ADA notes that many
of its members hold public office
in Federal, State and local
governments.
Gains Are Noted
Leaders of the organization
also point proudly to the many
"way-out" policies it has es-
posed through the years, which
now are widely accepted.
On this list are the nuclear
test ban treaty, the war on
poverty, the Peace Corps, food
for peace, the Marshall Plan
and, above all civil rights. -
"Ten years from now, much
of our present program will be in
the Republican platform," a
,--nokesman predicted, declaring
that the ADA's role is to pro-
Dose creative solutions to prob-
lems before they are widely
recognized by public opinion.
ADA tries, this source said, to
bring issUes into the political
arena and to create a "climate"
favorable to liberal solutions.