Mr. VELD. Yes, I am. Mr. BOROD. Your remarks regarding Russia, which is a controversial subject, and which I do not wish to discuss in this hearing room, are made for the sole purpose of inciting the American people into a war against Russia for the purpose of making billions of dollars of profit for the large corporations, particularly General Motors Corp., sir. Mr. VELDE. That, sir, typifies you as an American Communist at the present time, that very statement. Mr. BOROD. That typifies you as a warmonger, sir. Mr. VELDE. I suggest that we cannot get anything more from this witness and he be excused at the present time. Mr. CLARDY. Mr. Tavenner, ask him the one remaining question that you must know is on our minds. Mr. TAVENNER. Mr. Borod, you were identified by Mr. Herbert Donnelly and also by Beatrice Churchill and also by Bereniece Baldwin as having been a member of the Communist Party working in the area of Flint. Were those identifications of you true or false? Mr. BOROD. Mr. Tavenner, stoolpigeons never tell the truth. Mr. TAVENNER. Then will you tell us the truth? Mr. BOROD. Mr. Tavenner, I will be perfectly willing to discuss my views with anyone at any time and at any place. Mr. TAVENNER. I didn't ask for views. Mr. BOROD. But not under the subpena of this committee, a committee which is known in the labor movement as an antilabor committee, and I will not become a part of the destruction of the tradeunion movement, sir. Mr. TAVENNER. I didn't ask you for an opinion. I asked you for a statement of a matter of fact. Mr. BOROD. In my opinion this is fact, sir. Mr. CLARDY. Is that the only answer you care to give? (At this point Mr. Borod conferred with Mr. Magee.) Mr. BOROD. I have been advised by counsel, sir, to refuse to answer this question on the legal grounds of the fifth amendment. Mr. DOYLE. I wish, Mr. Chairman, to have the record show that I contradict very strenuously the statement of this witness that this committee is known by the labor movement in America as antilabor. I happen to know that is not a fact. I do know, however, it very definitely is known as an antilabor committee by the Communists in the labor movement in America, not by the patriotic unions nor by the patriotic membership in the labor unions. Thank God there are only a very, very few that are not absolutely patriotic. Mr. CLARDY. I concur, Mr. Doyle. Mr. TAVENNER. Are you now a member of the Communist Party? Mr. BOROD. Mr. Tavenner, you know that I am not going to answer that question. Mr. CLARDY. Very well, decline to do so and state your grounds. Mr. BOROD. I decline to answer that question on the grounds previously stated, sir. Mr. CLARDY. Very well. Do you have any further questions, Mr. Tavenner? Mr. TAVENNER. I have no further questions, Mr. Chairman. Mr. CLARDY. The witness is excused. Now, in view of the fact that it is almost 4:30, we have a few things which must be said. Mr. DOYLE. Mr. Chairman, I am sure the record should show at this point that the subcommittee here has authorized the subcommittee chairman to make the announcement about the future dates. Mr. VELDE. Yes. Mr. Chairman, before closing the meeting this afternoon I would like to make just a very brief statement concerning the committee hearings here. I feel first of all that we owe a debt of gratitude to our good colleague from the State of California, Mr. Doyle, for taking time out to come out here to Michigan and render the able service he did as the Democratic member of this committee. I know that he has contributed a great deal to the hearings here today. I also want to compliment you, my good friend from Michigan, on your able handling of the chair during the course of these hearings. May I say also, as chairman of the full Committee on Un-American Activities, that I appreciate the courtesy that all of the courthouse officials, the State police, the security officials in your various fine automobile plants and sparkplug plants here have shown the committee and its staff, and I think I did mention the local police. We thank them for the courtesy, and also I am sure that you will thank the Board of Supervisors for giving us this fine hearing room to hold our hearings in. May I say that as far as the members of the bar here in Flint are concerned, that all of those who have represented witnesses here before this congressional hearing, have at all times acted in accordance with the ethics, the high ethics, of the bar association of this State and of the United States, I am sure, and for that we are extremely grateful. It has been a pleasure for me to be here, and I hope that I will be able to come back in the future-possibly under different circumstances, where I can enjoy some of the natural resources that you have here in the great State of Michigan. Mr. CLARDY. Thank you, Chairman Velde. Of course I am afraid that when we start talking about the beauties of Michigan, that we may have Mr. Doyle on our necks because he talks about California all the time, and now he wants to say it. Go ahead. Mr. DOYLE. I wish to say, inasmuch as the distinguished chairman of the full committee of nine members mentioned the fact that I did come to occupy the minority seat on this committee during this subcommittee hearing, and he identified me as a Democrat from Congress-that is true-and I just wish to state this, Mr. Chairman, that while it was not an easy matter for me to get away from Washington at this time, I was glad to come to fill in in the emergency. One further statement: I want this audience to understand, and I want my fellow Democrats to understand very clearly that we of the Democratic Party, we men that are elected to Congress, the leadership of the Democratic Party, are not one bit less axious to help rid American labor unions and American industry and in fact the whole American scene of Communists or other subversive conspirators than is the Republican Party or any other group. I want to make it clear, as a Democrat-first I am here as an American Congressman, but I came to this committee deliberately vesterday on invitation from the chairman in an emergency to fill this seat. I want you as American citizens to know that the Democrats are not less interested in doing this job, which is very difficult, very uncomfortable, very nerve-wracking, in time. The Democratic Party is just like the Republican Party—we are Americans first, and we are partisans second, but we are a hundred percent together in the difficult job of ridding, releasing to exposure of clean atmosphere those American citizens who, whatever their motives, dedicate their lives to Soviet communism rather than to the United States of America. Mr. CLARDY. Thank you, Mr. Doyle. Those who remain under subpena, and have not been called to the stand, by the direction of the chairman of the full committee will report on May 27 next unless, in the interval, word to the contrary setting a new place or date should be announced. Unless you are advised to the contrary, you will report in this same room on May 27. It is entirely possible, however, that the busy schedule of the members of the full committee may make it difficult for us to keep that date. We may even have to move the entire hearing to Detroit, or we may have to bring some of the witnesses to Washington. That is something yet to be solved and decided on, but because of the legal problems involved, we are making the announcement now that the subpenas for those who have not been called are continued until May 27 in this room, May 27 this year-yes, including, as I am reminded, James A. Coleman, who started to testify and who was asked to step aside because it was obvious we could not complete in the time required, and it will be 9:30 a. m., and if there is any doubt or confusion in anybody's mind, inquiry should be made to us, either now or in writing after we have left. Now, of course, I can't let this hearing conclude without adding a little bit to the things said by Mr. Velde and Mr. Doyle. Chief Byars and his force have been most cooperative throughout the period of the investigation and have contributed much to the committee in helping us solve a lot of tough problems. They have done an excellent job in keeping order in addition to that. The State police I have thanked before, but I want to single out my good friend, Andy Most, who has been working with Mr. Appell, our investigator, and with Mr. Jones the other investigator, for a long period of time and done an excellent job, but the entire State police force have cooperated with us in a way that deserves special commendation. Mr. Galliver, of course, should be mentioned. He has made it possible for us to have about the largest room in Flint. We certainly appreciate it. I shall call it to the attention of my colleagues in the House when I return. If there is anyone I have left out, I will just issue a blanket thank you to everyone who has in any way made our stay here pleasant. I am not speaking of the time spent in the hearing room itself. But at any rate, the committee will conclude its hearings at either the dates set or some other. I want to let everyone who is under subpena know that they are not being excused if they have not been on the stand and excused. With that the hearing is adjourned. (Whereupon, at 4:30 p. m., the hearing was adjourned.) |