The Pittsburgh Press (July 30, 1944)
Real political action!
‘Get the dough but plenty!’ state CIO told
‘The more we get the more we can spend’
By Robert Taylor, Pittsburgh Press staff writer
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania – (July 29)
The “Pennsylvania Political Action Committee,” the newest arm of the CIO political action group, organized today to raise a dollar each from every CIO member in the state, as part of a $5-million campaign fund in the United States.
Some 300 representatives of the CIO local unions, who met today to approve organization of the new committee, were armed with receipt books and told to “go out and get the dough, if you want political action to succeed.”
The new group, formed as the state committee of the National Citizens’ Political Action Committee, wants voluntary contributions of a dollar each from CIO members and will accept similar contributions up to the legal limit of $5,000 from “friends of the CIO.”
Wants ‘all we can get’
David J. McDonald of Pittsburgh, secretary-treasurer of the United Steel Workers, finance chairman of the NCPAC and board member of the previously-formed CIO-PAC, explained it to the members this way:
If every member of the CIO contributes, we will have roughly $5 million, half of each contribution will go to the national committee and the other half of the county, state and regional committees.
I hope we get $25 million. We want all we can get. The more we get, the more we can spend. The more we spend, the better Congress we will have. The more we spend in Pennsylvania, the better state legislature we will have. It’s as simple as that.
Endorses Democrats
The committee formed today by CIO delegates is a campaign committee and its funds will be spent on behalf of candidates endorsed by the committee who now include the national and state Democratic tickets.
Mr. McDonald explained that the CIO-PAC, which raised $700,000 in union funds, is not permitted to spend a penny of it in campaigning, “because the law says it was contributed by unions, as such.”
The Smith-Connally Act, bitterly opposed by the CIO, banned union contributions to political candidates or committees. Federal law restricts expenditures of political committees in federal elections to $3 million, and individual contributions to $5,000.
State officials of the new political action group explained that the CIO-PAC would be retained for educational work among CIO members and the new committee, formed by citizens, would be for campaign purposes and to enlist support of all labor, farm, liberal and progressive groups.
Will adhere to law
Mr. McDonald advised the meeting the new committee will adhere strictly to the letter of Pennsylvania law in raising its money, issuing individual receipts to each donor.
He said half of each dollar would go to the NCPAC and the remaining 50 cents would be retained by the local union for county, state and regional purposes. He suggested 20 cents be sent to the state committee and 30 cents to the country political action committees which are to be formed.
He pointed out:
That will leave none for the local. A local union can’t spend political money under state law. To do so, they must set up a local group and get a lawyer to tell them what to do.
Rather than bother with setting up five to ten thousand local political action groups, we believe the state and county groups will be able to function better.
325,000 members in state
CIO unions are estimated to comprise some 325,000 members in Pennsylvania and the suggested division of dollar contributions would give more than $150,000 to the NCPAC, $60,000 to the state group and $90,000 to county committees.
The head of the finance committee which will head the fund drive is A. J. Federoff, CIO regional director at Pittsburgh and secretary-treasurer of the Pennsylvania PAC. Joseph a. Donoghue, Pennsylvania regional director of the CIO-PAC, was also named state director of the Pennsylvania PAC, of which John A. Phillips, president of the state industrial union council (CIO), is chairman.
Explains ABCs
Mr. McDonald told the meeting the ABC of political action is: Complete registration of voters, endorsement of friendly candidates by free expression of the PAC members and getting out the vote.
He said:
We are concerned not in parties as such. We are concerned with persons and principles. We are not our ringing the gong for any party as such. We scan the records and principles of parties and persons. This is a strictly nonpartisan political action committee.
It’s true we endorsed President Roosevelt and the Democratic ticket. In many parts of the country, we endorsed Republicans, as far friendlier than Democrats.
Formed by ‘citizens’
Unlike the CIO-PAC, which was formed directly and affiliated with the CIO, the NCPAC and its new Pennsylvania affiliate is an organization formed by union members as “citizens.”
The citizens who attended today’s meeting were representatives of CIO locals who were asked to send their representatives here to ratify the committee organized temporarily June 27. They perfunctorily approved its formation and officers.