based upon National Guardian report
ide Hotes Most socialists in Brigain insofar as they have consid«red the Hoffa trial have tended to accept é@xplanation that the aim of the operation is to merely 'clean up! U.S. trade unionism, It is therefore important to consider what one of the most authoritative voices of the radical left has to say on this matter,
Tho 7-year drive of the Kennedy brothers to 'got Hoffa! - a struggle that most of the nation's press has dutifully reflected as being between good and evil ~ recorded its first success March le when a federal judge in Chattanooga, sentenced the president of the nation's largest and fastest-growing union to cight years in prison. Hoffa called the vordict a "railroad job't and declared that "if this is justice in the U.S., I pity those who dontt have the monoy to pay for an appeal." He is cxpect= ed to retain his leadership of the 1.7 million teamsters during the 2 yoars his appeals will bo before the courts.
~
Hoffa is admittedly no model for the now breed of union burcaucrat or radical tradw union leader, but it is significant, as New York Times Inbour expert, Raskin, wrote in Atlantic Magazine (January, 1964) thats tin the face of the most sustained, most widespread public hostility ever concentrated on a single labour organisation," the International Drotherhood of Teamsters, Chaffeurs, Warchousomon and Helyers of America is gaining between 50,000 and 100,000 members a year while AFL-CIO memborcship declines. Ifoffa has a background of activo unionism (he boasts he was once arrested 18 times in one day on the picket line). He says his mentor in union affairs was Farrell Dobbs, former Minneapolis Toamster leador who, together with the Dunne brothers, organised the over=the-road truck drivers in 1937. In 1940, Dobbs was offered a Toanster intornational vice-presidoney, but turned it down to become national secretary of the Socialist Workors Party.
J.@. Kennedy, in his 1960 campaigr, made a pledge to 'get Hoffat, In that cempaign, Ucffa and the Teamsters backed Johnson as the strongest anti-Kennedy fieure. As Attorney General, R. Kennedy transformed the prosecution of Hoffa from a political issue into a major fcderal activity. Ile appointed W. Sheridan as head of the Justice Department's Hoffa unit . The unit today includes 15 full-time lawyers and investigators and at times of unusual activity outnumbers the Jivil kights division. In carly October, 1962, 4, Partin, an official of the Toamsters,; was in gaol, and wos also under indictment for embezzling $1,000 in union funds. Ile contacted an agent of the Hoffa unit and offered him information, presumably in exchange for his freedom. On Oct. 18, 4 days bofore Iloffats Nashville trial on charges of holding de facto control of a contracting firm whose employees are representated by the Teamstors, Partin arrivad in Nashville. He became a paid informer. Hoffa was acquitted and Konnedy decided to charge him with influencing tho jury. ,
Partin's testimony was that he heard Hoffa declare he would pay "yp to $20,000" toe get at the jurye Tho defonco attomptod to discredit Partin by roference to his extromely unsavoury record, and a Justice Department spokesman admitted that $900 was sent to Partin via his wifa. Toffats attornoys also produced testimony that the Justico Department itself had tricd to influonce the Nashville jury. They also comployed an clectronics expert to detoct wiretapping, ets by government agents. Tory than 4 pages of the monitored. conversation ve “roproduced in the Congressional Record. The FBI admitted that it had taken 732 photos of Uoffa ond his attorneys beforo the trial. Such is the intensity of the vendetta against Hoffa. Despite all this, Hoffa managed, at Pook g prior to the trial,to sign the first nation-wide trucking contruct.
U.S. NOTES