Robert Kastenmeier

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Robert Kastenmeier

Template:TOCnestleft Robert Kastenmeier was a far left, Democratic Party Congressman from Wisconsin.

Service

Kastenmeier began his of service in the House in 1959. He served on two security sensitive committees, Intelligence and Judiciary. The Intelligence Committee is directly concerned with the affairs of the CIA and other American intelligence operations. On the Judiciary Committee Kastenmeier is a member of the Subcommittee on Civil and Constitutional Rights, and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Courts, Civil Liberties, and the Administration of Justice, both of which have considerable authority over FBI affairs.[1]

IPS connection

Marcus Raskin and another founder of the Institute for Policy Studies, Arthur Waskow, had previously worked for Democratic Congressman Robert Kastenmeier of Wisconsin. In 1961 they co-authored a report for him that recommended unilateral disarmament for the U.S.[2]

Radical Aides

Gar Alperovitz replaced Marcus Raskin as an aide to Rep. Robert Kastenmeier.

FBI interest

Kastrnmeier.JPG

The Chile letter

On August 1 1979 Thirty-five U.S. Congressmen signed a letter[3]to President Jimmy Carter demanding that private bank loans to Chile be barred unless the Chilean government chose to extradite three military officials, including the former director of the Chilean intelligence service. The three had been indicted for complicity in the assassination of marxist Unidad Popular government member and KGB agent Orlando Letelier and the killing of Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) staffer Ronni Moffitt in 1976.

In May 1978 the Chief Justice of the Chilean Supreme Court rejected the U.S. request for extradition.

Chief sponsor of the letter was Rep. Tom Harkin (D-IA), who was joined by Congressmen John Burton (D-CA), John Conyers (D-MI), Robert Kastenmeier (D-WI), Ron Dellums (D-CA), Berkly Bedell (D-IA), Richard Ottinger (D-NY), Fred Richmond (D-NY), Robert Drinan (D-MA), Leon Panetta (D-CA), Don Edwards (D-CA); Norman Mineta (D-CA), Pete Stark (D-CA}, Anthony Beileson (D-CA) George Brown (D-CA), Toby Moffett (D-CT), Dale Kildee (D-MI), Eugene Atkinson (D-PA), Michael Barnes (D-MD), David Bonior (D-MI), Adam Benjamin (D-IN), William Brodhead (D-MI), Robert Carr (D-MI), Tom Daschle (D-SD), Tom Downey (D-NY), Harold Hollenbeck (R-NJ), Pete Kostmayer (D-PA), Stewart McKinney (R-CT), Edward Markey (D-MA), Andrew Maguire (D-NJ) Richard Nolan (DFL-MN), Gerry Studds (D-MA), Bruce Vento (DFL-MN) and Howard Wolpe (D-MI).

The Harkin letter characterized the Chilean government as "an enemy of the American people" and urged the President to "take strong action against this terrorist government." The letter was released (9 A.M. on August 1 1979) at the same time a press statement from the Washington, DC, Chile Legislative Center of the National Coordinating Center in Solidarity with Chile, staffed by veterans of the Venceremos Brigade and the Communist Party USA, supported the Congressional letter and urged pressure so that the State Department does not accept a military trial of the three Chileans in Chile as a substitute for extradition and trial in the US.

"Knows about" DSOC"

Nancy Lieber, International Committee chair of the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee, wrote a June 30, 1981 letter to Danielle Page, a staffer for Canadian Member of Parliament Ian Waddell.

Dear Danielle Page,
I'm sending along a list of Congresspeople and senators who know about us, democratic socialism, and -- perhaps Canada.
Only the first one is an open socialist, but the others are sympathetic in varying degrees.

The list was;

Hope this is of help and you recruit them to the cause!
In Solidarity,
Nancy Lieber
Chair, Intl. Committee

DSA interest in campaign funders

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Socialist help

During Lynn Haanen’s time at 123, she hosted San Francisco gay rights activist Harry Britt, and worked in constituent relations in Gov. Tony Earl’s office and met Earl Bricker and Tammy Baldwin. Lynn also hosted myriad campaign efforts, including her own and those of David Clarenbach, Robert Kastenmeier, Eighth District Alder Anne Monks, Governor Tony Earl’s re-election, and Tammy Baldwin’s first run for Dane County Board supervisor.

IPS 20th Anniversary Committee

According to Information Digest[4]the Institute for Policy Studies celebrated its 20th anniversary with an April 5, 1983, reception at the National Building Museum attended by approximately 1,000 IPS staffers and former staff.

The Congressional IPS comittee members included Les Aspin {D. WI}, George Brown, Jr. (D.CA}, Philip Burton (D.CA), George Crockett (D-MI}, Ron Dellums (D.CA}, former Texas Congressman Robert Eckhardt, Don Edwards {D.CA}, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Civil and Constitutional Rights, Tom Harkin {D-IA}, Robert Kastenmeier (D. WI}, Chairman of the Subcomittee on Courts, Civil Liberties and the Administration of Justice, George Miller (D-CA}, Richard Ottinger {D-NY}, Leon Panetta (D-CA}, Henry Reuss (D.WI}, Chairman of the Joint Economic Committee, Patricia Schroeder {D.CO}, John Seiberling (D.OH} and Ted Weiss {D.NY}.

Voted against support for "Contras"

The Congressional Record of February 3, 1988 shows that the following leading Democratic Party Congressmen voted against aid to the Nicaraguan Freedom Fighters - the "Contras"- then fighting against the Marxist-Leninist Sandinista government of Nicaragua:

"Congressional Pink Caucus"

In October 1989 the Nicaraguan Sandinista Government announced that they would no longer comply with the 19 month-old cease-fire agreement with the Contras. This had been considered a prime step forward for the "peace process" that was progressing slowly as part of the Arias Peace Plan.

A resolution was introduced in Congress deploring the Sandinistas' action. The Senate voted unanimously in favor, but in the House the vote was 379-29. All the 29 Congressmen voting against the resolution were Democrats.

The Council for Inter-American Security dubbed these 29 people the "Congressional Pink Caucus":

El Salvador resolution

In 1989 the following measures were introduced into congress supporting the communist efforts in El Salvador:

  • House Concurrent Resolution 1 to slash military aid to El Salvador.
  • Concurrent Resolution 48 "Expressing the Sense of the Congress that the United States Should Pursue a Negotiated Settlement to the Civil War in EI Salvador." This was introduced by Nancy Pelosi (CA) just as the Salvadoran Communists had started a new call for negotiations and demands that the 1989 Presidential election be postponed.

Supported by Council for a Livable World

The Council for a Livable World, founded in 1962 by long-time socialist activist and alleged Soviet agent, Leo Szilard, is a non-profit advocacy organization that seeks to "reduce the danger of nuclear weapons and increase national security", primarily through supporting progressive, congressional candidates who support their policies. The Council supported Robert Kastenmeier in his successful House of Representatives run as candidate for Wisconsin.[6]

References

Template:Reflist

  1. ↑ Communists in the Democratic party, page 71
  2. ↑ Communists in the Democratic party, page 70
  3. ↑ Information Digest August 10 1979 p 244
  4. ↑ Information Digest April l5, 1983 p77-79
  5. ↑ Communists in the Democrat Party, page 36
  6. ↑ CLW website: Meet Our Candidates
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