Notas del Secretario del PC de EEUU Browder sobre la situación en México 1937 08 20 Two generals who distributed arms to the peasants for self defense were removed from office last month. Toledano people themselves told us that over half of the army officers were found pro Franco on the question of the war in Spain. Franco spies are everywhere, and nothing seems to be happen to them. The rest of the army officers are mostly non political, but entirely pro Cardenas, whatever he does. The Chief issues nice statements about Spain, and there have been government notes, but actually any substantial assistance to the Spanish Republic is prevented, as far as we know. The Chief seems to us to be building the CROM (Morones labor center and definitely reactionary. Marones is back, and nobody believe he would have dared to come without an invitation, even though, very belatedly, it was denied that he was invited. The state owned Hidalgo theatre was taken away from the CTM on May Day eve, and given to Marones to make a speech. The CROM held its own May Day parade on May 2, and had more police protection than the CTM parade the day before. ver 100 CTM members and no CROM were arrested when there were bloody clashes between adherents of the two unions in three textile mills recently. Laborde people excuse the Chief on the grounds that the governor of that state is reactionary and nothing can be done about it by the federal government.
But the Chief personally laid down a set of rules by which the CROM was officially given the right to organize these mills by the government. And this took place after the fighting. It seems to us that the CR OM is definitely under the protection of the Chief. Through General the Chief has gained altogether too much influence over Laborde. Laborde has the utmost confidence in and we think, has some kind of an understanding with him which he will not te ll us about. This is in spite of the fact that was th1519n who engineered the asylum for Trotsky, by taking Diego Rivera to see the Chief, and making the arrangements. And we know that does not anything of importance without consulting the Chief. The Chief always forbids big strikes, notably the recent attempted strike of electricians against the high cost of living before that the railroad strike, and last week the Big Chief and jointly forbade and prevented a proposed strike of postal worke rs. They laid down the principle that federal em1519Véase la nota 434.
Véase la nota 449.