Charles Kramer
Encyclopedia
Charles Kramer, originally Charles Krevisky, was an American economist who worked for U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt
as part of his brain trust
. Among other contributions, he wrote the original idea for the Point Four Program
. He also worked for several congressional committees and hired Lyndon B. Johnson
for his first Federal
job. Kramer was accused of being a spy for the Soviet Union
, but no charges were brought against him.
as a result of his youngest brother's illness, and Kramer was forced to quit medical school and go to work.
Evidence of Kramer's membership in the Communist Party USA
(CPUSA) and his contacts with known Soviet agents comes from several sources: the direct testimony of Whittaker Chambers
, Elizabeth Bentley
, Lee Pressman
, and Nathaniel Weyl
; the Venona decrypts; and the Moscow archives of the Soviet Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).
Other alleged members of the CPUSA underground allegedly assisted Kramer in obtaining some of his positions in the American government. John Abt
hired him for the Senate Civil Liberties Subcommittee (the LaFollette Committee
). Nathan Witt
helped him get a job within the Department of Labor
National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB) before World War II
. Victor Perlo
signed Kramer's job performance rating at the Office of Price Administration
(OPA) during the war and was listed as a job reference.
Kramer took time off in 1944 to work for the Democratic National Committee
and in 1946 to assist the reelection campaign of California Democratic representative Ellis Patterson, and he also worked for the United States Senate
Subcommittee on War Mobilization (the Kilgore Committee http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=K000176) and the Senate Subcommittee on Wartime Health and Education during the war; and the Senate Labor and Public Welfare Committee after the war.
Kramer is supposed to have provided information to the Soviets from his position as staff member of the Senate Subcommittee on War Mobilization on a dispute among American policy makers concerning the Comité National Français, or Free French National Committee of Charles de Gaulle
and an internal U.S. government investigation of German corporate links to American companies. Kramer also allegedly passed information from the Democratic National Committee about President Harry S. Truman
's likely appointments in the State Department and views of Truman by various Senators.
The Venona decrypts from 1945 suggest that Kramer was an unwilling source. His contacts with Anatoli Gorsky, the legal Rezident, provided little information beyond what could be obtained from a newspaper article or overheard at a Washington D.C. restaurant.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
as part of his brain trust
Brain Trust
Brain trust began as a term for a group of close advisors to a political candidate or incumbent, prized for their expertise in particular fields. The term is most associated with the group of advisors to Franklin Roosevelt during his presidential administration...
. Among other contributions, he wrote the original idea for the Point Four Program
Point Four Program
The Point Four Program was a technical assistance program for "developing countries" announced by United States President Harry S. Truman in his inaugural address on January 20, 1949...
. He also worked for several congressional committees and hired Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
for his first Federal
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
job. Kramer was accused of being a spy for the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, but no charges were brought against him.
Biography
Kramer's family lost everything in the DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
as a result of his youngest brother's illness, and Kramer was forced to quit medical school and go to work.
Evidence of Kramer's membership in the Communist Party USA
Communist Party USA
The Communist Party USA is a Marxist political party in the United States, established in 1919. It has a long, complex history that is closely related to the histories of similar communist parties worldwide and the U.S. labor movement....
(CPUSA) and his contacts with known Soviet agents comes from several sources: the direct testimony of Whittaker Chambers
Whittaker Chambers
Whittaker Chambers was born Jay Vivian Chambers and also known as David Whittaker Chambers , was an American writer and editor. After being a Communist Party USA member and Soviet spy, he later renounced communism and became an outspoken opponent later testifying in the perjury and espionage trial...
, Elizabeth Bentley
Elizabeth Bentley
Elizabeth Terrill Bentley was an American spy for the Soviet Union from 1938 until 1945. In 1945 she defected from the Communist Party and Soviet intelligence and became an informer for the U.S. She exposed two networks of spies, ultimately naming over 80 Americans who had engaged in espionage for...
, Lee Pressman
Lee Pressman
Lee Pressman was a labor attorney and a US government functionary publicly exposed in 1948 for having been a spy for the Soviet foreign intelligence network during the middle 1930s...
, and Nathaniel Weyl
Nathaniel Weyl
Nathaniel Weyl was an American economist and author who wrote on a variety of social issues. A member of the Communist Party of the United States from 1933 until 1939, after leaving the party he became a conservative and avowed anti-communist...
; the Venona decrypts; and the Moscow archives of the Soviet Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).
Other alleged members of the CPUSA underground allegedly assisted Kramer in obtaining some of his positions in the American government. John Abt
John Abt
John Jacob Abt was an American lawyer and politician. He spent most of his career as chief counsel to the Communist Party USA ....
hired him for the Senate Civil Liberties Subcommittee (the LaFollette Committee
LaFollette Committee
The LaFollette Civil Liberties Committee, or more formally, Committee on Education and Labor, Subcommittee Investigating Violations of Free Speech and the Rights of Labor , began as an inquiry into a National Labor Relations Board investigation of methods used by employers in certain industries to...
). Nathan Witt
Nathan Witt
Nathan Witt was an American lawyer who is best known as being the Secretary of the National Labor Relations Board from 1937 to 1940...
helped him get a job within the Department of Labor
United States Department of Labor
The United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. Many U.S. states also have such departments. The...
National Labor Relations Board
National Labor Relations Board
The National Labor Relations Board is an independent agency of the United States government charged with conducting elections for labor union representation and with investigating and remedying unfair labor practices. Unfair labor practices may involve union-related situations or instances of...
(NLRB) before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Victor Perlo
Victor Perlo
Victor Perlo was a Marxist economist, government functionary, and a longtime member of the governing National Committee of the Communist Party USA...
signed Kramer's job performance rating at the Office of Price Administration
Office of Price Administration
The Office of Price Administration was established within the Office for Emergency Management of the United States government by Executive Order 8875 on August 28, 1941. The functions of the OPA was originally to control money and rents after the outbreak of World War II.President Franklin D...
(OPA) during the war and was listed as a job reference.
Kramer took time off in 1944 to work for the Democratic National Committee
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...
and in 1946 to assist the reelection campaign of California Democratic representative Ellis Patterson, and he also worked for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Subcommittee on War Mobilization (the Kilgore Committee http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=K000176) and the Senate Subcommittee on Wartime Health and Education during the war; and the Senate Labor and Public Welfare Committee after the war.
Kramer is supposed to have provided information to the Soviets from his position as staff member of the Senate Subcommittee on War Mobilization on a dispute among American policy makers concerning the Comité National Français, or Free French National Committee of Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
and an internal U.S. government investigation of German corporate links to American companies. Kramer also allegedly passed information from the Democratic National Committee about President Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
's likely appointments in the State Department and views of Truman by various Senators.
The Venona decrypts from 1945 suggest that Kramer was an unwilling source. His contacts with Anatoli Gorsky, the legal Rezident, provided little information beyond what could be obtained from a newspaper article or overheard at a Washington D.C. restaurant.
Venona
Kramer is referred to in Soviet intelligence intercepts and the Venona files as "Plumb", "Lot" and "Mole".External links
- The Cold War International History Project (CWIHP) has the full text of former KGB agent Alexander Vassiliev's Notebooks containing new evidence on Kramer's cooperation with the Soviet Union