Hate Trotskyism, Hate the Spartacist League
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Hate Trotskyism, Hate the Spartacist League -a bulletin series consisting of material hostile to Trotskyism and the Spartacist League BULLETIN NO.3 -Reprint of "What Is Spartacist?" by Tim Wohlforth, Second Edition (June 1973) -Reprint of "The Wohlforth League: Counterfeit Trotskyists" from Spartacist No. 17-18, August-September 1970 -Reprint of "The Workers League and the Interna tional Committee: A Statement by Tim Wohlforth" 11 January 1975 -Reprint of "Confessions of a 'Renegade': Wohlforth Terminated" from Workers Vanguard No. 61,31 January 1975 Spartacist Publishing Company August 1975 Box 1377 GPO whole no.3 New York, New York 10116 $2.75 Preface In this third bulletin of the "Hate Trotskyism, Hate the Spartacist League" series we have reproduced the second edition of Wohlforth's "What Is Spartacist?" along with his .. introduction. Although Wohlforth stated (in the introduc- tion) that "nothing has been changed," in comparing the first edition with the second we found no less than 194 editorial alterations in the body of the document and more in the footnotes. These are all minor editorial changes and not major political changes, but are certainly more than "nothing." This deliberate and written lie is typical of Wohlforth's lack of concern for truth, a trait evident also in the many inaccuracies/lies in the text of the • pamphlet itself. A 2Partacist reply to this pamphlet, • published while the material was being printed in its original form in the Workers League's Bulletin, is also included. We have also reprinted his statement "The Workers League and the International Committee" in its original form just as we received it, and our commentary on the latter ("Wohlforth Terminated") from Workers Van~ard. ... 1 lntroduction P~e3 "If we subtract everything accidental, personal and episodical, If we reduce the present groupings In struggle to their fundamental political types, then In dubitably the struggle of comrade Abern against com rade Cannon has been the most consistent. In this struggle· Abern represents a propagandistic group, petty-bourgeois In Its social composition, united by old personal ties and having almost the character of a family." Leon Trotsky, In Defense of Marxism, page 61 Introduction This series originally appeared In the weekly Bulletin from June 22, 1971 to August 10, 1970. Over the past 25 years the world Trotskyist movement has been passing through a difficult period oC internal struggle. During the inflationary postwar boom-the product of the capitalists fear of confrontation with the workinst class and in no sense a solution to the crisis of capitalism -powerful Seand Edit.... June 1m revisionist and liquidationist tendencies developed within the Fourth International. Michel Pablo, the postwar International Published by: ubot Publications, Incorporated, Seventh Sec;r~tary of the Fourth International, was the leading figure Floor, 135 West 1.th Street, New York, New 10011. for many years in. these revisionist efforts to liquidate the movement. The position of Pablo and Pabloism was to abandon the Transitional Program upon which the Fourth International was founded in 1938. He held that the Tn_iUonal Program was not applicable because of the "new reality" of the postwar . period. This theory of a "new reality" was based on im pressions of the permanence of the postwar capitalist boom, the apparent strength of Stalinism, the continuing struggles in the colonial countries which were led by petty bourgeois nationalist forces, and the very slow and largely politically reformist life of the mass of workers in the metropolitan coun tries. All this was seen as permanent and the underlying crisis of capitalism was totally ignored. On this basis, the construc tion of Trotskyist parties was abandoned In Cavor of putting pressure on existing Stali"ist. reformist and nationalist Page 4 What 11 Spartacilt? Introduction Page 5 leaderships. method of the SWP itself. Through such a break, the develop Thus, Pabloism abandoned the Marxist method for im ment of an alternati\'e Marxist perspective could be put pressionism and empiricism. It turned its back on the working forward. class and represented a petty bourgeois tendency sensitive to Robertson was among the first to carry through a formal the pressures of the capitalist class itself. break with the revisionism of the SWP only to embrace it in The 25 year struggle against Pabloism, which is by no another form. He has been followed by many others: Lynn means over, has been the central theoretical preparation of Marcus and his Labor Committee, Art Fox and his United the world Trotskyist movement for the new period of inter National Caucus, Harry 'Turner and his Vanguard national capitalist crisis and class struggle we are now in so Newsletter, and now Passan and Gregorich and their Class deeply. As' the International' Committee has analyzed all Struggle League. Robertson was the granddaddy of them all. along, the very factors which made for the boom and the' slew On all the fundamental questions, they agree with Robertson. movement of the working class in the past period, that is, the In turn. Robertson still agrees fundamentally with the SWP. inflationary monetary arrangements worked out at Bretton The main tenets of Robertson's position go back to his Woods in 1944,' today have a revolutionary impact on original break with the International Committee in 1962 . capitalist relations; ripping apart the compromises between . Robertson ..did not begin from the continuity of world classes and requiring preparation for the fundamental Trotskyism which has taken the form of the bitter struggle of struggle for power itself. Now we can actually construct mass' the International Committee against revisionism: He revolutionary parties in a number of countries. recognized neither the theoretical importance of that struggle, This new situation makes our study of the past develop nor the importance. of the international movement con ment of the Trotskyist movement .all the more urgent. The structed through that struggle, nor above all the actual con struggle against revisionism led to the formation of the Inter tent of what was learned through that struggle. For this national Committee of the Fourth International in 1953. The reason, Robertson has no perspective for the present period. Ie has carried this struggle forward ever since, thereby main Lacking a perspective, Robertson exists for the purpose of ex taining the continuity of Trotskyism~ of Bolshevism, into this isting. He maintains a circle of people who function as middle new period when mass parties can be built. For this very class radicals. reason, the struggle against revisionism is our theoretical capital. It is our development of Marxism from Trotsky's day, INTERNATIONALISM so essential in equipping and training our movement for The publication of Leon Trotsky's The Spanish Revolution revolutionary tasks today. (1931-:19) is of the greatest importance not only for the light it Theoretical development over the whole past period has sheds on the Spanish events and revolutionary strategy in general hut paiticularlY for the discussion of differences with been painfully slow, reflecting the isolation of the Trotskyist Andres ~in and tQe Spanish Section of the International Left movement from revolutionary struggle because of the boom. Opposition. The dispute with Nin was over the same issue. Nevertheless, theoretical development has taken place. In Trotsky, over a long period, battled Andres Nin's refusal to fact, the very slowness of this development has made the really concern himself with the day to day life of the inter lessons learned over this' period that much more important national movement, to seek to learn from this life, and in turn and substantial. .The issues in dispute with revisionism were to develop a policy in Spain which was rooted in international and are the central issues: the nature of the period, perspec tives, the party itself, Marxism. perspectives. He accused Nin of carrying out a passive; propagandistic existence which he covered with arguments The struggle' with James Robertson and' his' Spartacist about the exceptional character of events in Spain. In the end, League is a significant chapter in the history of this 25 year Nin fused with the centrist Maurin and constructed the --struggle agafnst revisionism. Robertson was originally a sup ?OUM whose first act was to embrace the Popular Front in . porter of the International Committee. He was among diose :;pain. The degenerate, centrist role of the POUM made a . who originally opposed the Socialist Workers Party's em- ::ritical contribution to the defeat of the Spanish Revolution . bracing of Pabloite revisionism in 1961. However, he broke Trot!:ky writes: with the International Committee at the pre<;ise point where "1{ the Spanish Oppositionilts remained unac opposition to the SWP's revisionism required a break with the quainted with thilltruggle (the internal struggle o{ Page 6 What Is Spartacist? Introduction Page 7 the International Left Opposition-To W.) then from the IC. Ever since, his role has been one of seeking u~ that must be considered a great shortcoming. We principled alliances internationally which are aimed against cannot develop true revolutionists without giving the IC. , the young communists the chance to follow the It is significant to note the position he took at the 1966 day-to-dayelaboration of the Bolshevik policies not Conference. He stated to that Conference that there no longer only in the Spanish section but in the other sec tions ,of the International Opposition as well. Only existed a Fourth International. All that existed were several in this manner can we gain expe ..ience, build and factions calling themselves "Fourth International" each of strengthen the revolutionary consciousness. This which contained some worthy elements. His hope was to bring is precisely the most important part of the about some sort of regroupment of these forces on the basis of democratic party regime that we strive to es· Spartacist.