women protesting the
American embargo on Spain, April 5, 1938 Bernard's single congressional term is notable for his casting the sole vote against an
arms embargo against
Spain during the
Spanish Civil War: Minnesota Congressman John T. Bernard fought throughout his life for working people against strong opposition. His outspoken and uncompromising views led him, on his second day in office, to cast the single "no" vote in Congress against the Spanish arms embargo. Bernard's vote proved farsighted as the Spanish Civil War became, in many ways, a "dress rehearsal" for World War II. {{cite book Less known years later were his strong support for the
Communist-backed
Popular Front: Bernard won election in the Farmer-Labor landslide of 1936 ... and quickly became the most enthusiastic and outspoken advocate of the Popular Front in Congress. Not even other Congressmen who sympathized with the Popular Front underlined their links to the Communist Party by inserting, as Bernard did, articles from the Communist Party's
Daily Worker into the
Congressional Record. While in office (1937–1939), Bernard's personal secretary in Washington was
Marion Bachrach, sister of
John Abt, chief counsel of the
Communist Party. Former Soviet
GRU operative
Whittaker Chambers named both Bacharach and Abt among others as members of the
Ware Group (his first spy network) during his testimony under subpoena to
HUAC on August 3, 1948. That testimony led to the
Hiss Case during 1949 and Hiss' conviction in January 1950. Bernard also employed Herman Griffith on his congressional staff. Griffith was a leading Popular Front activist and self-announced CPUSA member. In 1952, Bernard testified under subpoena before
HUAC. For most questions, he asserted his
Fifth Amendment privilege. He also asserted his loyalty to America and willingness to defend it. In 1977, Bernard accepted membership in the
Communist Party USA. ==See also==