(1) the date and place of entry of the alien into the United States; (2) activities in
which he has been and intends to be engaged; (3) the length of time he expects to
remain in the United States; (4) the criminal record, if any, of such alien; and (5)
such additional matters as may be prescribed by the Commissioner, with the
approval of the Attorney General.
43
The “Additional Matters” clause allowed the Attorney General to focus more on the alien’s
beliefs and feelings regarding Communism. Furthermore, The Smith Act required all resident
aliens to notify the government of their location within five days of changing residences.
With regards to anti-Communism, the Smith Act was similar to the Espionage Act of
1917. However, the Smith Act did not limit itself to just wartime speech. In particular, the
Smith Act made it illegal to:
1) to knowingly or willfully advocate, abet, advise, or teach the duty, necessity,
desirability, or propriety of overthrowing or destroying any government in the
United States by force or violence, or by the assassination of any officer of any
such government;
(2) with the intent to cause the overthrow or destruction of any government in the
United States, to print, publish, edit, issue, circulate, sell, distribute, or publicly
display any written or printed matter advocating, advising, or teaching the duty,
necessity, desirability, or propriety of overthrowing or destroying any government
in the United States by force or violence.
(3) to organize or help to organize any society, group, or assembly of persons who
teach, advocate, or encourage the overthrow or destruction of any government in
the United States by force or violence; or to be or become a member of, or
affiliate with, any such society, group, or assembly of persons, knowing the
purposes thereof.
44
As the Marxist-Leninist school of Communism (i.e. Soviet Communism) taught the need for
worldwide revolution and that the Communist Party of the United States followed this doctrine,
the Smith Act, for all intents and purposes, made the CPUSA an illegal organization. To provide
further legal ammunition against the Communist Party, the Smith Act also contained a
conspiracy clause, which would allow the government to prosecute the Communist Party with
comparative ease.
43
Alien Registration Act of 1940. Title III, Section 34 (a). 54 Stat. 670 (1940).
44
Ibid. Title I, Section 2 (a).
22