(The witness confers with his counsel.) Mr. MILLER. The question, as I understand it, is--I mean the question of my avowal of a belief. I hope I am allowed a little bit of latitude in answering this. I state I am not a member of the Communist Party today due to any action on my part. I further state that I disavow anything which is contrary to the best interests of our country and of our people. As to pinning it down to the Communist Party, I have to frankly concede that I am not at all sure where the Communist Party is. I mean if the things that are ascribed to them are true, certainly I disavow them. I say that I have no association with them. It is only that I hesitate to disavow anything that I am not sure of. I am sure of the one thing, that I am opposed to anything that is against the best interests of the people of our country. Actually, since I was dropped in 1948 I have been inactive in all political activities to the point where I am not even registered to vote, I don’t believe, since 1948. I am confused on where most everybody stands, and I have not enough facts to draw a conclusion on it. Mr. MOULDER. The reason I ask you that question is because there is considerable evidence before this committee and other investigative Government agencies that many Communist Party members ceased to be active as party members but have gone underground and still continue in their same belief, the same philosophy, and with, of course, the same objectives. I believe your answer is clear to this point: you attended all of those Communist Party meetings; I believe you said a hundred, and it would vary one way or another, 50 percent either way. Mr. VELDE. Approximately 40, wasn’t it? Mr. MILLER. That is it. Mr. MOULDER. But during that period of time you certainly must have been well versed and qualified to know the purposes and the policies of the Communist Party as such, because at those meetings didn’t you study the Communist Party literature and study the purposes for which it was organized? Mr. MILLER. Is that the question? Mr. MOULDER. Yes. Mr. MILLER. Yes, I did. Mr. MOULDER. Has your opinion now changed with respect to the Communist Party from what it was when you were attending the Communist Party meetings? Or is it the same as it was then? Mr. MILLER. I see what you are driving at, and it is hard for me to get my understanding across. Mr. MOULDER. You say you have severed your association with the party, and I want to know if it is just a technical disassociation or is it a clean break from the Communist Party? Mr. MILLER. No; it is not a technical disassociation. If I might have a moment, I would like to go on a little further.