Workers' Party of the United States

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The Workers' Party of the United States was a Marxist party founded in December 1934 by the merger of the American Workers Party, which had been founded as the Conference for Progressive Political Action by A.J. Muste, and the Trotskyist Communist League of America, led by James Cannon, Max Shachtman and Hugo Oehler.

The new organisation met with success, especially through the work of the National Unemployed League. However the rapid growth of the Socialist Party and of its Left Wing current eventually uncut its growth: The new party was soon divided over approaches to the SP. Cannon and Shachtman favoured unity with the SP, while Oehler opposed it. Muste took a middle position, initially sharing Oehler's caution. In 1936 the Trotskyists left the WP in order to join the SP.