Editing Gough Whitlam (section)

===Deputy Leader, 1960–1967===
By the late 1950s Whitlam was seen as a leadership contender once the existing Labor leaders exited the scene. Most of the party's major figures, including Evatt, Deputy Leader [[Arthur Calwell]], [[Eddie Ward]], and [[Reg Pollard (politician)|Reg Pollard]], were in their sixties, twenty years older than Whitlam.{{sfn|Lloyd|2008|p=333}} In 1960, after losing three elections, Evatt resigned and was replaced by Calwell, with Whitlam defeating Ward for deputy leader.{{sfn|Lloyd|2008|pp=333–334}} Calwell came within a handful of votes of winning the cliffhanger [[1961 Australian federal election|1961 election]]. He had not wanted Whitlam as deputy leader, and believed Labor would have won if Ward had been in the position.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=218–219}}

Soon after the 1961 election, events began to turn against Labor. When President [[Sukarno]] of Indonesia announced that he intended to take over [[West New Guinea]] as the colonial Dutch departed, Calwell responded by declaring that Indonesia must be stopped by force. Calwell's statement was called "crazy and irresponsible" by Prime Minister Menzies, and the incident reduced public support for the ALP.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=219–220}} At that time, the Federal Conference of the Labor Party, which dictated policy to parliamentary members, consisted of six members from each state, but not Calwell or Whitlam. In early 1963 a special conference met in a Canberra hotel to determine Labor policy regarding a proposed US base in northern Australia; Calwell and Whitlam were photographed by ''[[The Daily Telegraph (Sydney)|The Daily Telegraph]]'' peering in through the doors, waiting for the verdict. In an accompanying story, [[Alan Reid (journalist)|Alan Reid]] of the ''Telegraph'' wrote that Labor was ruled by "36 [[faceless men]]". The Liberals seized on it, issuing a leaflet called "Mr Calwell and the Faceless Men" which accused Calwell and Whitlam of taking direction from "36 unknown men, not elected to Parliament nor responsible to the people".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nla.gov.au/apps/cdview?pi=nla.aus-vn2247771-1 |title=Digital Collections – Books – Item 1: Mr. Calwell and the Faceless Men |via=National Library of Australia |date=n.d. |access-date=26 February 2012}}</ref>

Menzies manipulated the Opposition on issues that bitterly divided it, such as direct aid to the states for private schools, and the proposed base. He called an [[1963 Australian federal election|early election]] for November 1963, standing in support of those two issues. The Prime Minister performed better than Calwell on television and received an unexpected boost after the assassination of US President [[John F. Kennedy]]. As a result, the Coalition easily defeated Labor on a 10-seat swing. Whitlam had hoped Calwell would step down after 1963, but he remained, reasoning that Evatt had been given three opportunities to win, and that he should be allowed a third try.{{sfn|Lloyd|2008|p=334}} Calwell dismissed proposals that the ALP leader and deputy leader should be entitled to membership of the party's conference (or on its governing 12-person Federal Executive, which had two representatives from each state), and instead ran successfully for one of the conference's Victoria seats.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=232–233}} Labor did badly in a 1964 by-election in the Tasmanian [[Division of Denison|electorate of Denison]], and lost seats in the 1964 half-Senate election. The party was also defeated in the state elections in the most populous state, New South Wales, surrendering control of the state government for the first time since 1941.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=235–236}}

Whitlam's relationship with Calwell, never good, deteriorated further after publication of a 1965 article in ''[[The Australian]]'' reporting off-the-record comments Whitlam had made that his leader was "too old and weak" to win office, and that the party might be gravely damaged by an "old-fashioned" 70-year-old Calwell seeking his first term as prime minister.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=240–241}} Later that year, at Whitlam's and [[Don Dunstan]]'s urging, and over Calwell's objection, the biennial party conference made major changes to the party's platform: deleting support for the [[White Australia policy]] and making the ALP's leader and deputy leader ''ex officio'' members of the conference and executive, along with the party's leader and deputy leader in the Senate. As Whitlam considered the Senate unrepresentative, he opposed the admission of its ALP leaders to the party's governing bodies.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=244–248}}

Menzies retired in January 1966, and was succeeded as prime minister by the new Liberal Party leader, [[Harold Holt]].{{sfn|Hocking|2008|p=248}} After years of politics being dominated by the elderly Menzies and Calwell, the younger Holt was seen as a breath of fresh air, and attracted public interest and support in the run-up to the [[1966 Australian federal election|November election]].{{sfn|Hocking|2008|p=248}}

In early 1966, the 36-member conference, with Calwell's assent, banned any ALP parliamentarian from supporting federal assistance to the states for spending on both government and private schools, commonly called "state aid". Whitlam broke with the party on the issue, and was charged with gross disloyalty by the executive, an offence which carried the penalty of expulsion from the party. Before the matter could be heard, Whitlam left for [[Queensland]], where he campaigned intensively for the ALP candidate [[Rex Patterson]] in the [[1966 Dawson by-election|Dawson by-election]]. The ALP won, dealing the government its first by-election defeat since 1952. Whitlam survived the expulsion vote by a margin of only two, gaining both Queensland votes.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=250–256}} At the end of April, Whitlam [[1966 Australian Labor Party leadership spill|challenged]] Calwell for the leadership; though Calwell received two-thirds of the vote, he announced that if the party lost the upcoming election, he would not stand again for the leadership.{{sfn|Hocking|2008|pp=257–258}}

Holt called an election for November 1966, in which Australia's involvement in the [[Vietnam War]] was a major issue. Calwell called for an "immediate and unconditional withdrawal" of Australian troops from Vietnam. Whitlam, however, said this would deprive Australia of any voice in a settlement, and that regular troops, rather than conscripts, should remain under some circumstances.{{sfn|Oakes|Solomon|1973|p=59}} Calwell considered Whitlam's remark disastrous, disputing the party line just five days before the election. The ALP suffered a crushing defeat; the party was reduced to 41 seats in the House of Representatives. Shortly after the election, Whitlam faced another expulsion vote for his stance on Vietnam, and survived.<ref>Hancock, Ian. [http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/explore/cabinet/by-year/1966-events-issues.aspx Events and issues that made the news in 1966] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109155359/http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/explore/cabinet/by-year/1966-events-issues.aspx |date=9 November 2014}}. [[National Archives of Australia]]. Retrieved 2 November 2014.</ref> True to his word, Calwell resigned two months after the election. At the [[Australian Labor Party Caucus|caucus]] meeting on 8{{spaces}}February 1967, Whitlam was elected party leader, defeating leading left-wing candidate [[Jim Cairns]].{{sfn|Hocking|2008|p=271}}