McCarthyism, a broad political campaign during the mid-twentieth century against suspected Communists in influential positions throughout America, had severe implications on the American political landscape. In what ways did McCarthyism impact politics during the time period of 1946-1953? McCarthyism impacted politics during 1946 - 1953 by allowing politicians to run on claims without evidence, the use of legislative actions, and through the rise of Nixon.
Politicians and political groups were able to run on claims without evidence, a core principle of McCarthyism. On February 9, 1950 Senator Joseph McCarthy first grabbed the attention of the public by claiming that he had a list of 57 cases of Communism. McCarthy had no actual evidence to
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The second Red Scare was a time period where government officials were questioned whether they had Communist affiliations. To eradicate the security threats in the government, President Truman issued Executive Order 9835 to search out “infiltration of disloyal persons.” This action caused the investigation of people like Alger Hiss and other suspected Communists. The government along with the citizens set up effective ways, Blacklists, to bar Communists from getting hired for work. In 1950, Red Channels, a book that exposed 151 writers, actors, musicians, and other radio and television entertainers as Communists, was published. This book completely devastated the people on the list and placed these people on Blacklists. It was possible to get removed from Blacklists, but the procedure was very difficult and looked down upon. Any Communist or Communist sympathizer who did not clear their name would be unemployable and shunned. The government sought to eradicate Communism by also passing acts that persecuted Communists to an even greater extent. The Smith Act of 1940 claimed that if two or more people conspired to commit an action against the U.S., they would be subject to a max fine of 20,000 dollars, or 20 years of imprisonment, or both. The McCarran Act of 1950 restricted civil liberties for the sake of internal security. Both of these acts …show more content…
Nixon also used national security issues to gain prominence in Congress which led him to serve as president and vice president. To secure a seat, Nixon used many core properties of McCarthyism in his presidential campaigns. Along with the core properties of McCarthyism, Nixon supported the investigation into Alger Hiss, like McCarthy, in order to gain his political debut and soon, he became a young political star. While Nixon ran for re-election, he came to the realization that his old simplistic ways of appealing to the public would not work anymore. In Congress, Nixon was able to secure a Senate seat by implying that the opposing candidate was a Communist sympathizer because she voted against the HUAC. Nixon accused Alger Hiss, a convicted former spy for the Soviets, and pressed the HUAC to go further into the investigations until Alger Hiss was proven guilty. This investigation gave Nixon a national reputation and he was labeled as a young star. The views of Nixon made him acceptable to east and west in the early 1950s. However, Nixon was a man that would go to extreme lengths and tricks if it achieved political success. Nixon also believed that it was better to attack an opponent rather than defend, similar to McCarthyism. Nixon gained victories by attacking his opponents with blatant lies, partial truths, and confusing quotations. Not only this, but Nixon also employed arguments on distorted
Informative Essay: How did the Accusations of the HUAC reflect the effects of the Cold War in the United States? The House Un-american Activities Committee, or HUAC, was one of the defining points of McCarthyism and the Cold War. Fueled by suspicion and distrust, the HUAC was formed to investigated private individuals and public figures who were suspected of engaging in subversive activities or having Communist ties (House Un-American Activities Committee). While it was established far before the Cold War, the HUAC reached it’s peak during the Red Scares of the Cold War, and represented the attitudes of many Americans during this time.
For the first half of the 1950s, anti-Communist leaders were very powerful in the United States; however, by 1955 McCarthy was in disgrace, and in 1957 the courts determined that membership in the Communist Party should no longer be a criminal offense in this country. For the first half of the 1950s, anti-Communist leaders were very powerful in the United States; however, by 1955 McCarthy was in disgrace; and in 1957 the courts determined that membership in the Communist Party should no longer be a criminal offense in this
In the 1940 's and 1950 's, an anti-Communist movement swept the United States of America. Fueled by the anti-Communist actions of Congress, particularly a Senator from Wisconsin by the name of Joseph McCarthy, the movement escalated and many people lost their jobs as a result of various blacklists. Congressional hearings, both in front of HUAC and McCarthy Senate committee were a study in organized persecution. The actions taken during the "Red Scare" were eventually given the general name McCarthyism. McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of subversion or treason without proper regard for evidence.
McCarthy used multiple forms of propaganda to scare people into thinking that there were spys from Russia here in the U.S. Since he was known to enjoy having the spot light on him he knew that there were people that were going to listen to what he had to say. Even though he did try and scare some people the information that he used at times was fallacious. Through these tactics as Mary mentioned he ruined the lives of many. Simply because of his own personal beliefs he forced others to share the same ideals through fear and misinformation.
Sarah Paroya D period I hate MUSH The end of World War II should have marked a period of relief in America but instead, it lead America into a completely different type of war called the Cold War. The Cold War was an ongoing state of political and military tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. This constant state of tension and fear had been embedded deep in the American public.
This scandal caused many Americans and Republican politicians to push Eisenhower to remove Nixon as his running mate and to question Nixon’s integrity. In rebuttal to the scandal, Nixon took the bull by the horns and defended himself by going on live national television and addressed the nation by giving the famous Checkers speech. The soon to be Vice-President articulated his speech with a perfect combination of Pathos, Ethos, and Logos to turn the tables from making everyone hate him to making the American People and Republican Politicians love him. Nixon’s integrity was
When people are placed under an intense feeling of fear, they begin to commit actions they never thought they were capable over. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, a young group of girls commit witchcraft which eventually leads to the arrest of over 100 women. This is similar to a time in the 1950s when Joseph McCarthy accuses government officials of communism and that ultimately leads to hundreds of citizens losing their jobs. The Crucible reveals the similarities between The Salem Witch Trials of the 1690s and McCarthyism of the 1950s because it demonstrates how a society can be tremendously impacted by the feeling the fear.
Which at first glance looks like a positive thing but once you dive deeper into what his real motives are, it's rather eye opening. Let's start with the war on crime. During this time you had the black panthers who were people fighting for civil rights, people who were fighting for women's rights, and people who were fighting for gay rights. Nixon felt the need to fight against these movements and therefore one was more likely to get arrested for attending these rallies— for committing a crime which really wasn't a crime. He strategically blinded the public to this by calling it "the war on crime".
All of this deceit only made Nixon viewed as dishonest and shady to the American people, making his impeachment seem almost predictable. But something that was not predicted was Richard Nixon’s
McCarthy manipulated the media, told outrageous stories about the communist conspiracy in the United States, and used his power and America’s fear to besmirch any opponents as “communist sympathizers” to make sure he remained at the top. Actually, most conservative members of Congress supported McCarthy because it helped them gain votes during elections. The majority of McCarthy 's movement attacked liberals and members of the Democratic Party and this aided anyone who was not part of those topics and organizations. Then McCarthy began to target the Army because they wouldn’t favor David Schine, one of his former investigators, who had been drafted in. “Senator Joseph McCarthy began hearings investigating the United States Army, which he charged with being ‘soft’ on communism.
McCarthyism was a vociferous campaign against alleged communists in the US government. Many of the accused were blacklisted or lost their jobs, although most did not in fact belong to the Communist Party. In these two events, many similarities
McCarthyism turned Americans against each other after WWII by claiming that Communists had infiltrated many areas of American life and government. In fact, “According to a local newspaper McCarthy dropped a bombshell: ‘The State Department is infested with Communists,” (para 3). In other words, this is the beginning of McCarthy turning Americans against each other. Paranoia started to spread through America which all this strongly affected Americans everyday life. McCarthyism was a result of American fear of communism in the 1950s.
In a time of economic prosperity, a rise in the standard of living and rock and roll, also known as the “happy days”, the 1950s were a time looked back on with nostalgia. On the other hand, the 1950s were also met with many problems involving civil rights, the Cold War and McCarthyism. After the end of World War II, Americans came home to jobs available and a period of consensus. Consensus meaning there wasn’t much debate in politics. However tensions quickly rose throughout the nation when Joseph McCarthy made serious accusations about the State Department.
As time has passed, throughout history, during different periods of time there are parallels. There are three eras that we are focussed on, where there are three types of people during each era. The three different eras that we’re focusing on, are The Salem Witch Trials (1600s), The McCarthy Era (1950s), and Today (2000s); the three types of people are the people who are the reasons why there’s accusations towards the accused, the accused, and finally the accusers. In The Crucible, or during the Salem Witch Trials, the person that’s the reason why characters were accused is John Proctor. The accuser in the play, who decides to point fingers at everyone, is Abigail Williams.
He had amassed a collection of government fills, tape records, and intelligence on the common people in the Watergate building. After it was broken into, files were stolen and released to the public. It was the first real time that the general public learned just how paranoid Nixon was, but also how much he wanted to keep the power he already had. As these precious documents surfaced, one could see in full light that Nixon exhibited all the symptoms of Paranoid Personality Disorder. He was always distrustful of people, he recorded every encounter he had, so that one could twist his words against him.