Lecture ch26
Lecture ch26
Lecture ch26
Part One:
Introduction
Part Two:
University of Washington, Seattle: Students and Faculty Face the Cold War
Part Three:
Part Four:
Part Five:
To Err is Truman
The early years of the Truman presidency were plagued by protests by Americans tired of war-time sacrifices. An inability to bring troops home quickly or end rationing hurt Trumans popularity. Inflation spread and strikes paralyzed the nation. Congress blocked Trumans plans for re-conversion. In 1946, Republicans gained control of Congress and started to undo the New Deal. Over Trumans veto, Republicans passed the Taft-Hartley bill that curtailed the power of labor.
Trumans Victory
Map: The Election of 1948 Truman managed to hold on to the New Deal coalition and won re-election.
Part Six:
Spy Cases
Public anxieties were heightened when former State Department advisor Alger Hiss was accused of being a communist spy. Richard Nixon pursued the charges. Hiss went to jail for perjury. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed despite worldwide protests.
McCarthyism
Sen. Joseph McCarthy caused a sensation when he charged that 200 communists worked for the State Department. His lack of evidence did not stop him from striking a chord with many Americans. He played into fears that communism was a demonic force and that eastern elites had successfully manipulated the public. McCarthyism attacked Jews, blacks, womens organizations, and homosexuals. Effective use of the media made McCarthyism seem credible. McCarthys crusade was destroyed when he went on national TV and appeared deranged, making wild charges of communist infiltration of the Army.
Part Seven:
An Anxious Mood
After World War II, millions of Americans achieved middle-class status. But prosperity did not dispel American anxiety over nuclear war and economic depression. Movies and plays reflected cold war anxieties and alienation as well as anticommunism.
The Family
Commentators bemoaned the destruction of the traditional family that they linked to the threat of communism. High-profile experts weighed in with popular books and articles about the dangers of women who abandoned their housewife roles. The conservative trend was also evident in declining numbers of woman college graduates.
Part Eight:
The war left Korea devastated and greatly expanded the containment principle far beyond Europe. The military stalemate left many Americans disillusioned with the promise of easy victories.
Part Nine:
Conclusion