McCarthyism

<h1>Text Preview</h1> <p> <P>In 1950, as the Red Scare intensified, Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy told the Ohio County Republican Women's Club of Wheeling, West Virginia, that the State Department was infested with Communists. He claimed to have a list of 205 names that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party. News of the speech spread quickly across the nation and Republican McCarthy became the talk of Congress. </P> </p> <p> <P>Capitalizing on the public's growing anxiety over communism and their eagerness to believe his allegations, McCarthy led a full-scale investigation to uncover Communists in America. No one was safe from McCarthy's wrath as he unleashed accusation after accusation. Even General George Marshall, army chief of staff during World War II, was targeted. McCarthy professed that the general was "steeped in falsehood and part of a conspiracy so immense and an infamy so black as to dwarf any previous venture in the history of man." </P> </p> <p> <P>After the Republicans won the White House in 1952, McCarthy's claims grew bolder. He challenged that the Democrats, including Franklin Roosevelt, played a large part in allowing communism to infiltrate all levels of the U.S. government. Although many Republicans, including newly elected President Eisenhower, did not agree with the tactics employed by McCarthy, they were happy to see the Democratic Party on the defensive. With so many Democrats dealing with McCarthy and his fevered charges, they had little time to critique the Republican administration's performance. </P> </p> <p> <P>Opinion polls showed that Americans favored the way that McCarthy conducted his crusade. The sheer number of charges, and the high level status of many of those accused, convinced a large percent of the population that there must be some truth in his claims. It would later be learned that McCarthy was promoting a big lie. He never had evidence to back up his claims, and he never exposed a single spy or American Communist during the entire course of his "Red Hunt." <br></P> <P>The Senator grew to like the media spotlight and did whatever was necessary to remain in the focus. Every time an accused denied the charges, McCarthy distracted the public by making more sensational accusations. If someone provided facts to repudiate the allegations, McCarthy responded by calling that person a Communist.</P> </p> <p> <P>Eisenhower quickly realized that McCarthy was a nuisance and his extreme right wing activities were interfering with his ability to lead the country. Publicly, the president supported McCarthy; however, behind the scenes, Eisenhower believed the Senator was spinning out of control and worked to restrain him. <br></P> <P>In 1953, McCarthy was picked to lead the Senate Committee on Government Operations. One of the committee's investigations targeted a U.S. Army dentist who received a promotion despite supposed ties to communism. When army officials refused to cooperate with McCarthy, the Senator accused Army Secretary Robert Stevens of "coddling" Communists within his service, and ordered public hearings—which were nationally televised—to look into the matter. McCarthy's eagerness to showcase his attacks in front of the American public backfired when people were able to observe his irrational behavior. </P> </p> <p> <P>When the hearings began, McCarthy dove into the half-truths and undocumented accusations to which he had become accustomed. Army representatives then counterattacked with their own charge that McCarthy looked into securing favors for David Schine, a recently drafted aide. Later, after McCarthy finished verbally assaulting army lawyer Joseph Welch's assistant, Welch replied, "I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness.... Have you no decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?" </P> </p> <p> <P>The televised hearings marked the decline of McCarthy's influence in Washington. Polls displayed a drastic drop in his public favorability rating, and in 1954, his fellow senators voted to censure him for "conduct unbecoming a member." In 1957, Joseph McCarthy died of complications from cirrhosis of the liver. Although the instigator of what became known as McCarthyism was gone, the anti-subversive campaign continued on for many more years. Politicians used the Internal Security Act—which required every "Communist-front organization" to register with the attorney general—to repress targeted individuals, and the House Committee on Un-American Activities conducted Communist investigations into the late 1960s.</P> </p> <p id="TextCopyright">Copyright 2006 The Regents of the University of California and Monterey Institute for Technology and Education</p>