Sara Jackson MacManus
CHAPTER 26 NOTES
●
WW2 Am went from isolationist to mil superpower and world leader
○ Cold war dampened nation’s boom
POSTWAR AMERICA (pg. 545-546)
● Am soldiers returning had to find jobs/housing, feared return of econ dep
○ War increased incomes, mainly in savings accounts
○ Pent-up consumer demand during war and govt projects after war
■ Created prosperity/econ growth, standard of living v good
GI Bill - Help for Veterans (545-546):
● Servicemen’s Readj Act 1945​ (GI Bill) helped transition of vets to peace econ
○ Many vets continued their education through GI bill
■ Post-war boom in higher edu
○ Vets got low-interest govt loans for homes, farms, biz
■ Fed govt stimulated econ through education and construction
Baby Boom (546):
● Explosion on weddings/births after war, 50 mill babies 1945-60
○ Baby-boom generation ​affected social inst/econ
○ Focused women on raising children at home
■ Still increasing women in workplace though
Suburban Growth (546):
● Need for housing caused construction boom
○ William J. Levitt​ led in dev of postwar suburbia w/ building of Levittown, NY
○ Low int-rates on mortgages made move to suburbia affordable
■ Middle-class Ams were suburbanites
■ Older, inner cities negatively affected by this, poor and racially divided
Rise of the Sunbelt (546):
● Uprooted by war, Ams moved around a lot
○ Climate,low taxes,econ opp in defense ind attracted GIs to​ Sunbelt states ​(Cali,florida...)
■ Govt transferred tax $ to south and west, military spending helped shift people
● Also moved industry and political power
POSTWAR POLITICS (pg. 546-549)
● Truman FDR’s VP, president Apr 1945, honesty and unpretentious style appealed to citizens
○ Tried to continue New Deal tradition
Economic Program and Civil Rights (547):
● Truman proposed full employment and civil rights for Af-Ams, Congress opposed
○ Employment Act 1946​ created Council of Econ Advisers
■ Advised pres and congress on promoting nat econ welfare
■ Based on Truman’s proposals progressive measures
● Nat health insur, min wage, commitment to full employment
■ Conservative congresses and Cold war hindered truman’s domestic programs
○ Truman wanted price controls to avoid ​inflation
■
South Dems and reps relaxed control of Office of Price Admin
● Created 25% inflation in year after war
■ Workers wanted wages up after years of wage controls
● Large ​strikes ​1946, threatened nat safety, Truman took tough approach
○ Truman challenged racism, used exec powers to est ​Comm on Civil Rights 1946
■ Also strengthened civ rights on Justice Dept, helped end segregation of schools
■ 1948 ordered end of racial discrim in fed govt and in military
■ Created​ Fair Employment Practices Commision
● Prevent employers from discriminating against hiring Af-Ams
● Blocked by southern dems in Congress
Republican Control of the Eightieth Congress (548):
● Inflation/strikes made voters conservative, 1946 Rep majorities in both houses of Congress
○ Congress tried to pass 2 tax-cuts for upper-income Ams, Truman vetoed both
○ 22nd Amendment 1951​ limited presidency to two terms
■ In response to FDR
○ Taft-Hartley Act 1947 ​pro-biz/check unions’ power, Truman vetoed, Congress overrode
■ Outlawed closed shop, contract requiring worker to join union before being hired
■ “Right to work laws” allowed (outlawed the union shop)
■ Outlawed secondary boycotts
■ 80-day cool-off period before a strike endangering nat safety
● Unions sought to repeal, divided Reps and Dems
The Election of 1948 (548-549):
● Truman low popularity 1948, Reps confident in victory
○ Liberals abandoned Dems, believed Truman aggressive for pol threatened peace
■ Formed a ​new Progressive Party​, nominated Henry Wallace
○ Conservatives abandoned Dems in response to Truman’s support for civil rights
■ Formed States’ Rights party, or ​Dixiecrats​, nominated J Strom Thurmond
○ Reps nominated Thomas E Dewey, NY governor
■ Led overly cautious and unexciting campaign, convinced he would win
○ Truman toured nation, attacking reps w. “Give-’em-hell speeches”
■ Truman won the election decisively
The Fair Deal (549):
● Truman’s ambitious reform program, called​ fair deal, ​started 1949
○ Nat health insur, fed aid for edu, civ rights legisl, funds for public housing, farm program
■ Conservs in Congress blocked most of the proposed reforms
■ Increase in minimum wage and expansion of workers in Social Security passed
○ Fair Deal bills defeated bc 2 reasons
■ Truman’s political tension w/ Congress, foreign policy concerns about Cold War
ORIGINS OF THE COLD WAR (pg. 549-551):
● Cold War dom internat politics late 1940s-1991 (end of USSR)
○ Rivalry b/w communist Soviet Union and western democracy US
■ Competition in means of short armed conflicts, sometimes danger of nuclear war
○ Debate about why/how Cold war began
■
Some see Truman’s policies as good response to soviet expansion of communism
● Others say overreacted/misunderstood russia’s attempt to secure borders
■ Conserv critics at the time said he was too “soft” on communism
US-Soviet Relations to 1945 (549-551):
● Wartime alliance w/ Russia temp halt in bad relations bc 1917 communist Bolshevik rev and govt
○ Seen as threat to capitalism, cause Red Scare, US did not recognize Sov Union until 1933
■ Comm not trusted, nonagression pact w/ Hitler confirmed this
○ Allies in WWII ​bc of Hitler's invasion of Russia and Pearl Harbor, still no trust
■ Stalin complained about Am taking too long to fight for Fr
■ Postwar conflicts over East Eur evident in Potsdam/Yalta 1945
● FDR hoped to use diplomacy, Truman suspicious of Soviet Union
○ Postwar cooperation in UN​, UN hope for future
■ 15-member Sec Council kept nat security/peace missions
● 5 perm members GBr, Fr, US, Chi, Sov Un w/ veto power
■ Sovs agreed to US proposal for​ Atomic Energy Comm​ in UN
● Rejected plan for regulating nuclear energy/atomic weapons
○ Interpreted as Moscow not having peaceful intentions
■ Sovs declined part in Internat Bank for Recon & Dev (World Bank) in 1944
● Goal to rebuild war-torn world, seen as capitalist
■ Sovs also in ​Nuremberg Trials ​for Nazi leaders
○ Hostility 1946 when Sovs kept occupation of East/cent Eur countries, or​ Satellite States
■ Elections held but manipulated in favor of communist candidates
● Communist dictators loyal to Stalin came to power
■ Some argued was to create buffer against another invasion from West
● US/GBr scared by Sov takeover of East Eur
○ Violated self-determ, dem, open market
○ Ger/Austria divided into ​occupation zones​ after war, meant to be temporary
■ East Soviet zone became Comm state Ger Dem Republic
■ Conflict in Ger over diff views of nat security/econ needs
● Sovs wanted weak Ger for security and war reparations for econ reasons
○ Tightened control over East Ger, fearing restored Ger
○ Tried to force GBr/US/Fr to give up sectors in Berlin
● US/Gbr no war reparations from west zone, bc econ recov of Ger needed
○ Get-tough policy towards sovs in Washington,bc spies stealing atomic secrets,sovs in Iran
■ Churchill said​ iron curtain ​descended across europe, metaphor for satellite states
● Called for west dems to halt expansion of communism
CONTAINMENT IN EUROPE (pg. 551-554)
● 1947 Truman started containment policy Soviet aggression, governed foreign policy
○ Believed would cause Sovs to give up communist ideologies, live in peace
○ Containment necessary, bc appeasement got nowhere
The Truman Doctrine (552):
● Truman started containment in response to
○ Communist uprising against govt in greece
○
Soviet demands for control of parts of turkey
■ Truman Doctrine asked for $ for mil/econ aid to help greek/turkey “free people”
● Support from boths reps and dems
The Marshall Plan (552):
● After war, Eur ruined by depression/war, discontent helped Comm parties
○ 1947 truman feared they would be elected, started ​Marshall Plan, ​or Eur Recov Program
■ Help eur revive econ and strengthen dem govts, 1948 $12 billion
● Satellite states refused to take part bc would create dependency on US
● West Eur got self-sust growth 1950s,ended political communist threat
● US prosperity increased bc more US exports to Eur
● Deepened rift b/w non-comm west and comm east
The Berlin Airlift (552-553):
● First cold war major crisis, 1948 soviets cut off land access to Berlin
○ Truman made ​Berlin Airlift ​to fly in supplies,60 bombers that could carry atomic bombs
■ Possible nuclear war, Stalin didn’t challenge airlift, 1949 soviet blockade ended
○ Berlin crisis created two germanies
■ Fed Rep of Ger (West, US ally) vs Ger Dem Rep (East, soviet satellite)
NATO and National Security (553-554):
● US trad avoided perm alliances w/ Eur, Truman recommended mil defense pact for West Eur
○ Senate allowed,created ​North Atlantic Treaty Org​,mil alliance for defense of members
■ Put US troops in West Eur to deter soviet invasion
● Containment policy led to military build-up, major commitments abroad
○ Sov responded w/ ​Warsaw Pact​, mil alliance for defense of communist states of east eur
● National Security Act 1947 ​modernized military capability
○ Centralized Dept of Defense for army, navy and air force
○ National Security Council to coordinate foreign policy in cold war
○ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to spy on foreign govts
■ 1948 Selective Service/peacetime draft instituted
● Sov union and US engaged in arm race for superior weapons system, mainly ​atomic weapons
○ 1945-49 on US had A-bombs, dev long-range bombers
■ 1949 Sovs tested first atomic bomb
■ Truman approved dev of H-bomb (stronger than H-bomb)
○ 1950 Nat Sec Council created secret report NSC-68 recommending
■ x4 govt defense spending to 20% of GNP
■ Alliances w/ non-comm countries around world
■ Convince public that costly arms build-up needed for nation’s defense
● Critics of NATO/defense buildup said they intensified russian fears/started unnecessary arms race
○ NATO most successful mil alliances ever
■ w/ atomic weapons checked sov exp into Eur, kept uneasy peace
COLD WAR IN ASIA (pg. 555-558)
● After ww2 imperialism in asia ended, colonies became countries
○ Less responsive to US influence for containment bc resentment and diff cultures
Japan (555):
●
Japan controlled by US, Gen MacArthur in charge of recon of Japan
○ New constitution created parliamentary dem, emperor ceremonial head of state
■ Renounced war as instrument of nat policy, limited military
● Jap depended on mil protection of US
● US-Japanese Security Treaty 1951​ ended occupation of Jap
○ Jap surrendered claims to Korea/pacific islands
○ 1951 second treaty allowed US troops in mil bases in Jap to protect against communism
■ Jap became strong ally, prospered under Am shield
The Philippines and the Pacific (555):
● 1946 Philippines indep rep due to act passed in 1934, US kept mil bases there
○ Pacific ocean started to become controlled by the US
China (555-556):
● 1920s Chiang Kai-shek controlled central govt w/ Nationalist (Kuomintang) Party
○ Ww2 US gave aid to China against Japan
○ After war, civil war b/w Nationalists and Chinese Communists led by Mao Zedong
■ Comms supported by peasants, nationalists blamed for inflation/corruption
○ 1946 US tried to negotiate end to civil war, failed
■ 1947 Chiang in retreat, 1948 $ to nationalist aid
● ended up in comm hands bc collapse of nat armies/corruption
○ 1949​ two chinas ​had been created
■ Mainland was comm’s, Chiang in Taiwan est govt
● US only recognized Mao Zedong’s regime in 1979
○ Reps blamed loss of China to communists on the Dems
■ 1950 Stalin and Zao, comm dictators, signed Sino-Soviet Pact
● Proof of worldwide communist conspiracy
The Korean War (556):
● Jap’s colony Korea divided, Sov armies occupied North, Am armies occupied South
○ 1949 armies withdrew, north comm leader Kim IlSung, South conserv nat Syngman Rhee
○ 1950 ​North Korea invasion​ of South korea, truman applied containment policy
■ Special session in UN allowed UN force to defend S Kor
● Mainly US troops, led by Gen MacArthur, did not declare war
○ N Kor pushed SKor/Am forces to tip of peninsula, Gen Mac launched ​counterattack
■ UN forces advanced north almost to Chinese border,
● 1950 chinese troops crossed into Korea, drove Un out of N Kor
■ MacArthur stabilized fighting near​ 38th parallel​,
● Mac spoke out for expanded war/invasion of China
● Truman recalled him for insubordination
○ Dems seen as appeasers for not destroying comm in Asia
■ Peace talk began 1951, ​armistice ​signed 1953, not before 54k Ams died in Korea
○ Truman’s containment policy worked in Korea, stopped comm aggression w/o world war
■ Justified expansion of military as well
■ Reps believed Dems “too soft on communism” bc tie in Korea/loss of China
● Called them​ Dean Acheson’s Cowardly College of Comm Containment
THE SECOND RED SCARE (pg. 558-560)
● Believed communist conspirators in US inst,feared communist conspiracy bent on world conquest
Security and Civil Rights (558-559):
● 1947 Rep pressure set up ​Loyalty Review Board​ to investigate fed employees
○ Employees resigned or lost their jobs 1947-1951
○ Smith Act 1940 ​illegal to advocate or teach overthrow of govt by force
■ Leaders of Communist parties imprisoned
■ Dennis et al. v US Smith Act constitutional
○ McCarran Internal Security Act 1950 ​Rep Congress overrode Truman’s veto
■ Illegal to advocate/support est of totalitarian govt
■ Restricted employment/travel of those in communist orgs
■ Creation of detention camps for subversives
○ House Un-American Activities Comm ​in House of reps reactivated to find Communists
■ Investigated govt officials, comm influence in orgs like boy scouts, hollywood
● Actors called to testify, if refused blacklisted or tried for contempt
○ Am Civ Liberties Union and other opponents argued these were unconst
■ First Amendment freedom of expression of unpopular political views
Espionage Cases (559):
● Fear supported by cases of communist spies in US, GBr and Canada
○ Methods to identify spies was questionable, govt violating civil rights?
○ Hiss Case ​convicted Alger Hiss, prominent official in state dept at Yalta conference
■ Accused of communism/giving secret docs to communist Whittaker Chambers
■ 1950 convicted of perjury and sent to prison
● Fear that high levels of govt infiltrated by comm spies
○ Rosenberg case ​after russians got a-bomb, convinced spies gave away info
■ Klaus Fuchs in Manhattan Project gave a-bomb secrets to Russians
■ Traced another spy ring for info on a-bombs to the Rosenbergs
● Convicted 1951 in controversial trial, executed 1953
● Civil rights groups questioned this
The Rise of Joseph McCarthy (560):
● Senator from Wisconsin used anti-communism for publicity, said 250 comms in state dept
○ Soon became powerful, based on people’s fear of damage he could do if he accused them
○ Used stream of unsupported accusations to keep media focus/discredit Truman admin
■ Working-class loved his remarks, often aimed at privileged class
■ Reps disliked his ruthless tactics, but he was mainly hurting Dems
○ 1954 McCarthy’s reckless cruelty exposed on TV in ​Army-McCarthy Hearings
■ Hearings on communist infiltration in army, McCarthy seen as bully by viewers
■ Dec Reps joined Dems in Senate censure of McCarthy
○ McCarthyism (“witch hunt” for communism) ended
Truman in Retirement (560):
● Red Scare, Korea and China made reelection unlikely, retired to Missouri
○ Truman’s critics respect his tough decision and admire his direct character
CHAPTER 27
EISENHOWER AND THE COLD WAR (pg. 572-579)
● Eisenhower focused on internat crises in Cold War
○ Diplomat Sec of State John Foster Dulles
Dulle’s Diplomacy (573):
● Said containment too passive, challenged Sov and china w/ hard line “​brinkmanship​”
○ Believed if pushed to brink of war, Sov would back down bc Am nuclear superiority
○ Massive retaliation p​ olicy: reliance on nuclear weapons/air power instead of army/navy
■ Save $, balance fed budget, put pressure on enemies
● 1953 US HYdrogen bomb, 1954 Sov hydrogen bomb
● Seen as policy of mutual extinction by critics
■ Deterrent of nuclear weapons could not stop small wars in developing nations
Unrest in the Third World (573-574):
● Collapse of colonial empires post-war, Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Ghana…
○ 3rd world countries lacked stable pol/econ inst,need for aid made them pawns in cold war
○ Eisenhower’s foreign policy adopted​ covert action
■ undercover intervention in internat politics was cheaper and easier
● CIA overthrew Iran govt trying to nationalize oil, installed shah
○ In return good oil prices, bought Am weapons
● 1954 CIA overthrew Guatemala left govt threatening Am biz interests
○ Opposition to communism installed dictators in other countries
○ Anti-American feeling
Asia (574-575):
● Serious Cold War challenges in Asia
○ Korean Armistice ​1953 due to diplomacy, threat of nuclear war, death of Stalin
■ Fighting stopped, but no peace treaty ever created b/w N and S korea
○ French tried to retake ​Indochina a​ fter war, natives resisted
■ Imperialism increased support for nationalist/communist leader Ho Chi Minh
● Anti-colonial war became war communism vs anti-comm
● Truman aided Fr, China/Sov aided Viet Minh guerrillas (Ho chi Minh)
● 1954 Fr surrendered, at Geneva Conference gave up Indochina
○ Division of Vietnam​ as two hostile govts est on either side of 17th parallel
■ North Viet Ho Chi Minh communist dictatorship
■ South Viet Ngo Dinh Diem, Anti-comm, catholic, urban vietnamese
● Feared north would win general election, so election never held
■ 1955-1961 US gave $ for econ/mil aid to South Viet fior stable, anti-comm state
● Justified w/​ Domino Theory
○ If one country falls to communism, other nations will follow
○ SEATO ​created to prevent fall to communism of S Viet, Laos and Cambodia 1954
■ 8 nations signed, agreed to defend in case of attack within region
The Middle East (575):
● Had to maintain ties w/ oil Arab states and support Israel (created 1948 by UN)
○ Suez Crisis ​when Egypt Gen Gamal Nasser asked US for funds for dam on Nile
■
US refused bc threat to Israel, Egypt asked Soviets, said they would fund it
● 1956 seized GBr/Fr Suez Canal, threat to West Eur supply to oil
○ GBr, Fr, Israel retook canal in surprise attack against Egypt
● Eisenhower made UN resolution condemning invasion, they withdrew
○ After this, GBr and Fr never major powers in world affairs
○ US replaced GBr/Fr as West influence in Mid East, faced Sov influence in Egypt/syria
■ Eisenhower doctrine​ econ/mil aid to mid east country threatend by communism
● Lebanon 1958 to prevent war b/w christians and muslims
○ 1960 Arab nations formed Org of Petr Exp countries ​OPEC​,oil became foreign pol issue
■ West dependence on oil, Arab nationalism, conflict b/w Israelis/Palestinians
US-Soviet relations (577-578):
● US diplomacy w/ sov union crucial to US survival, periods of calm and tension
○ Stalin’s death 1953 Eisen wanted to slow arms race, Sov wanted reduced CW tensions
■ 1955 Geneva meeting, no real agreements, produced ​“spirit of Geneva”
● First that in CW
■ Sov leader Khrushchev denounced Stalin, supported coexistence w/ west
○ Relaxation in Cold War, workers in satellite states wanted reforms from comm govts
■ Hungarian revolt​ overthrew comm govt, wanted end of Warsaw Pact
● Sov tanks sent in, restored control
■ US took no action, feared world war, recognized Soviet sphere of influence
● Ended first thaw in CW
○ Sputnik shock​ 1957 when Sov launched first satellites into orbit
■ Tech lead of US questioned, their rockets did not work
■ 1958 ​Nat Defense and Edu Act f​ ed $ to school for science/foreign language edu
■ 1958 NASA created to build missiles,explore space, began space race w/ russians
● Fear of nuclear war increased, Sputnik could launch missiles
○ Second Berlin Crisis​ 1958 Sov gave West six months to give West Berlin to East Ger
■ US refused to yield, crisis ended w/ visit of Khrushchev to US
● Agreed to conference in Paris 1960
○ Sovs shot down US ​spy plane U-2​, secret US tactic for gaining info on missile program
■ Eisenhower took full responsibility
● Paris summit conference called off
Communism in Cuba (578):
● Loss of Cuba to communism when Fidel Castro overthrew Cuban dictator, v alarming
○ Nationalized Am biz/properties in Cuba, Eisen cut off trade w/ Cuba
○ Castro turned to Sovs for support, set up totalitarian communist govt
■ Eisen authorized CIA to train anti-comm Cubans to retake island
Eisenhower’s Legacy (579):
● Eisen claimed credit for checking comm aggression/keeping peace, started process of end CW
○ 1958 arms limitation by suspending above-ground nuclear testing
○ Warned against ​“military industrial complex” ​created by CW