1945-1960 – Truman and Eisenhower Domestic Affairs
Truman’s Policy known as the Fair Deal
Biggest Issue = Internal Security
Government Reform and Reorganization
1. The Hoover Commission decided we needed to streamline the Executive Branch
2. Department of Defense – replaced the Dept. of the Navy and the Dept. of War
- Secretary of Defense had 3 assistants
- Assist. Sec of Army
- Assist. Sec. of the Navy
- Assist. Sec. of the Air Force
- within the Dept. of Defense was the CIA
- to gather and evaluate information concerning national security
3. Presidential Succession Act of 1947
-Created as a contingency for nuclear war.
- After the vice-president, the Speaker of the House, president pro tempore of the Senate, and secretary of state the
next in line for succession.
4. 22nd Amendment (1951)
-Limited president to two terms; or a maximum of 10 years if he, as vice president, assumed the presidency due to
the death or departure of a previous president.
- Largely a conservative move in the face of over 17 years of continuous Democratic rule in the White House (FDR
and Truman)
- FDR had been elected to four terms and many saw this as an opportunity for the executive branch to consolidate
excessive power.
Labor
1. Many women kept their jobs
2. Labor stayed out of strikes until the war was over
3. 1946 – 4 million people went on strike
- US Steel
- General Motors
- United Mine Workers
4. Congress attempted to prevent this from continuing
- passed the Taft Hartley Act AKA Labor Management Relations Act 1947
- no closed shop
- employers could sue union for breaking a contract and striking
- employers had to give a 60 notice before changing or ending a contract
- government could take action against a union that tried to strike and threaten the public health
- required unions to divulge their financial statements
- forbid unions from making political contributions
- made union leaders swear to not being communist
- Unions thought that management got the better deal out of the act and so the AFL and CIO joined forces
- AFL-CIO will have 15 million members
Election of 1948
The Republicans figured they had it in the bag
Most Democrats figured they were going to lose – with the exception of Truman
Democrats
-
they wanted to get a candidate less controversial than Truman
some thought Eisenhower was a good choice
some thought William Douglas
neither wanted to run – so Truman got the nod
Platform
Positive aspects of Truman’s domestic and foreign policy
Strong Civil Rights Plank
Republicans
- 3 candidates looking for the nomination
Thomas Dewey – loser in 1944
Robert Taft
Harold Stassen
- Dewey got the nomination – Earl Warren became his VP candidate
-
Platform
Civil Rights Protection
Aid to housing and tax reform
Bi-partisan foreign policy
Dixiecrats
- southern Democrats who didn’t like the Civil Rights Plank on the Party’s platform
- choose their own candidate – J Strom Thurmond of South Carolina with Fielding Wright
Progressives
- ultra liberal wing of the Democratic party also choose their own candidate
- Henry Wallace with Glen Taylor
Campaign
- division in the democratic party made the republicans think they had it in the bag
- Dewey didn’t want to offend anyone so he said very little
- Truman was a great campaigner – made great speeches, talked to everyone
The Result was a total upset
Candidate
Electoral Votes
Popular Votes
Truman
304
24.1 million
Dewey
189
21.9 million
Thurmond
38
1.17 million
Wallace
didn’t carry any states
1.15 million
Truman's victory came with support from farmers, workers, and blacks who felt threatened by the Republicans.
Democrats established clear majority in both houses of Congress
Some Basic Election Facts
The “Vital Center”: 1948-1968
- A political consensus developed in America, although bitter political wrangling continued to characterize America.
-Three major components to the “vital center” common in both major parties:
-Anti-communism; containment
-Belief that economic growth can solve all of society’s problems
-- JFK: “rising tides lift all boats”
-Political pluralism: belief that a variety of ideas can compete in America.
-- e.g., New Deal accepted by both parties (although it does not expand)
-The “vital center” elected Truman in 1948; Eisenhower in 1952 & 1956; Kennedy in 1960; and Johnson in 1964.
-Flaws in the “vital center”
-Vietnam War exposed problems with containment
- As many as 25% of Americans lived in poverty; the economic boom did not “lift all boats”
- Jim Crow demonstrated lack of true pluralism in America
- “Vital Center” is shattered in 1968
-Vietnam War pits hawks against doves; amplifies generation gap
- White conservative backlash against liberalism: “Great Society” programs of Johnson, the civil rights movement,
and apparent lack of law and order, contributes to Republican control of the White House for 20 of the next
24 years.
- Popular TV show: All in the Family with Archie Bunker as “loveable” bigot
Issues of Internal Security – Red Scare
American Fears -- Paranoia regarding communism and its sympathizers due to:
-Communism at home: fear of spies infiltrating U.S. gov’t: Alger Hiss, Rosenbergs
-Fear of nuclear war: Soviet A-bomb in 1949; H-bomb in 1953, sputnik in 1957
-Spread of communism around the world (Eastern Europe, China, Korea)
-Demagogue politicians using fear for gain (HUAC, McCarthy)
- Fear of another depression (recessions in 1946-47 & early ‘50s)
- A depression might trigger the growth of communism
******** this was the 2nd red scare of 20th century (first occurred after WWI: 1919-1920 during Wilson's presidency.)
-Culture reflected these fears: movies such as Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Blob, They
Smith Act of 1940
-Made it illegal to advocate the overthrow of the government by force or to belong to an organization advocating such a
position.
-Used by Truman administration to jail leaders of the American Communist Party.
- 11 communists brought to trial in New York in 1949 and sent to prison for advocating the overthrow of the US
gov't by force.
Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) indicts Alger Hiss, 1947
-HUAC created in 1945 to root out communism during the "Red Scare" after WWII that lasted into the mid-1950s.
-Committee was sensationalistic, also going after public figures in Hollywood.
-Liberals and members of the New Deal targeted
-Senate counterpart to HUAC also active in anti-communist investigations.
-Richard Nixon led the movement to indict Alger Hiss, a distinguished memberof the "eastern establishment," prominent exNew Dealer, and current member of the U.S. State Department
-Hiss denied being a Communist agent in the 1930s but was convicted of perjury in 1950 and sentenced to 5 years in prison.
-Nixon gained national prominence; was elected vice president 5 years later.
Truman's "loyalty" program
-Truman countered HUAC with anti-communist programs of his own.
- Attorney General identified 90 "disloyal" organizations who were not given the right to prove their innocence.
-Truman gave FBI approval and resources to go after suspected "reds"
-Loyalty Review Board investigated more than 3 million fed. employees
- About 3,000 resigned or were dismissed without formal indictment, 212 fired
-Loyalty oaths were increasingly demanded of employees, esp. teachers
- Many felt civil liberties were being suppressed.
-Gov’t employees forbidden to:
- Criticize US foreign policy
-Advocate equal rights for women
-Own books on socialism
-Attend foreign films
McCarran Internal Security Bill (1950)
-Required communist-front organizations to register with the attorney general and prevented their members from defense
work and travel abroad.
- Truman vetoed this bill which authorized the President to arrest and detain suspicious persons during an "internal security
emergency".
- Many felt this bill was a step towards a police state.
-Congress passed it anyway
The Rosenbergs, 1954
-Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were convicted and executed for allegedly giving atomic bomb secrets to the Soviets.
-Both were avowed communists.
Blacklisting
-Many actors, writers, and directors had dabbled with the Communist Party in the 1930's when it was considered fashionable.
-10 of these movie industry people, the "Hollywood Ten" refused to testify and decided to go to prison rather than testifying
to the HUAC claiming protection from the Constitution.
-The industry responded by denying work to 250 actors, writers, and directors.
McCarthyism
-Senator Joseph R. McCarthy (Wisconsin Republican) became a demagogue
-In Feb. 1950, asserted that 200 unknown Communists were in the State Dept.
-He made sweeping accusations, employed guilt by association and documents out of context
-Public convinced he was looking out for national security.
-Was unable to substantiate his claims but ruined many gov't officials.
-Almost no one was safe from his accusations.
-Supporters tended to be Republican and blue-collar
-Other Accusations:
-Claimed Democratic party was guilty of 20 years of treason
-Wanted Truman impeached for being soft on communism (despite Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, NATO, Berlin
Airlift, Korean War)
-Claimed George Marshall was an instrument of Soviet conspiracy.
-Hinted Eisenhower was "soft on communism."
-McCarthy slandered people, claim they were gay as well as communist.
-McCarthy’s Senate hearings created an atmosphere of conformity and fear
-Eisenhower despised McCarthy but did little to oppose him
-Downfall of McCarthy occurred when he took on the Army in 1954
-McCarthy was intensely examined by Joseph Welch, Army attorney.
-By Dec., 1954, Senate passed a resolution condemning McCarthy 67-22
-McCarthy died three years later from alcohol and exhaustion.
-Did the end of McCarthy signal the end of the red scare? Not really, but the hysteria did mellow.
-Sputnik caused some hysteria in 1957; Americans feared Soviets were technologically superior.
- Some Americans built bomb shelters in their back yards fearing nuclear war with Soviets
-School’s continued “duck and cover” drills to prepare for a nuclear attack.
-John Birch Society, an ultra-conservative nationalist group, emerged in late 1950s; continued an attack on liberals
for the next two decades.
-Aggressive rooting out of suspected communists still existed.
-Arthur Miller’s The Crucible: popular play in 1950s that used the Salem Witch Trials as a metaphor for
McCarthyism.
1949, Truman called for a "Fair Deal" including housing, full employment, and higher minimum wage, better farm supports, new
TVAs and extension of Social Security, and increased rights for African Americans.
-The only major successes were raising the minimum wage, public housing and extending old-age insurance to more
beneficiaries (SSA of 1950)
-Sec. of Agriculture’s proposed program of continued price supports for farmers failed to pass Congress and
surpluses continued to pile up.
- In essence, Truman was able to preserve New Deal programs but unable to add to it.
-Coalition of Republicans and Southern Democrats prevented little more than the maintenance of existing programs.
Truman decides not to run for reelection in 1952
-Military deadlock in Korea, war-induced inflation, and White House scandal.
-Adlai E. Stevenson runs on the Democratic ticket against Dwight D. Eisenhower.
-Election of 1952, Eisenhower defeats Stevenson 442-89. Nixon is VP.
Eisenhower’s Presidency and the 1950s
Election of 1952
-Truman did not seek reelection in the face of military deadlock in Korea, war-induced inflation, and White House scandal.
- Democrats nominated Adlai E. Stevenson of Illinois
-Republicans nominated Dwight D. Eisenhower ("Ike")
-Eisenhower extremely popular hero of World War II (grandfatherly image)
-Richard Nixon nominated for Vice President
-Eisenhower won by a landslide: 442-89
- First time since 1928 the Republicans won some Southern states.
-McCarthyism (see previous notes)
Eisenhower Republicanism at Home -- "dynamic conservatism"
-In effect, Ike maintained New Deal programs
-Social Security benefits extended and minimum wage raised to $1.00/hr
-Sought middle-of-the-road approach to gov't policy in the face of the New Deal, WWII & Fair Deal.
- Interstate Highway system (1954) created modern interstate freeway system
-$27 billion plan built 42,000 miles of freeways.
- Countless jobs on construction speeded suburbanization of America.
-Federal gov’t paid 90% of cost and states 10%
- Underlying purpose: evacuation in case of nuclear war or need to move troops and equipment quickly throughout the
country.
-The railroad industry suffered significantly in the face of increased competition from automobiles and better transportation
by airplane.
-Dept. of Health, Education and Welfare created in 1953 to oversee some of FDR’s New Deal programs.
-Strove to balance the federal budget; succeeded only 3 times in 8 years.
-Ike aimed to guard against "creeping socialism"
- Reduced defense spending down to 10% of GNP from 13%
-Eisenhower tried unsuccessfully to reduce price supports to farmers but ended up spending more money than any
previous administration.
-By 1959, Ike accrued the highest peacetime deficit in US History.
- 1954, Ike lowered tax rates for corporations & individuals with high incomes.
Favored privatizing large government holdings
- Supported transfer of offshore oilfields from federal gov’t to states
-Encouraged private power companies to compete with TVA
Labor Unions grow in power
-AFL and CIO merged in 1955 in the wake of unemployment jitters due to several business recessions in the 1950s: AFLCIO
-AFL-CIO expelled Teamster union in late 1950s when high Teamster officials resorted to gangsterism to achieve their
political ends.
- Jimmy Hoffa, head of the Teamsters, became one of the most powerful union bosses in U.S. history; influenced
politicians with hard-ball tactics.
-Hoffa's ascension triggered the split of the Teamsters and the AFL-CIO
-Landrum-Griffin Act of 1959 (buttressed the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947)
- Ike’s response to Jimmy Hoffa threatening to defeat for reelection any Congressman who supported a
tough labor bill.
-Bill designed to clamp down on illegal financial activities by unions and to prevent union strong-arm
tactics by imposing penalties.
Republican lost both houses in 1954 due to economic troubles at home.
Alaska admitted as 49th state in 1958; Hawaii becomes 50th state in 1959
Cold War Politics
-Sec. of State John Foster Dulles initiates new policy of massive retaliation
1. Two major principals:
a. Encourage liberation of the captive peoples in E. Europe by widespread use of political pressure and
propaganda.
- Radio broadcasts to E. European countries by the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe
urged people to overthrow gov’t.
b. Massive retaliation
-Soviet or Chinese aggression would be countered with nuclear weapons directly on USSR and
China.
-Brinksmanship -- the art of never backing down from a crisis, even if it meant pushing the nation
to the brink of war.
2. Rejects containment policy as it tolerated Soviet power where it already existed
- US foreign policy should destroy communism; communism was "immoral"
3. US & USSR begin arms race to accumulate sophisticated nuclear arsenals.
- Preemptive strike capabilities emphasized: destroy the other side before they can destroy you.
4. Eisenhower was able to appear as a moderate when compared to Dulles.
- Dulles was a mechanism to deter Soviets while deflecting attention from Ike.
5. Americans began preparing for the contingencies in case of nuclear war.
"New Look Military"
-Eisenhower sought to reduce military budget by scaling back the army and navy while building up an air fleet of
superbombers with nuclear weapons.
-Nuclear force would cost less than huge conventional force -- "more for the buck."
- Nuclear force = "overkill"; US unable to respond to minor crises (Hungary)
- In reality, military costs soared due to expensive aerial & atomic hardware.
Eisenhower’s "Farewell Address" (1961) : warned Americans of the dangerous growth of the military-industrial-complex.
-Vast, interwoven military establishment and arms industry.
-Power was enormous (largely in National Security Council) and had potential to effect democracy itself.
-His own policies had nurtured its growth
Eisenhower evaluated
-America incredibly prosperous during the Eisenhower years.
-As opposed to most "lame duck" presidents, Eisenhower showed more skilled leadership during his last two years
than at any time before.
- For six years, Democrats controlled Congress.
-Ike used the veto power 169 times and was overridden only twice.
-Public works projects revitalized certain areas of the country.
-St. Lawrence waterway project, constructed with Canada, turned cities in Great Lakes region into bustling
seaports.
-Federal Highway Project created modern interstate freeways system.
-Eisenhower’s greatest failing (perhaps) was his anemic stance on civil rights.
-A major criticism has been the seeming recklessness of "massive retaliation"
-Also the use of nuclear diplomacy in ending the Korean War.
-Yet, Ike exercised restraint in military affairs despite being a general
Furthered the cause of the New Deal and Fair Deal in numerous ways and further
imbedded them in American life.