Chapter 18 Section 3 The Cold War at Home

Fear of Communist Influence Many Americans concerned about security of the US Domination of Eastern Europe and spread to China fueled fear of Communist expansion

Fear of Communist Influence Many factors led to growing suspicion of Communism in the US 80,000 Americans claimed membership in the Communist Party People feared communists 1st loyalty was to the Soviet Union

Fear of Communist Influence 1945- 2 State Department workers stole classified documents and passed them to a pro-Soviet magazine Soviet agent defected and showed documents that a Soviet spy was stealing info about the atomic bomb

Fear of Communist Influence Republicans accused Truman administration of being soft on Communism Truman thought too much was being made of Communist threat…but had to answer critics

Loyalty Review Board Investigate federal employees and dismiss those found to be disloyal to US govmt. Never established a clear definition of “loyalty”

Loyalty Review Board Congress drew up a list of 92 subversive organizations Membership in these organizations would draw suspicion 1947-51-investigated 3.2 million govmt. Employees Dismissed 212 as security risks

Loyalty Review Board 2,900 quit b/c they didn’t want to be investigated Said it was a violation of constitutional rights People were not allowed to see the evidence against them Not allowed to know who accused them of being disloyal

House Committee on Un-American Activities HUAC-hunted for communist spies inside and outside the US government 1947-began to investigate communist influences in the movie industry

House Committee on Un-American Activities Hollywood did contain a number of: Communists Former Communists Socialists Hollywood also mad several pro-Soviet films during WWII - Since the SU was our ally

The Hollywood 10 HUAC subpoenaed 43 witnesses from the film industry Many witnessed were “friendly”-supporting allegations that communism had infiltrated the film industry 10 “unfriendly witnesses testfied

The Hollywood 10 Decided not to cooperate with the committee-believed the hearings were unconstitutional Sent to prison for refusing to answer questions

The Hollywood 10 In response to hearings Hollywood instituted a Blacklist A list of people condemned for having a communist background 500 actors, directors, and producers blacklisted-could no longer work in films

McCarran Act Passes in 1950 Made it illegal to plan any action that may lead to totalitarian dictatorship in the US Truman vetoed it Congress overrode the veto

Alger Hiss 1948-Whittaker Chambers-a former communist spy-accuses Hiss of spying for the Soviets Produces documents to prove Hiss was a spy Government denied and fought against the evidence

Alger Hiss Too many years had passed Hiss could no longer be charged w/ espionage Jury convicted him with pergury-sent him to jail

Alger Hiss Richard Nixon gained fame for pursuing charges against Hiss Within 4 years he was vice-president Hiss claimed his innocence until his death Soviet documents prove his guilt in the 1990s

The Rosenbergs September 23, 1949-Soviets explode atomic bomb American experts thought it would take 3 to 5 more years Did the Soviets steal American atomic secrets?

The Rosenbergs Ethel and Julius Rosenberg- implicated in helping a British scientist give the Soviets American atomic secrets Minor activists in the American Communist Party

The Rosenbergs Rosenbergs denied charges Plead 5th amendment-so they would not incriminate themselves Claimed they were being persecuted b/c they were Jewish and for holding radical beliefs

The Rosenbergs Found guilty Given death penalty Executed in June 1953 Rosenbergs are mentioned in the same Soviet documents that suggest Hiss was guilty

Joseph McCarthy Republican senator from Wisconsin Charged that communists were taking over the government

McCarthy’s Tactics Made a number of accusations Lacked evidence This became known as McCarthyism-accusing people of disloyalty without evidence NOTE: He wanted an investigation, not a trial, an investigation searches for evidence, it doesn’t provide any beforehand…or else they wouldn’t need an investigation to find the evidence…

McCarthy’s Downfall Investigated US Army Televised investigation Came across as a bully Lost public support Died in 1957