1. The Cold War Begins
Chapter 36

2. Post War Economic Anxiety
After war many Americans worried that economy would slip back into depression.
At first these predictions seemed to be coming true
GNP dropped in ‘46 and ’47
Prices rose by 33% in ’46-47.
Strikes swept key industries.
In retrospect, these were simply rebound effects

3. Taft-Hartley
Republicans controlled Congress for first time in 14 years.
Passed the Taft-Hartley Act over Truman’s veto.
Labor hated this law. Why?
Unions attempts to grow into new areas and industries were frustrated.
South was resistant to unions.
Workers in rapidly growing service sector were hard to organize.

4. Early Economic Moves
Sold War factories and other government installations at very low prices.
GI Bill: Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944.
Provisions?
Helps to expand the middle class and absorb returning GIs

5. The Long Economic Boom, 1950-1970
The Economic Boom between 1950 and 1970 was the longest and biggest in the nations history.
It transformed the country.
National income doubled in the 1950s and doubled again in the 1960s.
Americans 6% of the population but 40% of the wealth.
Size of the middle class rose to 60%-double that prior to the depression.
Americans became consume-aholics. Owning a car became standard, and two was better.
Is like the roaring 20s, but tinged with optimism.

6. New World for Women Women reaped huge benefits from the post-war boom.
New employment.
Source of income and independence to women.
Effect of growth of service sector
Culture glorified women as home-makers and mothers.
Women react against gap between stereotype and reality with women’s movement of the 1960s.

7. Causes of economic expansion
The war itself
Continued military spending
Cheap Energy
Increase in productivity
Education
New Tech
Shift in the nation’s basic economic structure

8. The Smiling Sunbelt
For 30 years after the war 30 Mil. people changed residences every year.
How does this change society?
Growth of the Sunbelt—South, Southwest and California grow at a rate nearly double that of the old northwest.
Growth of the Sunbelt fueled by federal spending.

9. The Rush To The Suburbs
Starting in the 1950s white middle-class fled the cities to the suburbs.
Reasons:
Federal loan guarantees made it more economically attractive to own a home in the suburbs than to rent in the city.
Tax deductions for mortgage interest, but not rent.
New highways and car-ownership made it easier.
Desire for the peace and prosperity of the new suburbs.
By 1960 one-in-four Americans lived in the suburbs, by 1990 half the population lives in suburbs.

10. Consequences of Growth of Suburbia
Construction industry booms—Levitt brothers/Levitt Town
Changes the pattern of life
Changes the nature of commerce.
White Flight/impoverishment of inner-cities

11. The Postwar Baby Boom
Baby Boom is the huge surge in births in the 15 years after WWII.
Why it happened.
50 Million new babies over 15 years.
Peaks in 1957
Baby boom has lasting consequences
Created a secondary baby-boom.
One of the prime targets of advertisers; thus impact on popular culture.
Many of those in the rebellious generations in the 60s and 1970s were baby-boomers.

12. Truman Shock of having a new president.
Truman much different from FDR.
Compromise VP choice, only a middling Senator.
FDR had left him largely out of the loop
Truman bio and personality

13. Yalta: Bargain Or Betrayal
February, 1945, Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt meet in Yalta.
Issues:
How to finish the war
What to do with Germany and Japan
How to handle rebuilding of nations ravaged by the war.

14. Yalta Agreements What is agreed regarding Eastern Europe and Poland?
Agree to a multi-power summit in San Francisco to work on a successor to the League of Nations (What becomes the United Nations)

15. Yalta Assessed Yalta has been criticized: Response:
Sold out Poland and Eastern Europe
Gave the Soviets too much in China.
Russian help not needed in Japan
Soviets would have entered the war anyway
FDR was feeble and therefore was hoodwinked by Stalin.
Response:
Yalta was not a treaty—it was a statement of intents and common purposes.
USSR already had effective control of Eastern Europe and we couldn’t stop them from entering.
Yalta was an attempt to get all three allied powers on the same page as the war reached its conclusion.

16. Reasons for Clash with Soviets
Two preeminent military powers in the world. Each had half of Europe.
Each distrusted the other’s system
Soviets were skeptical of US and GB
Different visions of the post-war world and each other
Soviets and Americans had many similarities that contributed to clash

17. Shaping The Postwar World
Bretton Woods, NH, 1944—International Monetary Fund.
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank)
United Nations Conference, 4/45
UN Charter signed by 50 nations.
Security Council dominated by the Big Five (US, USSR, China, GB, France). Each had veto power over any resolution.
Assembly made up of all countries.
US Senate overwhelmingly ratifies US participation

18. The Problem Of Germany Nuremberg war-crimes trials.
Germany divided into four military occupation zones.
Berlin itself been divided into four parts.
Is a debate about what to do with Germany.

19. Germany Divided
Soviets exert strong political and economic control over their section of Germany.
Soviets resist reunification of Germany.
What is Soviet motivation and fear?
American, British and French zones united to form West Germany.
Soviet zone becomes East Germany

20. Berlin Blockade
Soviets blockade Berlin in 1948 ending all rail and highway access to West Berlin.
First show-down between USSR and US.
US airlift. Lasts for nearly a year.
Airlift important symbol.
Soviets forced to lift the blockade in 1949
1949 the two Governments of Germany are formally established.

21. Crystallizing The Cold War
From Communist governments installed throughout Eastern Europe
US perception of these moves
Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech
1947—Containment Doctrine—George Kennan

22. Cold War Europe

23. Truman Doctrine Truman formally embraces containment in 1947.
Crisis in Greece. Effect if it falls to communism.
Truman goes before a joint session of Congress and announces the Truman Doctrine.
Asks for $400 Mill. in aid to Greece.
Containment/Truman doctrine drive foreign policy for the next 40 years.
Problem with doctrine as basis for foreign policy

24. Marshall Plan US fears spread of communism in Western Europe. Why?
US responds with the Marshall Plan
US would provide substantial financial assistance.
Europeans enthusiastically agree.
Eastern Europe is offered aid, too, but Soviets force them to reject. Why?
Ends up being 35.3 Billion over 11 years.
Huge Success.

25. Recognition of Israel
Truman goes against advice of State Department and recognizes the state of Israel in 1948.
Arabs were adamantly against it and threatened to push Jews into the sea.
Arabs were important to US strategic interests because of Oil and as bulwark against Soviets.
Truman recognized Israel because:
Lots of Jewish voters in the US
Sympathy for plight of Jews during the holocaust.
Recognition of Israel vastly complicated US foreign policy.

26. America Begins To Rearm
Cold War leads America to arm itself in an unprecedented fashion for peace time.
US Defense establishment overhauled
National Security Act (1947)
Pentagon
Sec. of Defense has cabinet status.
Joint Chiefs of Staff
National Security Act established the National Security Council and CIA.
1948 Draft is reestablished.

27. NATO Soviet threat drives Western European countries together.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and US.
West Germany and others join later.
End to Isolation
Obligates each country to defend others
Epochal unification of Europe,.

28. Reconstructing Japan MacArthur. War crimes trials as in Japan.
Japanese cooperate with US reconstruction to an astonishing degree.
Japanese Constitution.
Defense of Japan will be handled by US.

29. China Goes Red China was a mess. Weak and divided
Nationalist led by Chang Ki Cheke (Jiang Jieshi).
Communists are led by Mao Tse-tung.
Chang is corrupt and repressive and ultimately Mao and communists take control.
Nationalists flee to Formosa (Taiwan).
US recognition of “China”.

30. “Who Lost China?”
The “loss” of China was a huge blow to American Psyche.
“Who lost China?”
Many Republicans blame Truman.
Allege that the State Department is riddled with secret Communists.
Fuels the growing Red Scare.
America now sees two largest countries aligned against the US.
Myth of Communist unity.

31. Bigger Bombs
Feb Soviets explode an Atomic bomb three years sooner than predicted.
Americans shocked; monopoly gone
America had counted on the bomb to keep Soviets in check for a few more years.
Truman orders the development of the H-bomb. Beginning of the arms race.
H-Bomb is exploded in 1952.
Soviets explode their own H-bomb in 1953.

32. The Dot Game
THE DOT GAME
If you got a dot,
Don’t get caught!

33. The Dot Game Directions
DO NOT SHOW/TELL ANYONE WHAT IS ON YOUR PAPER AT ANY POINT THROUGHOUT THE GAME!!!
Objective (how to win):
You will have 5 minutes to try create the largest group of non-dots. Be sure to try to figure out who the dots are and keep them out of your group if you are a “non-dot”
If you are a “dot” - You are to try to infiltrate a group of non-dots without being detected
In the end, if you have any “dots” in your group, your group will automatically be disqualified.
Be careful who you trust and let in your group!

34. Debrief Non-dots, how did you feel? What was your strategy?
Share-out
Why might we play this game during our study of the Cold War?

35. Ferreting Out Alleged Communists
Red Scare hit US.
Whiff of truth gives validity to paranoia.
Many believed there were home-grown Soviet spies in the US government
1947 Truman launched loyalty program.
3000 federal employees dismissed based on suspicion of disloyalty or communist sympathies.
“communist sympathizer”

36. Communist Witch Hunts
1938 House Un-American Activities Committee formed to investigate “subversion.”
Richard M. Nixon goes after Alger Hiss.
1950 Joe McCarthy chairs committee and bursts on the national scene.

37. Black Lists McCarren Internal Security Bill. What does it allow?
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg
Witch-hunts are occurring in universities and in Hollywood.
Black Lists

38. Truman Limps into 1948 Truman popularity low. Reasons
Economic readjustment after war
Democrats in control for 16 years
Republicans get majority in Congress in 1946
Most assume he can’t win.
Democrats nominate him after Ike refuses to be drafted.

39. Democratic Divisions
Republicans nominate Thomas Dewey, Gov. on New York
Assumed Truman will lose.
Dewey runs “safe” campaign.

40. Give ‘em Hell Harry Truman’s whistle-stop tour throughout the country.
Rails against the “do-nothing Congress”.
Truman’s program/platform.
Crowds get more and more enthusiastic.
Dewey still thinks he is winning. Polling is still not very good.

41. Dewey Wins! (or not) Truman wins handily and stuns about everyone.
Democrats win House; keep it for the next 44 years.
Why did Truman win?.
Truman makes the Fair Deal the corner-stone of his second term.
Congress guts most of it.

42. The Korean Volcano Erupts
History of Korea after WWII
Acheson sends mixed messages
June 25, 1950, North Korean army rolls over the S. Korean army. Are pushed back to a narrow area around Pusan.
Truman sees this as Soviet aggression; Commits US troops to a UN force to support S. Korea.
Does this without consulting Congress or a declaration of war.
American forces are vast majority of UN forces and MacArthur is appointed U.N. Commander.

43. NSC-68
Korean crisis provides excuse for massive increase in military spending. This proposal had been set out in National Security Council 68 (NSC-68).
NSC-68 was a major turning point in the Cold War
Committed America to massive military spending.

44. See-Saw in Korea Inchon Landing Nervous Chinese
MacArthur over-confident
Chinese pour in
MacArthur defies Truman; MacArthur fired
Nasty stalemate; support for war erodes.