2.4 - McCarthyism Flashcards
1
Q
When was the Alger Hiss affair?
A
January 1950
2
Q
When was the Wheeling Speech?
A
Feb 9th 1950
3
Q
When did McCarthy fall?
A
December 1954
4
Q
When was the Loyalty Programme?
A
March 22nd 1947
5
Q
What were the Rosenburgs convicted of?
A
Passing American nuclear secrets to USSR and were convicted and executed
6
Q
What was the Alger Hiss Affair?
A
- In 1948, he was accused of being a member of the communist party by Chambers who was himself a member
- When Hiss was convicted of perjury, Acheson still publicly offered support
- This heightened belief that some US leaders were tainted with communism
7
Q
What was the Wheeling Speech?
A
- McCarthy claims to know of 205 communist allies within government however decreased to 57
- Speech suggested the USA can no longer turn a blind eye to the fact the cold war has begun and action needs to start happening
8
Q
How did McCarthy influence policy and society?
A
- Increased fear within the USA
- Influenced foreign relations because it coincided with:
Shift in US policy from Euro centric to ‘Asia first’ - Greatly influenced attitudes to China, Cuba and Vietnam
- Anti-communist views remained embedded in society
9
Q
Mcarthy’s impact on Britain
A
- Britain could not longer maintain role as USA’s main partner in Europe as it was worried of the USA’s aggressive Cold War attitude
- Britain was struggling financially and this also would have meant that Britain would have needed to expand it’s military budget for defence
- Britain did want to remain a primary and close ally of the USA so GB did attempt to help with the allied war effort in Korea.
10
Q
How did the Loyalty programme work and how sucessful?
A
- Loyalty boards were to be set up in every department and agency of the federal government
- If there existed “reasonable grounds” to doubt an employee’s loyalty, he or she would be dismissed
- Resulted in the discovery of only a few employees whose loyalty could be “reasonably” doubted
11
Q
A
