changing political environment 1945-74 Flashcards
what was trumans personality like
not charismatic, not very confident, could be overwhelmed by the importance of the job and make mistakes
how did truman use the media
-saw working with the media as important, gave careful briefings
-sometimes didnt explain things enough like the Korean War
what was trumans public image
-didnt instantly appeal as he didnt try to connect
-didnt explain his strategies
-speeches we wooden with mistakes and were often improvised
what was trumans ability to work with congress
-worked less well with congress (there was a republican majority)
-they blocked the forms he wanted (fair employment practices commission and national health insurance scheme)
-had fewer congress contacts making him have less network and charm
what was trumans organisational ablity like?
worked well with white house administration, didnt always choose right people
what was Eisenhowers personality like
-deliberatly optimistic, friendly manner, calm, consensual leader, Passive and conservative approach
eisenhowers use of media
understood the importance of working with the media, but often minimised problems (missile gap)
eisenhowers public image
good public manner, accessible, clear imagrey in speeches (e.g explaing knock on effect of communist takeover)
eisenhowers ability to work with congress
worked well with congress (good with political bargaining and persuasion)
-supported the 1956 interstate highways act
-supported the supreme court to the desegregation of schools
eisenhower organisational ability
exceptional organisation, set up regular briefings and long term planning sessions
Kennedy personality
came from a political family
understood the importance of. charm
worked hard on speech making
worked hard on the style of hs presidency and self presentation
kennedy use of media
saw working with the media as important
learnt names and had personal chats
used tv well (‘presidential family publicity’)
Kennedy public image
good public manner, accessible
Kennedy ability to work with congress
worked well with congress, good at political bargaining and persuasion, family connections helped
Kennedy organisational ability
-poor organisation
-advisors competed for attention
-abandoned eisenhowers regular meetings
-less long term planning
-didnt consult the right people as seen in Bay of Pigs
Johnson Personality
been in politics for a while, understood importance of winning people over, could change his opinions to get what he wanted
Johnson use of media
not a natural but was careful to keep them informed
Johnson public image
-patchy
-could give stiff and awkward speeches
-after public saw the reality of the vietnam war his image dropped
johnson ability to work with congress
worked well with congress and understood how to use connection and persuade because of his political experience
good at creative thinking to make things happens (e.h problems with school funding)
johnson organisational ability
blocked legislation before taking it to congress, own organisation was good, kept kennedys organisatio but it wasnt suited to him
Nixon personality
clever, capable
hated people disagreeeing with him
appeared suspicious
made spur of the moment decisions then backtracked
Nixon use of media
distrusted the media, very bad at handling it (Watergate)
Nixon public image
not good with people, awkward and insincere
watergate scandal made him very unpopular
Nixon ability to work with congress
Awkward due to suspicious nature, found it hard to make personal connections
Nixon organisational ability
Reinstated regular meetings, had breifings with white house staff, not good at taking advice
When was the second red scare and the context around it
-1947 to 1957 POST WW2
-USSR JOINED USA AND ITS ALLIES TOWARDS END OF WAR HAVING FIRST FOUGHT WITH GERMANY
-once war ended many eastern european countries occupied by the USSR during the war emerged with soviet governments (increased fears of communist takeover: red scare took place within the context of the cold war and Korean War)
what was the basis of the second red scare
-the basis of the second red scare was more valid than the first; the USSR had been spyimg on America
-USSR keen to get hold of atomic weapons and secrets
-Elizabeth Bentley, gov employee, admitted she was in the moscow spy ring and others followed
who was elisabeth bentley and Whittaker Chambers
-Elizabeth Bentley, gov employee, admitted she was in the moscow spy ring and others followed
-on 31st July 1948 she told HUAC that she had been part of a moscow led spy ring and named other gvt employees involved in it
-3 days later whittaker chambers (also gov member) told HUAC of more employees involved with moscow (in important jobs)
how was communism growing around the world during second red scare and how did it effect truman
-1949 china became communist
-USSR held first nuclear weapon
-‘China Lobby; nlamed truman for loss of china even though it wasnt his fault
-when communist china helped communist north korea in Korean war it was confirmed that the intent was to spread communism world wide (growing fear)
what is an example of a govt employee trial during red scare
ALGER HISS (1949, RETRIALED 1950)
-advisor to roosevelt
-first trial resulted in mistrial as jury couldnt agree
-found guilty at retrial
-evidence conflicting
what was joseph mccarthy’s role in kickstarting the second red scare and during the red scare
-between 1950-54 senator Joseph McCarthy headed the second red scare
-on feb 9th 1950 he made a speech to the republican womens group claiming he had the named of 205 known communists working in the state department
-when reporters asked to see list which he didn’t have he said he left it on the aeroplane
-the next day, mccarthy revised the no. of communists to 57 and when he called the senate he changed the number to 81
-gained a lot of support due to his use of speeches, interviews and television appearances
-TYDINGS COMMITTEE set up to investigate his charges
-series of investigations carried out in the following months
what were red baiters
during the second red scare in many parts of the country, ‘red baiters’ violently hounded people they thought were tied to communism at work and home
what was the tydings committees evaluation
-on 14th July the tydings committe issued a majority report stating McCarthy’s accusations were a muddle of half truths and lies
-republicans refused to sign report
why did McCarthy’s fall happen in 1953
-despite tydings committee finding him untruthful he remained powerful until he turned to investigating the army in 1953
-army investigations were televised and 20 million people watched them
-his treatment of the interviewees was so unreasonable that he lost support
-senate passed a vote pf censure against him and the red scare died down
what were the effects of the second red scare upon the political environment
CIVIL LIBERTIES
-fbi was given the power to investigate people and bring them to be questioned by loyalty boards/huac on very little evidence
-fbi was allowed to open letters, tap phones and bug offices and homes
UNITY
-anticommunism in a way united democrats and republicans - not one senattor between 1953 and 62 publically supported a softening attitude to the USSR or china
COMMITTEE ON THE PRESENT DANGER
-set up in 1950 and reformed in 1976
-set up to press the govt to take a hard line in relations with communist countries
-when reformed in 1976 had may important gov administrators as members
why was the second red scare irrational
-membership of the CPUSA (american communist party) stood at only 5,000 (not much of a threat, proves communism didnt actually have that much support)
-only 10 percent of americans knew somebody they suspected of communism at height of red scare
what was the social impact of the second red scare
FREEDOM OF SPEECH
-people had their freedom of speech limited due to fears of being persecuted
JOBS
-many lost jobs and people were publically shamed greatly effecting quality of life and income
what was HUAC
-The House Un-American Activities Commission
-set up in 1945 to investigate ‘un-american’ activities-focusing on communism (fbi carried out investigations and then suspects appeared before HUAC, suspision was enough for someone to lose their job)
famous case in 1947: 10 directors, scriptwriters and hollywood workers took stand and they were blacklisted and never worked again
what were loyalty boards
-truman set up these boards using an executive order to investigate the loyalty of government employees 9this ran alongside HUAC)
-every employee investigated by the fbi if they were suspected, they were sacked or further investigated)
why did new liberalism take off under krnnrdy and how did he define it
-2nd red scare and violence towards civil rights made people uneasy on the political climate
-new liberalism took off under kennedy: he redefined liberalisms meaning back to forward thinking, flexible and concerned about welfare
-beleif that government intervention could improve things
-he reinstigated the values of the american dream
what were the values/ beleifs of liberalism
-opposed values of the second red scare
-supported equality, civil rights and social welfare and introduced the idea of ‘positive discrimination’ of 5 minorities
-believes in government intervention
what were the benefits of liberalism and the positive effect of it on politics
-more protests as liberalism was happy to protest
POSITIVE ON POLITICS:
-civil rights act,
-voting reform act,
-Johnsons welfare society arguably couldnt have occured if congress wasnt liberal minded (liberalism had a huge effect on equality0
what was counter culture and when did it emerge
-1960s
-wanted to change society by changing culture (rejecting parents generation influence), belief that if people lived differently they would behave differently
-made up of hippies and student radicals
what were hippies in the 1960s
-wanted to live in communal societies
-believed in simple ways of life and peace
-believed in recreational drug usage
-many supported sexual freedom wider than marriage gave
-WOODSTOCK FESTIVAL 1969, gatheing of 500,000 hippies
what were student radicals role in 60s counter culture. what were some groups/ movements and what did they do
AIMS
-wanted to create a more equal world
-wanted radical changes; from their course structure to end of vietnam war
STUDENTS FOR A DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY (SDS) 1960
-Rejected all forms of bigotry/ racism/ anticommunism etc and often protested violently
-organised first mass rally in 1965 (ANTI VIETNAM WAR PROTEST)
FREE SPEECH MOVEMENT
-led a campaign at the university of california in 1964
-used sit ins and peaceful protests for free speech on campus
-turned to more violent methods (e.g the violence at kent state university)
What is an example of a student protest that became violent
-1967 ‘stop the draft week’
-2000 police officers used clubs to attack thousands of berekely students who had tried to shut down oakland draft headquarters
-some retailiated with smoke bombs
what was the conservative reaction to counter culture
-bewildered by it
-challenged traditional values and rejected the consumer culture they embraced and christian values
-when students resorted to violence there was an increased feeling the the liberal government wasnt working
-as violence calmed politicians advocated ‘NEW RIGHT’ to restore law and traditional values (Nixon campaigned for president on new right policies)
-generated a conservative reaction, contributing the nixon’s election in 1968 (continous protests under LBJ’s watch)
-from the late 60s religious groups held campus campagins (e.g bill bright, an evangelical preacher, went to campuses all over the US- inc. radical Berkeley, california)
what was the impact of ww2 on domestic policy
-more involvement abroad (unlike isolationism post ww1
-USA had rejected the league of nations in ww1 and instead founded the united nations after ww2
-when the Cold War started due to ideological differences between USSR and USA and the eruption of eastern european communist gov– the truman doctorine was introduced
-marshall plan created
what was the truman doctorine and why/when did it happen
-March 1947: truman told the American congress that It was Americas job to stop communism growing any stronger (became known as truman doctorine)
what was the martial plan
- June 1497
-a system of aid to war torn countries that would otherwise fall to communism (mainly economic aid to europe)
-also aimed to promote europe globally
what was the impact of the cold war
THE ARMS RACE June 47/46
-USSR holdings of atomic bombs rose 13-50
-USA also started making atomic weapons, starting the arms race
-this achieed MAD (mutually assured destruction)
THE ARMED SERVICES
-creation of a large, permenant military force.
-cost money to run nut provided jobs and was a major customer for many businesses
-this and arms race and cold war created created a hawks/dives divide that crossed political boundries
THE SPACE RACE
-without the cold war it was unlikely money would have been invested into space exploration
-USSR Launched first space craft ‘sputinik 1’ in 1967 BUT eisenhower set up NASA
-July 1969- USA was first man on moon scoring huge propaganda victory (costing 25b)
PRESIDENCY
-power of presidency to go to war without congress grew with NATO and UN
-1947 national security act: recognised military forces under a new Defence department. after 1950 was greatly enlarged (as commander in cheif president could move forced without congress)
-National security act created CIA and National security council, both reported to the white house not congress
-existence of nuclear weapons meant a nuclear war could begin without warning meaning president could react at once.
what was the arms race and when
THE ARMS RACE June 47/46
-US holdings of atomic bombs rose 13-50
-USA also started making atomic weapons, starting the arms race
-this achieed MAD (mutually assured destruction)
how did power of presidency grow under Cold War
-power of presidency to go to war without congress grew with NATO and UN
-1947 national security act: recognised military forces under a new Defence department. after 1950 was greatly enlarged (as commander in cheif president could move forced without congress)
-National security act created CIA and National security council, both reported to the white house not congress
-existence of nuclear weapons meant a nuclear war could begin without warning meaning president could react at once.
what was the 1947 national security act
-1947 national security act: recognised military forces under a new Defence department. after 1950 was greatly enlarged (as commander in cheif president could move forced without congress)
what was the impact of the korean war on domestic policy
-truman wanted to fight a ‘limited war; not full scale and stressed it was the UN going to war not America
-was during second red scare so wanted to stop hysteria over fears of communism
-Korean war emphasised how the cold war shifted presidential attention awaye from domestioc policy an to INTERNATIONAL policy
-cold war and korean war created the expectation that USA should be involved in world affairs (like the new deal with welfare)
-DOMESTIC POLICY THUS SHIFTED BACK TO CONGRESS AS PRESIDENT WAS MORE INVOLVED IN INTERNATIONAL POLICY
when was the koren war and who was involved
-June 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea with the help of supplies and advisors from the USSR
-was during second red scare
-Korean War was a united nations operation (troops fighting back from S. Korea amd 16 other countries in the UN but troops were mostly american)
-260,000 american soldier s. 35,000 others
what was General MacArthur
-In charge of the war in korea from the start but wanted a different war to truman
-he criticised ‘limited war’ and advocated for nuclear bombing of N.Korea and China
-He disobeyed orders on several occassions (November 1950 bombed bridges over river yalu despite orders not to)
What was the republican reaction to truman
-lost key republican allies in congress (second red scare and korean war made them become a strong force of oppossition again
-one major criticism: defence spending hit 14 % of us GNP from borrowing and increased taxes causing problems in every us gov after
what was the impact of the Korean War on presidency
-bad public/media/gov relationship arguable began disillusionment weith presidency that later deppened
-marked a shift in the way media delt with presidency
-media expected openess like roosevelt BUT truman made the mistake of holding back on media as he didnt want to inflame anti communist feeling
-Desperate for news; the media went to other sources (ike republicans) who were critical and used pure speculation
-AUGUST 1950- truman began televising briefings and set 200 reporters to korea
-sached general McCarther in 1951 but had limited support because media didnt support a limited war
What was the impact of the Vietnam war on domestic policy
-similar defence budget concerns as Korean War and the money spent contributed to Us inflation
-Loss of credibility for government (unpopular policies that excalated out of control: The draft was a lottery to select 18-26 men to fight)
how did the Vietnam war start and when
-1955-75
-began in 1954 began when the french were driven out by communist vietnamese rebels
-leader Ngo Dinh Diem war corrupted and elected friends as leaders
-friction between north and south Vietnam rose
-north was communist south was democratic
-usa began training vietnamese south army and gave supplies
when did Kennedy send the first troops into vietnam and what happened
-1961
-began fiting a violent war with innocent people being killed
-withdrawl began in 1969 and completed in 1975
-first war US had lost and made them look awful
who protested against the vietnamese war and some examples of protests
-student radicals and all aspects of society
KENT STATE UNIVERSITY (OHIO)-MAY 1970
-students protested the bombing of cambodia… clashed with 28 national guardsmen on university campus
-guardsmen shot and killed four students on May 4 1970 BECOMING A FOCAL POINT OF THE NATION
VETERANS MARCH- 1971
-5 day demonstration in washington D.C
-30,000 people
-generally peaceful
what was the role of the media in the vietnam war
-began reporting as white house conferences described them but began to report on war up close
-reported shocking stories: soldiers on drugs, Mai Lai massacre, ice cream reward for high kills)
-innocent people killed, truth came out to nation
what was the impact of the vietnam war on presidency
-drove successive presidents to unpoplar donestic policies
-becsuse power of presidency in foreign affairs increased, future presidents seen accountable for events (Hey! Hey! bLBJ How many kids did you kill today)
-made people look at role of president and behaviour in wars more critically
-saigon withdrawal didnt reflect well on presidency
how did the media cause a decline in government confidence from 1968-70
-people had wider acess than in earlier days
-Tv ownership at 95% in 1970 and radios popular
-radio used and influenced changing views of reporters relationship with the govt/presidency
-from 1953 when the korean war began and truman mishandled the media criticism began
-by 1968 there was a growing opinion that it was the medias job to uncover and discover government deception
JIMMY CARTER
-led to decline was portrayed as weak and incompetant in the media (marathon story and rabit story
WATERGATE
-media coverage on Watergate
-all 250 hours were broadcast on tv
what was the watergate scandal and how did it decrease confidence
-1972-74
-pivitol moment in declining confidence in presidency and gov
-proved Nixon and the whitehouse were guilty of burglary and surveillance of political opponents (tapping into democratic oppossition at the watergate building)
-tapes of discussions forced nixon into terrible lights making it clear he was happy to lie to the american people
-all 250 hours were broadcast on TV
how did social factors leadtp a decline in gov confidence from 1968 to 80
-how social problems were handled at local level and state level were also a pivitol factor in the decline of gov confidence
-violent polic reactions occurred in the south before 1968 and the level of violence spread
-irrationalised violence sparked major concerns of the govs inability to tackle social issues BUT argueably was because of media coverage
EXAMPLES
-MLK’s death 1968 sparked viots and violence- racial injustice seen from police
-1970 national guard killed 4 students and seriously wounded 9 at kent state university protest of invasion of Cambodia
what were trumans domestic successes and failures
SUCCESS
Economy boomed and nation prospered
FAILURES
-failed to achieve social reform legislation he wanted (like free universal healthcare)
-couldnt control anti communist hysteria like mccarthyism
how did truman present himself as a man of the people during his 1954 campaign
-33 day 30,000 mile tour
-hundreds and thousands showed up
-brought out family at rallies
what were trumans most significant actions as president
atomic bomb drop on Hiroshima
bringing us into korean way
when was NATO established
1949
what was the internal security act
1950- members of communist AFFILIATED ORGANISATIONS HAD TO REGISTER WITH THE GOV. once registered they could be denied passports of be deported
how many people lost their jobs because of McCarthy and how many people were effected overall
-1952-54, 500 state and local gov employees, 600 schoolteachers, 150 college professors
-3 million investigations and 1000 dismissals.
how much did the Korean War cost the us
defence spending increased to 300percent
war cost 67 billion plus billions needed to rebuild S korea
what did eisenhower do to vietnam
established an independant anti communist state of south vietnam under diem and gave him 71 billion
what did eisenhower do in office
-cut defence spending
-increased minimum wage from 75 cents to 1$ per hour
-constructed interstate highway system that employed millions
-direct federa aid to education
