Chapter 34

The Great Depression and the New Deal

(1933-1939)

I. Franklin Delano Roosevelt

A. Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt of New York was becoming popular within the Democratic circle; had important
two assets:
1. Learned patience, tolerance, compassion, and strength of will during the time of recovery from his immobility
2. Eleanor Roosevelt – his distant cousin and wife; became known as the “conscience of the New Deal” and the
most active First Lady in history; fought for the impoverished and oppressed; was seen as a controversial public
figure; powerfully influenced policies of the national government through:
a. her lobbying of her husband
b. speeches
c. syndicated newspaper column
B. Believed that money, rather than humanity, was expendable; had concern for the “forgotten man”
C. Was Democratic nominee in 1932; his platform:
1. Called for the repeal of prohibition
2. Assailed the so-called Hoover depression
3. Promised a balanced budget
D. The “Brain Trust,” a small group of reform-minded intellectuals, wrote his speeches, and later on, authorized much of
the New Deal legislation
II. The Election of 1932
A. Roosevelt (Democrat) beat Hoover (Republican) with the electoral count of 472 to 59
B. Because the blacks suffered the most from the depression, there was a great shift in the black votes from the
traditionally voted for Republicans to the Democrats
C. Preinauguration lame duck period was coming to an end.
III. FDR’s Three R’s: Relief, Recovery, and Reform
A. Declared a nationwide banking holiday between March 6-10; was followed by the Hundred Days (March 9 – June 16
of 1933)
B. Had short range goals of relief and immediate recovery during first two years, and had long term goals of permanent
recovery and reform of current abuses from boom-or-bust catastrophe
C. Congress gave him blank-check powers
D. Emergency Banking Relief Act of 1933 – allowed for the president to regulate banking transactions and foreign
exchange, and to reopen solvent banks
E. Glass-Steagall Banking Reform Act of 1933 – enacted by The Hundred Days Congress; provided for the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation
F. FDR ordered all the private holdings of gold to be given to the Treasury in exchange for paper currency (“managed
currency”), no longer having the gold standard; wanted to cause inflation
G. The gold-buying scheme came to an end in Feb. 1934, and FDR returned to the gold standard for the sole purpose of
international trade
IV. Unemployment
A. Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) – the most popular creation of the New Deal; provided jobs in government
camps for 3 million men
B. Federal Emergency Relief Act (FERA) – headed by Harry L. Hopkins, who granted $3 billion to the states for direct
dole payments or preferably for wages on work projects
C. The Hundred Days Congress also created:
1. Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) – helped farmers with mortgages
2. Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) – refinanced mortgages on nonfarm homes; bailed out mortgage-
holding banks; secured middle class homeowners to the Democratic Party
D. Civil Works Administration (CWA) – established by FDR in the late 1933; provided temporary jobs during the
winter emergency
E. Many opposed:
1. Father Coughlin – a Catholic priest who began broadcasting against the New Deal; was silenced in 1942 by
superiors
2. Senator Huey P. “Kingfish” Long – wanted “Share the Wealth” programs; assassinated in 1935
3. Dr. Francis E. Townsend – wanted each senior citizen to receive $200 per month
 F. Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1935 – objective was employment on useful projects
V. Labor and Industry
A. National Recovery Administration (NRA) – was to assist industry (using “fair competition” codes), labor (creating
max. hours limit, min. wage, restrictions on child labor), and the unemployed; was shut down in 1935
B. Public Works Administration (PWA) – made for industrial recovery and unemployment relief; headed by Harold L.
Ickes
C. 21st Amendment – repealed the prohibition of alcohol; later provided federal revenue and employment
VI. Farmers
A. AAA – ironically increased unemployment rather than decreasing it; Supreme Court shut it down in 1936
B. Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936 – paid farmers to plant soil-conserving crops or to let their
land lie uncultivated
C. Second Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 (new AAA) – provided eligibility for parity payments and gave farmers
a more substantial share of the national income
VII. The Dust Bowl
A. A prolonged drought stuck the trans-Mississippi Great Plains in the late 1933
B. The Dust Bowl named because the wind blew the top soil into the air, creating dust storms.
C. The Frazier-Lemke Farm Bankruptcy Act in 1934 – was supposed to provide suspension of mortgage foreclosures for
five years, but was voided the following year by the Supreme Court, and a revised law was created making it three
years
D. Resettlement Administration in 1935 – removed near-farmless farmers to better land
E. Reorganization Act of 1934 – promoted by Commissioner of Indian Affairs John Collier; 77 tribes refused it, while
200 supported it; the law:
1. Encouraged tribes to establish local self-governments and to preserve their native crafts and traditions
2. Helped to stop the loss of Indian lands
3. Revived tribes’ interest in their identity and culture
VIII. New Dealers
A. Wanted to prevent fraud, deception, and manipulation in the stock market by creating:
1. The “Truth in Securities Act” (Federal Securities Act) – required promoters to transmit to the investor sworn
information regarding the validity of their stock and bonds
2. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – created by Congress in 1934; created security administration
agency for the stock market
B. Used Tennessee River; they were able to develop the hydro-electric potential of the entire area
1. Provided thousands of people with jobs and created a long term project for reforming the power monopoly
2. The Tennessee Valley Authority Act (TVA) of 1933
a. acknowledged as the most revolutionary of all the New Deal schemes
b. was to discover exactly how much the production and distribution of electricity would cost
c. some people thought it was dishonest, but New Dealers ignored them
d. brought full employment, cheaper electric power, low-cost housing, abundant cheap nitrates, the
restoration of eroded soil, reforestation, improved navigation, and flood control
C. Housing Construction
1. Federal Housing Administration (FHA) – was set up in 1934; stimulated by small loans to householders;
lasted a long time
2. United States Housing Authority (USHA) – agency created in 1937 that was designed to lend money to states
or communities for low-cost construction
D. Insurance and old-age pensions: Social Security Act of 1935 – considered the greatest success of the New Deal;
provided for federal-state unemployment insurance; provided security for the old-aged by specifying categories of retired
workers who were to receive regular payments; provided for the blind, the physically handicapped, delinquent children,
etc.
E. Labor
1. Strike occurred in San Francisco in 1934; later the Supreme Court shut down the NRA
2. Wagner Act of 1935 (National Labor Relations) – created a powerful new National Labor Relations Board
for administrative purposes and reasserted the right of labor to engage in self-organization and to bargain
through representatives of its choice
3. Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO) – formed by John L. Lewis within the American Federation
of Labor; was later suspended and the Congress of Industrial Organizations was formed in 1938; used sit-down
strikes against General Motors and against the United States Steel Company
 4. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 – created minimum wages and maximum hours; children under the age of
sixteen were not allowed to work
IX. Presidential Campaign of 1936
A. (R.) Governor Alfred M. Landon, “the Kansas Coolidge” challenged (D.) FDR, “the Champ”
B. Platforms:
1. Republican: promises relief benefits; condemned the New Deal; stressed “deeds, not deficits;” opposed
Social Security, but support it only enough to avoid controversy
2. Democratic: denounced the GOP as the party of big moneyed interests; supported New Deal; appealed to the
“forgotten man”
C. American Liberty League, formed by wealthy Republicans and conservative Democrats in 1934. fought against the
New Deal and FDR.
D. Landon lost, only having the support Maine and Vermont; electoral count of 523 to 8; was the most lopsided election
in 116 years; the Democrats now controlled more than two thirds in both the House and Senate
E. CIO, left-wingers, blacks, and “New Immigrants” gave their support to the Republican Party
F. FDR took the presidential oath on Jan 30, 1937, instead of March 4, because of the 20h Amendment, which had
gotten rid of the post-election lame duck period in 1933
X. The Supreme Court
A. The ultraconservative Court created problems for Roosevelt to pass New Deals bills
B. In 1937, FDR asked Congress for legislation to permit him to add a new injustice in the Supreme Court for every
member over 70 yrs. Old who would not retire (there were presently 9); was one of the most costly misjudgments of his
career; falsely accused the Court of being behind in its work; FDR was seen as dishonest
C. Congress and the nation pressed the Court with a “dictator bill”
D. Normally conservative Justice Roberts started voting more liberally
E. Upheld the Wagner Act and the Social Security Act; voted full pay for justices over seventy who retired; as a result,
one retired and was replaced by New Dealer Justice Black
XI. Twilight of the New Deal
A. Even though the Great Depression was still present, a severe depression-within-the-depression occurred in 1937; also
known as “Roosevelt’s recession”
B. FDR took the recommendations of John Maynard Keynes; made a program to stimulate the economy by planned
deficit spending in April 1937; also known as “Keynesianism”
C. FDR urged Congress in 1937 to authorize a reorganization of the national administration in the interests of
streamlined efficiency; did not pass; Congress later passed the Reorganization Act in 1939, giving him limited
powers for administrative reforms
D. Hatch Act of 1939 – banned federal administrative officials, except the highest policy-making officers, from active
political campaigning and soliciting; prohibited the use of government funds for political purposes and the collection
of campaign contributions from people receiving relief payments
E. By 1938-1939, public attention shifted away from domestic reform and the New Deal
F. The New Deal, although improved many things, failed to cure the depression; numerous people now spoke out
against FDR and the New Deal, saying that it was a waste of money
 Chapter 35
Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Shadow of War
(1933-1941)

I. Global Recovery
A. Sixty-six nations come together for the London Economic Conference in 1933
1. organize international attack on the global depression
2. stabilize values of currencies and exchange-rates
3. revive world trade
B. FDR refuses to sacrifice possibility of U.S. recovery for international cooperation
C. Collapse of London Conference strengthened the global trend toward extreme nationalism; made international
cooperation more difficult
D. Tydings-McDuffie Act in 1934 - provided for the independence of the Philippines after a twelve-year period of
economic and political guidance (1946)
E. FDR formally recognizes the Soviet Union in 1933
1. hope for trade with Soviet Russia
2. may help against possible threat of German power in Europe and Japanese power in Asia
F. FDR establishes the Good Neighbor policy – in hopes of building a relationship with Latin America to help defend
the Western Hemisphere
G. Secretary of State Cordell Hull believed that a nation can sell abroad only as it buys abroad for trade to work.
1. Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act in 1934 – activated the low-tariff policies and helped American exports
a. paved the way for the American-led free-trade international economic system that took shape after
World War II
2. succeeded in negotiating pacts with twenty-one countries by the end of 1939
II. Dictators Emerge
A. Joseph Stalin led Communist USSR
B. Benito Mussolini reigned over Italy during 1922
1. attacked Ethiopia in 1935 with bombers and tanks, seeking glory and empire in Africa
C. Adolf Hitler took control of Germany in 1933
D. Nazi Hitler and Fascist Mussolini allied themselves in the Rome-Berlin Axis in 1936
E. Japan wanted more land and power for their growing population
1. Tokyo gave notice in 1934 of the termination of the twelve-year-old Washington Naval Treaty
2. accelerated their construction of giant battleships
F. General Francisco Franco of Spain took charge to overthrow the Loyalist regime and came together with Mussolini
and Hitler, opening a small door to the US in the Spanish American War
III. American Isolationism
A. United States was disillusioned from WWI and afraid to be pulled into another war
B. Johnson Debt Default Act in 1934 – stopped indebt nations from borrowing further in the US
C. Neutrality Acts of 1935, 1936, 1937 – when the president proclaimed the existence of a foreign war, certain
restrictions would automatically go into effect; used to try and keep the US out of a conflict like WWI
D. As America falsely assumed that the decision for peace or war lay in its hands, and didn’t use its power, dictators
were able to go on their conquests
E. Spanish American War (1936-1939) broke out and the United States put an arms embargo to both Loyalists and
rebels
F. Determined to stay out of the war, America did not build up a military force to take on aggressors
G. Roosevelt gave his “Quarantine Speech” in 1937, calling for “positive endeavors” to “quarantine” the aggressors
H. America’s isolationist mood intensified, especially in regard for China
I. Neutrality Act of 1939 allowed European democracies to buy US war materials only if they paid in cash and carried
the munitions on their own ships
J. Interventionists think “Britain is Fighting Our Fight” and isolationists feel “All Methods Short of War” could keep
the peace.
K. Isolationists organized the America First Committee, proclaiming “England Will Fight to the Last American”
Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh, who narrowed the Atlantic in 1927, was their most effective speechmaker
IV. Tensions Rise
A. Japan began to invade China in 1937 near Beijing (Peking), and later bombed an American gunboat, Panay, killing
two and wounding thirty
 B. Japan vented against the “superior” white race by subjecting American civilians in China, both male and female, to
humiliating slappings and strippings.
C. Adolf Hitler decided to take on Europe
1. undertook to persecute and exterminate the Jewish population in the areas under his control; wiped out about
6 million innocent victims
2. occupied his birthplace, Austria
3. made bullying demands for Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia
4. Munich Conference held in 1938 sought to find a peaceful settlement but Hitler took all of Czechoslovakia
six months after his solemn vows
D. USSR signed a nonaggression treaty with Hitler on August 23, 1939
E. Hitler invades Poland on September 1, 1939
V. World War II Begins
A. Britain and France keep their alliance with Poland and declare war with Germany, ending a twenty-year truce
B. “phony war” referred to France and Britain after the collapse of Poland; ended in April 1940 when Hitler overran
Denmark and Norway
C. After France collapsed, the United States prepares the assembly of airfleets and a navy, and $37 billion. Congress
passes a conscription law on September 6, 1940 – for training each year 1.2 million troops and 800,000 reserves
D. Havana Conference of 1940 – the United States agreed to share its twenty New World neighbors the responsibility of
upholding the Monroe Doctrine
VI. Breaking Tradition
A. It was 1940 and two Republicans Robert A. Taft of Ohio and Thomas E. Dewey of New York, plus Wendell L.
Willkie were running for Presidency
B. Roosevelt decides at the last minute to stay in the running for his Third Term and wins
1. told people that their sons and fathers would not have to go to war
2. able to use his experience dealing with Hitler and other leaders to win over American voters
C. Willkie tried to take FDR down by telling the public of Roosevelt’s “dictatorship” and his third term was unnecessary
VII. War Continues
A. “Battle of Britain” broke out in 1940, lasting a few months
1. U.S. had to think of which foreign policy to accept
2. Roosevelt traded fifty old destroyers from WWI to the British and they in return allowed U.S. to have eight
defensive bases from Newfoundland to South America
B. Lend-Lease Bill approved in March 1941 was placed to “Further Promote the Defense of the United States” sending
about $50 billion worth of armaments to all democratic countries in aid of fighting off vicious dictators – ending
American neutrality
C. The Robin Moor, an unarmed American merchantman was torpedoed and destroyed by a German submarine on May
21, 1941
D. Hitler invades the USSR in June 1941
1. wanted to take all the resources of the Soviets and use them to take over countries
2. Roosevelt increases the lend-lease and gives $1 billion to help the Soviets
E. Atlantic Conference in 1941, FDR and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill discuss international problems
1. eight-point Atlantic Charter – a specific outline of what was to happen after the war; no territory was to be
exchanged, people were allowed to choose their own government, and a new League of Nations was to be
formed
F. U-boats and American boats began to conflict, and merchant ships could finally be armed.
G. Japanese were no longer getting supplies from the U.S. due to an embargo act and needed to do something about it
1. Gasoline and many other materials were needed to continue their conquest
2. Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor on “Black Sunday” morning of December 7, 1941
3. Germany and Italy, both allies of Japan decided to judge for themselves and declared war four days later on
December 11
H. Americans united and another long chain of reactions set off
1. U.S. hoped to stop the Japanese from taking over the Far East
2. Wished to keep the British Empire from falling
3. Fought for democracy and freedom from international anarchy
 Chapter 36
America in World War II
(1941-1945)
I. Entering the war
A. Many citizens wanted to attack Japan first
B. ABC-1 agreement with the British – get Hitler first
C. Unlike WWI, the war speeded the assimilation of ethnic groups into American society (not the Japanese)
D. Japanese internment camps robbed the Japanese-Americans of their dignity
E. Supreme Court case Korematsu v. U.S. declared the internment camps constitutional, but in 1988 survivors were paid
reparations
F. Era of New Deal reform ended, focus shifted to war
II. Wartime economy
A. Weapons manufacturing provided idle Americans with work and helped end the depression
B. Japanese attacks in the South Pacific cut off lifelines of resources, American output was forced to increase
C. Inflation: The Office of Price Administration introduced regulations to stop it
D. Smith-Connally Anti-Strike Act (1943) prevented war-time strikes, but most Americans were dedicated to the cause
E. Many young men went to war, America was short of workers
F. Braceros came from Mexico to work in agriculture
G. More than 6 million women took jobs outside the home, but most remained homemakers and were later the suburban
“baby-boomers”
H. Black-American joined the war effort, and it fueled their struggle for equality
1. The mechanical cotton picker (1944) decreased the amount of labor required for cotton picking and millions
of Black-Americans moved north to the cities
2. Many Native Americans moved off reservations into the cities
3. Whites attacked blacks in race riots and Mexicans in the zoot suit riot of 1943
I. the national debt skyrocketed
III. War
A. The American public suffered very little from the war, in fact, the economy was lifted out of depression and it thrived
B. General MacArthur’s troops (after he departed for Australia) surrendered in April 1942 to the Japanese forces in the
Philippines
1. They were forced on the 85-mile Bataan death match and the Japanese took total control over the
Philippines
C. Japan was quickly gaining control of the entire Pacific, with Australia in sight
D. Japan attacked Midway Island, which is close enough to Hawaii to allow them to attack it, but Admiral Spruance’s
fleet sunk 4 Japanese carriers by aircraft and they retreated
1. American defense was shifted to Alaska
2. After Midway, the ration of Japanese to American deaths was persistently 10 to 1
3. Admiral Chester W. Nimitz was the naval strategist
4. Round-the-clock bombing of Japan began in November 1944
E. Hitler’s U-boats monopolized naval warfare until 1943
F. In October 1942, British general Montgomery forced German commander Rommel “the Desert Fox” into retreat
from the Suez Canal in the Battle of El Alamein
G. Russian forces halted German forces in Stalingrad in Sept. 1942, and in November, launched a counterattack that was
never reversed
H. Allied forces first attacked French-held North Africa
I. In September 1943, Italy unconditionally surrendered, but Rome was finally taken from German occupation in June
1944
J. On June 6, 1944, American general Eisenhower led allied forces against Germany on the beaches of Normandy in
one of the largest and most elaborate invasions ever – D-Day
K. Paris was liberated in August 1944
IV. The Election of 1944
A. The election took place at the climax of the war
B. Republican Thomas E. Dewey, Democrat FDR
C. FDR was elected for his fourth term, primarily because the war was going well
V. The Last Days of Hitler
 A. The Battle of the Bulge: Hitler launched his last offensive on the allied line in Antwerp, Belgium, but the 101st
Airborne Division finally stopped him
B. American and Soviet troops invaded Germany in 1945 and were shocked by the concentration camps
C. In April 1945, the Soviets reached Berlin and Hitler committed suicide in an underground bunker on April 20
D. On April 12, 1945, FDR died of a cerebral hemorrhage and Vice President Truman took office
E. On May 1945, the remaining British troops surrendered and May 8th was officially proclaimed V-E Day, or victory in
Europe day
VI. Japan and Atomic Bombs
A. Philippines – January 1945, 60,000
B. Iwo Jima – March 1945, 4,000 American dead (the famous flag-raising)
C. Okinawa – April-June 1945, 80,000 American casualties
D. Facing hundreds of thousands of American deaths for victory, Truman went to the Potsdam conference in July 1945,
where the Allies decided on an ultimatum for Japan: Surrender or be destroyed
E. On August 6, 1945, a long American bomber dropped the first atomic bomb on the military-base city of Hiroshima,
killing 70,000 Japanese instantly
1. 60,000 more died later from burns or radiation disease
F. On August 8, Stalin joined the war against Japan, not wanting to be excluded in the division of Japanese holdings
G. The Japanese did not surrender, and on August 9th, the second atomic bomb was dropped on the naval base of
Nagasaki
1. 80,000 Japanese were killed or missing
H. On August 10, 1945, Japan surrendered with the one condition: Hirohito be allowed to stay in power, and the Allies
accepted on August 14
I. September 2, 1945, the formal end of the war, war name V-Jay day, or victor in Japan day
VII. Summary of the War
A. American forces suffered 1 million casualties, and one third were deaths
B. America was virtually untouched and prosperous
C. New heroes emerged: Eisenhower, MacArthur, and Marshall (chief of staff)
D. America showed its military strength and endurance, which no country could match
 Chapter 37
The Cold War Begins
(1945-1952)
I. America
A. Postwar Anxieties
1. gross national product (GNP) fell drastically in 1946
2. Taft-Hartley Act – passed in 1947 over Truman’s veto, it outlawed union ships, held unions liable for strike
damages, and required a non-Communist oath from all union members
3. “Operation Dixie” – aimed at unionizing southern textile workers and steelworkers, failed miserably in 1948
to overcome lingering fears of racial mixing
4. Employment Act in 1946 – “to promote maximum employment, production, and purchasing power”
a. Created a three-member Council of Economic Advisers to provide the president with data and
recommendations to make it a reality
5. Readjustment Act of 1944 – better known as the GI Bill – provided 14.5 billion tax-payer dollars to send
some 8 million soldiers to college
6. Veterans Administration – guarantee about $16 billion for home loans
B. Economic Boom 1950-1970
1. National income nearly doubled in the 1950s, almost doubled again in the 1960s, and shot through the
trillion-dollar mark in 1973
2. By the mid-50s, over 60% of the population owned their own homes and could be labeled as “middle class”
earning 3-10 thousand a year
3. Women accounted for over one quarter of the work force during the war
a. Pop culture began to define a woman’s place as being a homemaker, wife, and mother
C. Results of the Economic Boom
1. Federal Housing Authority (FHA) and other policies inspired the move from urban cities to suburban houses
2. “Levittown” sprouted on New York’s Long Island, revolutionized the techniques of home construction
3. Inner cities, with the wealthy white population and most of the businesses moving out, became “black,
brown,and broke”
4. A massive baby boom produced a generation which spent nearly $20 million on jeans and records as teens,
and might be responsible for a massive strain on Social Security in their senior years
D. Harry S. Truman was an “accidental president”
II. Foreign Affairs
A. Yalta Conference of February 1945 – the “Big Three” (Stalin, Churchill, and Roosevelt) met to discuss the future of
Europe and Asia post-WWII
1. Stalin promised to give free election in Poland, as well as aid in the defeat of Japan, in exchange for land.
His promise about free elections fell through
B. Separation of the Super Powers
1. Communism and capitalism were hostile social philosophies; U.S. refused to recognize the Bolshevik
revolutionary government in Moscow until 1933
2. Stalin becomes suspicious when the U.S. gave a $3.75 reconstruction loan to Britain, after denying the
USSR a similar offer
C. The two powers provoked each other into a tense standoff known as the Cold War
D. International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1944 to encourage world trade by regulating currency exchange rates
E. International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) to promote economic growth in war-ravaged
and underdeveloped areas
F. The United Nations Conference
1. first met on April 25th, 1945
2. proposed a Security Council by the Big Five powers (the United States, Britain, the USSR, France, and
China)
3. permanent glass home in New York City
4. Policies like UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, FAO (Food and
Agricultural Organization), and WHO (World Health Organization) helped out in global affairs
5. UN wished to keep an eye on nuclear advancements, but the USSR denied their investigators, calling them
“spies” and unofficially started a battle with America
G. The Split of Germany
1. Germany divided into four military occupation zones (France, Britain, America, and the USSR)
 2. To protect his part of the city, Stalin set up the Berlin Wall, and a massive road blockade. America, in
retaliation, sent a series of planes to bring supplies to Berlin (Berlin Air Lift)
III. The Cold War Begins
A. Truman Sprang into Action
1. Truman Doctrine in 1947 – sent money to protect Greece and Turkey from Communist pressures
2. Marshall Plan in 1947 – sent $12.5 billion over four years to sixteen countries
B. Preparing for war
1. In 1947, the National Security Act was passed, which created the Department of Defense, the National
Security Council (NSC), and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
2. On April 4th, 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was passed, instituting a policy of
“attack one, attack all.” Senate approved of treaty in July
a. Cornerstone of all Cold War American policy toward Europe
b. Threefold purpose: “to keep Russians out, the Germans down, and the Americans in”
C. Reconstruction and Revolution in Asia
1. Reconstruction in Japan – a MacArthur-dictated constitution was adopted in 1946, which renounced
militarism and introduced Western-style democratic government
2. Civil war between Nationalists and communists in China; Nationalist – Generalissimo Jiang Jieshi,
communist – Mao Zedong
a. Jiang forced to flee in 1979 in Formosa (Taiwan) when communists swept the south; collapse of
Nationalist China
3. In September of 1949, the Soviet Union exploded their first nuclear weapon, an atomic bomb
a. Truman ordered the development of the “H-bomb.” In 1952, Albert Einstein helped develop the
hydrogen bomb, which destroyed the South Pacific Island it was tested on. Soviet had similar
success in 1953
D. Red Scare
1. The Loyalty Review Board investigated 3 million federal employees in 1947. Nearly 10% of them resigned
or were dismissed
2. Supreme Court upheld conviction of 11 communists for violating the Smith Act of 1940 in Dennis v. United
States (1951)
3. Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) established by House of Representatives in 1938
investigated “subversion”
4. In 1948, Nixon went after famed scientist Alger Hiss for the suspicion that he was a spy, found guilty of
perjury in 1950
5. February 1950 marked the beginning of Senator McCarthy’s “red-hunt,” planned to oust thousands of
communist spies in the American government system. He was quickly viewed as a fool, and most of his
accusations did not affect the accused
6. American citizens Julius and Ethel Rosenberg convicted in 1951 of espionage for “leaking” atomic data to
Moscow; electrocuted in 1953
IV. Presidential Race of 1948
A. The Candidates
1. Truman: long shot, representing Democratic Party
2. Dewey: many good ideas, thought of as arrogant, Republican
3. Thurmond: “Dixiecrat” from South Carolina, representing the State’s Rights Ticket
4. Wallace: former vice president, but had pro-Soviet views, Democrat
B. The Results
1. Truman took a surprise win, with an impressive margin over the other runners, and the humiliation of
Dewey’s paper “DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN”
2. Truman’s “Four-Point” plan aided poverty stricken countries in Africa and Latin America
3. The “Fair Deal” plan of 1949 was impressive, but not taken seriously by a congress against Truman’s
presidency
V. Korean Invasion
A. June 25th , 1950, North Korea launches a Soviet-tank powered invasion on South Korea
B. Truman fights back, with a massive military buildup from the National Security Council Memorandum Number 68
(NSC-68)
1. NSC-68 marked major step in militarization of American foreign policy
2. reflected a sense of almost limitless possibility that pervaded postwar American society
C. UN members and the United States called upon to “render every assistance” to restore peace
D. American air and naval unites also ordered to support South Korea
E. General MacArthur was appointed UN commander of entire operation
1. September 15, 1950 – launched surprise attack at Inchon and drove North Koreans back beyond 38th
parallel
2. November 1950, Chinese “volunteers” ambushed UN forces and MacArthur’s request for aid from
Washington was refused; Truman removed MacArthur from command on April 11, 1951