CICERO © 2008 THE RED SCARE AND THE MCCARTHY HEARINGS.

History Beyond The Textbook

CICEROHistory Beyond The Textbook

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THE RED SCAREAND

THE MCCARTHYHEARINGS



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ORIGINS OF THE RED SCARE

“Is This Tomorrow” was a comic book that talked about the dangers

of a communist takeover.

The ideals of communism were known in America since at least the 1920s, due to the fact that communists and socialists were involved in

organizing some labor unions and opposing fascism. This allowed the Communist Party of

the United States to attract more members, eventually reaching about 50,000 people by

1942. Still, communism was a minority viewpoint in the United States and unpopular at

that. Anti-communistic feelings were briefly subdued while the United States and Soviet

Union were allies during World War II. At the conclusion of the war, however, the Cold War started. The Soviet Union installed communist

regimes throughout Eastern and Central Europe. Fear of the increasing power of communism

spread in the United States.



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ORIGINS OF THE RED SCAREThe Second Red Scare occurred from 1947 to 1957. During this time, many Americans were afraid of communism infiltrating the United States. Tensions were heightened after Americans heard about the case of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, accused of

selling secrets to the Soviets on how to make an atomic bomb. The two were later

convicted and executed for their acts. In 1947, British Prime Minister Winston

Churchill said an “Iron Curtain” was falling on the region of Eastern Europe, cut off from

the West by the Soviet Union. Eventually, the Soviets created their own version of the atomic bomb, which caused more concern

and fear among U.S. citizens.

“Joe-1” the first Soviet atomic bomb, was tested on August 29, 1949.



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ORIGINS OF THE RED SCAREBy this time, Americans were figuring that an atomic attack could be caused by the Soviet Union. Fallout shelters became very common in the United States, for those who could afford them. In addition, students began

practicing atomic bomb drills in their schools. Films like the “Duck and

Cover” video were shown in American schools. The students were instructed to get out of their seats and hide under their desks. At that point, they would take their hands and put them over

their heads. Some criticized these films for giving people the false impression

that a nuclear war was more survivable than it actually would be.

Screenshot from the film “Duck and Cover,” which taught children through the use of cartoon characters how to prepare for an

atomic attack.



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ORIGINS OF THE RED SCAREAt this time, former members of the

Communist Party of the United States were brought before the House Un-

American Activities Committee. Elizabeth Bentley and Whittaker

Chambers said there were people who were communists or sympathized with

communism who had infiltrated the United States government during and

after World War II. The hard times of the Great Depression had caused some

Americans to think communism was an idea worth considering. This prompted Congress to pass the Smith Act in 1940, which made it illegal for a U.S. citizen to participate in a group that actively tried to overthrow the government.

Elizabeth Bentley (left) and Whittaker Chambers



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ORIGINS OF THE RED SCAREThe Smith Act had another function, as it required everyone who entered the United States to first register with the government.

This was done so everyone in the United States could be accounted for. In 1947,

United States President Harry Truman also enacted Executive Order 9835, which led to

the establishment of the Federal Employment Loyalty Program. The program reviewed all Americans who worked for the federal government and determined if they

were loyal to the United States. If any discrepancies were found, the person would

be called before a board and questioned.

Page One of Executive Order 9835



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THE RISE OF MCCARTHYSenator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin came to lead one of the committees in the United

States government that investigated communism. McCarthy strongly opposed the ideals of communism. On February 9, 1950,

during a Lincoln Day speech at the Republican Women’s Club in Virginia, he

stated that the Executive Branch of government knew there were communists

working for the government. He also said that Secretary of State Dean Acheson knew of at least 205 people who were working for the

State Department that were known communists or supported it. McCarthy

produced and waved a piece of paper that contained the names of those individuals.Joseph McCarthy while running

for the United States Senate



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THE TYDINGS COMMITTEEAmerica was sent into a frenzy

following Senator McCarthy’s report. In response to his claims, the Tydings

Committee was formed. It investigated the names on McCarthy’s list to see if they were loyal to the United States.

The Democratic Party was not pleased with McCarthy’s attack on the State

Department. At the same time, McCarthy accused nine other people of being involved in communism, but did not have sufficient evidence to back it

up. When the Tydings Committee concluded its report, it was determined that none of the people on McCarthy’s

list was communist or had even supported communism.

Senator Millard Tydings of the Tydings Committee



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MCCARTHY CONTINUES TO RISE

When McCarthy began his second term as United States Senator in 1953, he became the chairman of the Senate

Committee of Government Operations, which included the Senate Permanent

Subcommittee on Investigations. McCarthy used this platform to conduct his own communist investigations. He

first accused the Voice of America (VOA) and its members of being

communists. While no charges were filed, morale in the organization was affected. One of its workers killed

himself during the hearings.Logo for the Voice of America, the institution accused by McCarthy of

containing communists



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THE ARMY INVESTIGATIONSeantor Joseph McCarthy began his

investigation into the United States Army in the fall of 1953. He looked into the case of Irving Peress, who had been promoted to major shortly after his arrival in the army.

McCarthy wanted to find out why Peress did not answer any questions about political

party affiliations on his loyalty review, even though he was a member of the American

Labor Party. Peress was to be discharged in three months when McCarthy brought him before his committee on January 30, 1954. Peress would not answer questions, citing

the Fifth Amendment. When McCarthy tried to get him court martialed, Peress asked for

his discharge to be made effective immediately.

McCarthy and Chief Counsel Roy Cohn (right) talk during the Army hearings



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THE ARMY INVESTIGATIONMcCarthy next called General Ralph Zwicker, Peress’ superior officer, to the committee on

February 18, 1954. Zwicker refused to answer many of McCarthy’s questions, and he was

openly mocked by McCarthy. Zwicker was a World War II hero and McCarthy’s mocking

caused many groups of people to dislike McCarthy. This included President Dwight D.

Eisenhower, who had been a four-star general in the Army. Secretary of the Army Robert Stevens

met with McCarthy and gave in to all of the demands that McCarthy wanted for an

investigation into the United States military. The public reacted strongly when Stevens signed this

document.

Secretary of the ArmyRobert Stevens



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THE ARMY-MCCARTHY HEARINGS

The United States Army then accused McCarthy and his Chief Counsel Roy Cohn

of putting pressure on the Army to give preferential treatment to G. David Schine. He had been an associate of theirs and was

now a private in the Army. McCarthy disputed these facts, stating that the Army was just trying to get back at him for what

had occurred during the questioning of Zwicker. McCarthy’s own Senate

Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations was put in charge of the hearing, with Karl

Mundt heading it on April 22, 1954.G. David Schine, friend of both

McCarthy and Cohn



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THE ARMY-MCCARTHY HEARINGS

The hearings went on for thirty-six days and were televised live. Thirty-two witnesses had taken the stand before the committee concluded that McCarthy had not done anything to influence the Army to give Schine preferential treatment. However,

Cohn was found guilty of using persistent efforts to get Schine preferential treatment.

But the most important part of these hearings was the damage to McCarthy’s credibility. In the American public’s eye,

McCarthy came off as nothing more than a bully.

Senator Karl Mundt, in charge of the Army-McCarthy

Hearings



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MURROW VS. MCCARTHYMcCarthy was further attacked on a TV

series called See It Now, which was hosted by journalist Edward R. Murrow. The

episode was entitled “A Report on Senator Joseph R. McCarthy.” The show featured

clips of McCarthy making many accusations, including accusing the

Democratic Party of “twenty years of treason.” Murrow attacked McCarthy,

stating that he only confused the public and exploited the fear of communism in the United States. McCarthy appeared on the show on April 6, 1954. On the air he insulted Murrow and made many charges against the popular newscaster. This did not sit well with the public and further

hurt McCarthy’s image.

Edward R. Murrow, respected television newscaster and broadcast journalist



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THE FALL OF MCCARTHYOn June 11, 1954, Senator Ralph Flanders

introduced a resolution to remove McCarthy from being the head of certain committees. While not many people supported this decision, Flanders next came up with legislation to censure him. A committee headed by Senator Arthur V. Watkins

was established to investigate this. After two months, the Watkins Committee and the Senate

wanted to censure McCarthy on two counts: McCarthy’s contempt of the Subcommittee on

Rules and Administration and charging members of the Watkins Committee with fraud. The

wording was also changed from “censure” to “condemn” On December 2, 1954, the Senate voted to condemn McCarthy, with both counts

receiving 67 votes in favor and 22 votes opposed.Senator Arthur Watkins, head of

the Watkins Committee



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THE FALL OF MCCARTHYMcCarthy served on the United States

Senate for the next two and a half years. His speeches were ignored by

the majority of the Senate, as his credibility had been significantly

damaged. The press no longer paid McCarthy much attention, even though

he still tried to rally people against communism. Associates of McCarthy state that he was a changed man after

the censure; his personal and professional life were declining. A

drinker for the majority of his life, he began drinking even more. McCarthy died on May 2, 1957 at the age of 48

from acute hepatitis.

The grave of Senator Joseph McCarthy

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