McCarthyism

The phrase McCarthyism was first coined in the late 40’s to 50’s during the suspicious political climate against communists. The phrase refers to Senator Joseph McCarthy, a senator from Wisconsin, and his political tactics. McCarthy had a bad reputation for being an infected legislature, so he desperately tried to find an issue to capture the publics’ votes and become re-elected.

Being an anti-communist activist, McCarthy claimed that communists were taking over the government. Feeding off the publics’ fear of communism, McCarthy continued to make false accusations about communists in the government. These attacks on supposed communists became known as McCarthyism.

The meaning today is accusing others of treason with unsupported accusations. McCarthy claimed that up to 205 communists were in the State Department. He also bashed the Democratic Party for treason by allowing communists to infiltrate the government. He was careful to make his false claims in the Senate, where he had legal immunity.

Other republicans did not stop McCarthy, but when he made accusations against the army, the government issued an investigation on McCarthy. Shown as a criminal, McCarthy quickly lost public support. The Senate condemned him, and 3 years later, he died from the effects of too much alcohol.

-Felix, Kevin

Rise and Fall of Joseph McCarthy

Ever heard the word "McCarthyism"? McCarthysim is the accusation of others without evidence. It came from a time when a desperate man went on an anti-communist "witch hunt." Let's take a look at what happened.

Who?
Senator Joseph McCarthy was a republican senator from Wisconsin. The Senator was long known for being inefficient and thus needed a strong point behind his name for reelection in 1952.

When?
The McCarthy situation happened in the early 1950's, following WWII. At the time, fear of communism and the USSR spread like wild fire. America and USSR had begun their own attempts as superpowers to influence the nations of the world into following their respective strategies, democracy and socialistic communism. The U.S. was fighting the Korean war, and the ultimate conflict of the 20th century was looming: the Cold War.

What?
McCarthy was aware of the spreading fear and took advantage of this opportunity to support his own needs. He attempted to start an uproar against "potential communists" in the U.S. government. He then began to accuse senators and other various government officials of being communist or disloyal. Not only did he claim knowledge of communists in the government, but he went as far to blame the infiltration of communists on the democratic party itself.
The evidence against McCarthy was high. He claimed the number of communists in the government were, 57, 81 and 205, at different times! But which one was it?! Not only was he inconsistent with numbers, but he also could never provide a name. He never made his accusations outside the Senate, where he had legal immunity from slander. Ultimately, in 1954, he began accusing the military of communism.
Few republicans choose to speak out against McCarthy, for they believed that with his calumny and lies, he could help them win the next presidential election.

Aftermath
In 1954, the Senate began to investigate McCarthy's lies. As the investigation went on, and the truth became more clear, the media began revealed his boorishness by televising the investigation, and in doing so, alienated his public support. The Senate censured him on account of dishonesty and disreputation. Stripped of his position, he turned to alchohalism and died of the drug three years later. But even with McCarthy silenced, the fear of communisism lingered on.

Gayan and Cat