Ch. 36 Notes
The Cold War Begins
Post WWII Economic Fears
1. The biggest fear for the U.S. immediately
after WWII was of another depression.
2. As wartime production began to fall off,
layoffs began to occur – yet over a million
veterans were about to return from war.
3. As wartime price controls were removed,
inflation soared.
4. In 1946, 4.5 million workers went on strike.
Truman and Unions
1. Truman refused to let the country be crippled by
strikes – he threatened to draft striking workers into
the military and then order them back to work as
soldiers – this strategy worked fairly well.
2. In 1947 Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act to try to
slow labor unrest by giving judges the power to stop
strikes with injunctions, outlawing “closed shop”
agreements, limiting unions’ political contributions
and making union officers take oaths of loyalty.
3. Truman vetoed the Taft-Hartley Act but Congress
overrode his veto.
4. Unions referred to it as the “slave-labor bill”.
Truman and the Economy
1. To stimulate the economy, the federal government
sold off government-owned factories to private
businesses at incredibly low prices.
2. Congress passed the Employment Act of 1946, which
made it government policy to promote full
employment, production and purchasing power.
3. The Employment Act also created the President’s
Council of Economic Advisors to aid in this endeavor.
4. And to aid the returning soldiers, Congress passed the
Serviceman’s Readjustment Act.
The G.I. Bill of
Rights
1. The Servicemen’s
Readjustment Act, or the
G.I. Bill of Rights (GI Bill)
made generous provisions
for sending veterans back
to school and gave them
low-interest loans to assist
in buying homes, farms or
small businesses.
2. This law will improve
education levels and
stimulate the construction
industry in the U.S., which
we play a large role in the
U.S.’s post WWII economic
boom and the growth of
the U.S.’s middle class.
1. To aid veterans in finding
housing, William Levitt
developed a method to
mass-produce houses,
which led to the U.S.’s
first “cookie-cutter”
suburb, Levittown.
2. Using the assembly-line
method, over 30 homes
could be built in a day,
all for which sold for
around $7,000.
The Growth of the
Suburbs
LEVITTOWN, New York
The first American Suburb
The Growth of the Suburbs
1. The growth of the suburbs will be aided by low-interest loans
provided by the Veterans Administration (GI Bill) and the
Federal Housing Authority (New Deal), the new government
built highways connecting the suburbs to the cities and tax
deductions given for interest payments on home mortgages.
2. The growth of the suburbs will have a negative effect on the
cities of the U.S. – as the more affluent move out, the cities
become poverty stricken.
3. As poorer African Americans move into the cities, the
problem becomes worse, and more of the middle class will
move out due to “white flight”, taking many businesses with
them.
4. The tax-base of many cities begins to shrink, causing the
poverty problem within the city to get worse because the city
government doesn’t have the funds to deal with them.
The Baby Boom
1. The growth of the
suburbs will also be
influenced by an
explosion in the U.S.
birth rate in the post
WWII era.
2. Between 1946 and 1964,
the birthrate in the U.S.
will soar.
3. At its height in 1957, a
baby was born every
seven seconds in the U.S.
– over 4.3 million babies
were born that year.
The Start of the
Cold War
1. At the Yalta Conference,
the main discussions
revolved around what to
do with Germany after
WWII.
2. It was decided that
Germany (and Berlin)
would be divided into four
zones of occupation.
3. The Soviet Union also
agreed to allow free
elections in Poland and
the other countries they
pushed the Germans out
of.
4. They also agreed to punish
major Nazi’s (Nuremburg
Trials).
The Zones of Occupation in Germany
The United Nations
1. The United Nations was formed in April of 1945 (there
were 50 original nations – today there are 193) to
promote world peace and cooperation.
2. The Security Council was made up of five permanent
members (U.S., S.U., Great Britain, France and China) and
ten rotating members while the General Council
consisted of all the member nations.
3. The permanent members of the Security Council all had
veto powers over major decisions.
4. While it will have some early successes, it will not be
effective in stemming the growing animosity between
the U.S. and Soviet Union, mainly because of their veto
power in the Security Council.
The Cold War
1. During the post WWII period, the U.S. and
the Soviet Union will emerge as the world’s
new superpowers.
2. The Cold War that developed between them
was a competition for global power and
influence that was waged mostly on political
and economic fronts, but there was always
the threat of all-out war, and this time with
nuclear weapons.
Eastern Europe and the Iron Curtain
1.
2.
3.
4.
The main disagreement
between the U.S. and the
Soviet Union emerged over
Eastern Europe.
Stalin had promised free
elections in these nations but
instead made sure that
communist governments
were established there.
These nations became
known as the Soviet Union’s
satellite nations or the
communist bloc.
The dividing line between
the two areas was referred
to as the “iron curtain” by
Winston Churchill.
The Division of Germany
1. The U.S., Great Britain and
France decided to
combine their zones into
West Germany (Federal
Republic of Germany).
2. The Soviet Union refused
to join their zone and
instead helped create the
communist nation of East
Germany (German
Democratic Republic).
3. The Soviet Union was
afraid a unified Germany
would attempt to invade
them again.
1. The capital of Western
Germany was West Berlin,
which was located inside
Eastern Germany.
2. In 1948, the Soviet Union
closed all access points
into West Berlin, hoping to
drive the other Allies out.
3. In response, Truman began
the Berlin Airlift.
4. For 327 days, planes flew
supplies into Berlin around
the clock.
5. The Soviets finally lifted
the blockade in May of
1949.
The Berlin Airlift
Containment
1. Truman and Soviet Union
specialist George F. Kennan
developed a policy of
containment towards the
Soviet Union and
communism.
2. They believed that
communism must be
contained to the areas it was
already located and not be
allowed to spread.
3. Truman and future
presidents used firm but
nonaggressive military and
diplomatic strength to carry
this out.
1. In 1947 Greece was
struggling with a growing
communist influence
within their country.
2. In response, Truman
asked Congress for
economic aid for Greece,
stating that it was the
duty of the U.S. to
support “free peoples
who are resisting outside
pressures”.
3. This policy became
known as the Truman
Doctrine
Greece, Turkey
and the Truman
Doctrine
The Marshall Plan
1. In June of 1947 Truman
expanded the Truman
Doctrine with the Marshall
Plan (Secretary of State
George Marshall).
2. Italy and France were also
facing threats from a growing
communist party.
3. So the U.S. offered economic
aid to any European nation
who asked for it – we
included the Soviet Union
and eastern Europe, knowing
they wouldn’t accept.
4. The Marshall Plan was
hugely successful and by the
early 1950’s Western
Europe’s economy was
flourishing.
The Marshall Plan
Eastern Europe
1. A huge economic
disparity is going to
develop between
Eastern and Western
Europe.
2. Western Europe will
become quite
prosperous while
Eastern Europe will
struggle economically.
3. The Soviet Union will
strip Eastern Europe of
much of its industrial
materials and take them
to the U.S.S.R.
Israel
1. In May of 1948, Truman
supported the U.N. in its
formation of the nation of
Israel – it was created out
of the Arab nation of
Palestine.
2. Many people opposed this
because of our reliance on
oil from the Middle East
but Truman did it anyway largely due to sympathy for
the Jewish survivors of the
Holocaust.
3. This decision will lead to
many future problems
down the road.
The North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO)
1. In April of 1949, the U.S.
will join with the
western European
nations in forming
NATO, a military alliance
created to respond to
any communist
aggression (no more
isolationism for the
U.S.).
2. The Soviet Union will
respond be creating the
Warsaw Pact in 1955.
1. The efforts to rebuild
Japan will go much easier
because the Soviet Union
has no influence in Japan.
2. General Douglas
MacArthur will force the
Japanese to renounce
militarism and then create
a new constitution which
created a Western-style
democracy (including
rights for women) and
U.S. economic aid will
help Japan become a
major economic force
within a few years.
The
Reconstruction of
Japan
The Communist Revolution in China
1.
2.
3.
4.
After WWII, a civil war breaks
out in China between
communist forces led by Mao
Zedong and nationalist forces
led by Chiang Kai-Shek.
Truman did little to help the
nationalist forces because he
was more worried about
Europe.
In 1949 the communist forces
won and Chiang Kai-Shek and
the nationalist fled to Taiwan.
The U.S. refused to recognize
communist China and instead
recognized the nationalists in
Taiwan and China’s true
government – this further
strained relations with the
Soviet Union.
The Second Red Scare
1. Many people claimed that pro-communist elements
within the Truman administration prevented the
nationalists from winning in China.
2. In 1947 Truman had launched a loyalty program and a
Loyalty Review Board was created to investigate
anyone suspected of supporting communism.
3. Teachers and other employees in many states were
forced to sign loyalty oaths in order to keep their jobs.
4. State and local politicians also used the fear of
communism to attack homosexuals and other groups
that challenged the cultural values of the day.
1. In 1948, Alger Hiss was
accused of being a
Soviet spy and passing
along classified
documents to the Soviet
Union during his time in
the State Department.
2. Hiss denied the
allegations but was
eventually convicted of
perjury in 1950 by the
House Un-American
Activities Commission.
Alger Hiss
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg
1. In 1951, Julius and
Ethel Rosenberg were
convicted of being
Soviet spies and
handing U.S. nuclear
secrets over to the
Soviet Union – they
were executed in
1953.
The Election of 1948
1. The Democrats are split in this election.
2. The Southern Democrats form the States’ Rights Party because
they hate Truman’s civil rights stance – they nominate Strom
Thurman.
3. Former vice president Henry Wallace also runs, taking a much
softer stance on how the U.S. should deal with the Soviet
Union.
4. The Republicans run Thomas Dewey again and don’t campaign
much, believing they’ve got the election already.
5. Truman runs a very aggressive campaign and travels the nation
giving speeches – this will lead to his winning – one of the
biggest upsets in election history.
6. Truman promises the American public a Fair Deal, which
would include improved housing, full employment, a higher
minimum wage and an extension of Social Security.
The Election of 1948
1948 Election Map
Truman=Red Dewey=Blue Thurmond=Dixiecrat
(D) Truman (303), (R) Dewey (189),
(S’R) Thurmond (39)
1. After WWII, Korea was
divided along the 38th
parallel.
2. The Soviet Union set up
a communist
government in N. Korea
while the U.S. set up a
democratic government
in S. Korea.
3. In June of 1950, North
Korean forces
(supported by the Soviet
Union) invaded S. Korea.
The Korean War
Truman’s Response
1. Truman immediately
responded, sending
MacArthur and U.S.
forces into Korea (this
was backed by a U.N.
recommendation to
“render every
assistance” to the S.
Koreans.
2. McArthur will be very
successful, pushing N.
Korean troops to the
border of China.
The Chinese Enter the War
1. In 1950, 300,000
thousand Chinese troops
entered N. Korea and
push U.S. forces back to
the 38th parallel, where
the war becomes a
stalemate.
2. MacArthur wants to
include China in the war
and use atomic bombs
on them – Truman
refuses.
Truman and MacArthur
1. When Truman refuses
to attack China,
MacArthur criticizes
him publically and
tries to go over his
head to the Senate.
2. In response, Truman
will fire MacArthur.
3. Truman is very
unpopular at this time.