Semester 2
Week 7
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Rumors & accusations of communists in the U.S. & of
Communist infiltration in the gov’t tapped into fears
that the Communists were trying to take over the
world
9/1945, a clerk named Igor Gouzenko walked out of
the Soviet Embassy in Canada & defected
Gouzenko carried documents revealing a massive
effort by the USSR to infiltrate organizations & gov’t
agencies in Canada & the U.S. w/ the specific goal of
obtaining information about the atomic bomb
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The Gouzenko case implied that spies had infiltrated the
U.S. gov’t
Americans began to fear that Communists were
secretly working to subvert the U.S. gov’t
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Formed in 1938 to investigate
both Communist & Fascist
activities in the U.S., HUAC was
a relatively minor committee
until FBI head J. Edgar Hoover
catapulted it to prominence
Hoover urged HUAC to hold
public hearings on Communist
subversion
Hoover’s aim was to expose not
just Communists but also
“Communist sympathizers” and
fellow travelers”
J. Edgar Hoover
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1948, Whittaker Chambers, former Communist
Party member, testified to HUAC that several
gov’t officials were also former Communists or
spies
most prominent gov’t official named by
Chambers was Alger Hiss
Chambers testified before a grand jury that in
1937 & 1938 Hiss gave him secret documents
from the State Department; Hiss denied
everything
Rep. Richard Nixon (CA) convinced his colleagues
to continue the hearings to determine whether
Hiss or Chambers had lied
Chambers produced copies of secret documents
& microfilm that he hid in a hollow pumpkin on
his farm. These “pumpkin papers,” Chambers,
proved that he was telling the truth. A jury
agreed and convicted Hiss of perjury
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Another sensational spy case centered
around accusations that U.S.
Communists had sold the secrets of
the atomic bomb
1950, the hunt led to Klaus Fuchs, a
British scientists who admitted
sending information to the USSR
His testimony led the FBI to arrest
Julius & Ethel Rosenberg, a NY couple
who were members of the Communist
Party
The gov’t charged them with heading
a USSR spy ring
The Rosenburgs denied the charges
but were condemned to death for
espionage
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During a speech in WV, Sen. Joseph McCarthy (WI)
stated that he had a list of 205 people, who were
Communist, working in the State Department
When McCarthy arrived at the Denver airport,
reporters asked to see his list of state department
Communists; McCarthy stated the list was packed
in his bag on the plane
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the list never existed
He distributed a booklet called “The Party of
Betrayal,” which accused Dem. Party leaders of
corruption and of protecting Communists
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McCarthy became chairman of
the Senate subcommittee on
investigations
forced gov’t officials to testify
about alleged Communist
influences, McCarthy turned
the investigation into a witch
hunt.
His tactic of damaging
reputations with vague and
unfounded charges became
known as McCarthyism
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1954, McCarthy began to look for Communist spies
in the U.S. Army
the army conducted its own internal investigation
and found no spies or any suspicion of espionage
During weeks of televised Army-McCarthy hearings
in the spring of 1954, millions of Americans watched
McCarthy bully witnesses
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McCarthy lost the power to arouse fear
Later that year, the Senate passed a note of censure,
or formal disapproval, against McCarthy
McCarthy faded from public view. Although he
remained in the Senate, he had little influence
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TAKE OUT A SEPARATE SHEET OF PAPER
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NUMBER 1-5
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Americans began to fear that Communists
were secretly doing what?
Why was HUAC formed?
He was the most prominent gov’t official
named by Chambers?
What state did Joseph McCarthy represent
as a U.S. Senator?
Where did McCarthy look for Communist
spies that led to his downfall?