Well, right there you've got the problem. Some people hate McCarthy for "creating a red scare." Others love him for raising the alarm about Communism.
But in truth, McCarthy didn't start anything. The country had already been up in arms about Communists in government for a year or two when he came along. Steps had already been taken to deal with the problem. McCarthy just latched onto the biggest issue of the day.
He was sloppy and careless about facts, and wild in some of his accusations. McCarthy cost the country some prestige abroad when we really needed it. That's why his reputation sank so low for so long.
He wasn't the devil, but he was no saint, either.
In 1919, A young J. Edger Hoover prepared one of the first legal briefs reflecting the subversive aspects of the worldwide Communist movement. In that same year, America began throwing Communist subversives out of the country.
In 1919, American journalist John Reed returned from Moscow and was instrumental in organizing Communists in America.
In 1919, a series of 36 mail bombs were sent to U.S. Government officials, business leaders and others. A servant of Senator Hardwick, who had been trying to shut down the migration of Bolsheviks to America, had her hands blown off while opening one of the packages.
In 1920, American Communists received a boost when the Russian Government sent C.A. Martens as an official representative, to help organize a full-fledged Bolshevik program, armed with a very large amount of money to be used to organize Communist cells in labor unions and the military.
1920, A large bomb was carried by a horse drawn carriage to the corner of Broad and Wall Streets in New York City, and was exploded, killing 30 and injuring hundreds more and causing extensive damage to the surrounding buildings.(Kinda sounds like a primitive 911, doesn't it.........side note: the Communists have created, funded, trained, advised and armed Islamic terrorists for over 80 years, so, IMHO, 911 was just an extension of Communist aggression here in the United States).
From 1921 to 1924, American members of the Communist Party went underground, only to resurface.
From 1925 to 1938, Communism experienced tremendous growth in America. In churches, schools, social clubs, business, industry, unions, the military, all branches of the federal government, as well as state and local governments.
From 1939 to 1950, Communists had become entrenched in the U.S. Government, with the express intent of someday overthrowing the U.S. Constitution.
So, yes, a lot was happening before McCarthy........What made McCarthy's blood boil was that there was a list of dozens of either Communists or those loyal to the Communists in the U.S. State Department, who had been known about for 4 years, and nothing had been done about it. He fought a steep uphill battle to expose them and others in the U.S. Government and the U.S. Military. But, instead of investigating the Communists, the Democrats decided to investigate McCarthy............kinda like now, the Democrats would rather fight President Bush instead of fighting the terrorists.
McCarthy became one of the most popular figures in America at that time, and, also very popular abroad with free peoples and especially those who had already felt the sting of Communist rule. But, if you listen to the Big Liberal Media, he was the most hated person on earth..................kinda like what they are saying about President Bush now.........
As for me, Joe McCarthy will always have my undying love and respect for the tremendous sacrifices he made for this country...........not just because he was a fellow Republican...........not just because he was a fellow Marine..... but because he sacrificed everything, his reputation, his political career, his family life, even his health.........to help keep this country free. He will always be a hero in my book.
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