The writer of this article is a historical ass. Sen. McCarthy was NOT the ringleader of the “red scare” of the 1950’s. In fact, he was a latecomer to the show. He just made more noise than the other smarter congressional investigators.
See M. Stanton Evans book “Blacklisted by History” for a more honest appraisal of McCarthy (who I think was more an egotistical preening ahole than a serious congressional leader in the fight against communism because of the major mistakes he and Roy Cohen made in the way information was handled. McCarthy had a few legitimate targets before him but he missed most of them).
(”...who I think was more an egotistical preening ahole...”
On the other hand, William F Buckley, who was there with him, really appreciated the mam and thought the good he did far outweighed the bad.