McCarthyism was responsible for moving US foreign policy towards a global rather than a regional focus during the years 1950-1954

Introduction

1. What is McCarthyism

2. What caused McCarthyism

3. Provide argument/counterargument

Agree

1. Pressured Truman administration, gave public mention of the urgency of need for change, caused Truman to act accordingly

2. McCarthy outwardly spoke about US needing to move away from a Eurocentric focus and towards an Asia first viewpoint (abandoned isolationism, adopted “world policeman”)

3. Fuelled the idea that Truman 'lost' China and believed the Korean War occurred through Truman's failure to support the Chinese nationalist government against Mao

4. McCarthy's aggressive methods to expose/punish communism caused growth in national hysteria which in turn caused the gov to act and exert their power—Acheson's defensive perimeter speech, involvement in the Korean War and NSC-68

Disagree

1. US policy already moving towards more global strategies 

2. No one really listening to McCarthy; state starting to lose trust/faith, his influence is becoming less, policy not changed, McCarthy not sole reason for policy change, didn't direct shift 

3. Eisenhower ends McCarthyism, tries to work with it but ultimately destroys it, no one really listened to him at the end 

4. Shift was Truman's inability to contain communism ultimately, president dictates foreign policy, not as much as senate 

5. NSC-68 comes out April 1950, only just after McCarthyism breaks; is a reaction to loss of China and soviets gaining bomb, not McCarthyism 

6. Korean War reoriented US FP towards asia (however only involved due to McCarthyism)

Other factors

1. Role of China in shift rather than McCarthyism (Chinese civil war success)

2. 1952 detonation of Soviet bomb 

3. After the above factors, Acheson felt need to review the pre-existing documents; focus on the globalization of the Cold War whilst discussing the importance of military power to ensure containment

4. Review: $50 billion to provide aid to countries seen as resisting communism

5. Whilst it majorly affected FP, report argued to be response to the increasing fear of communism, to which was fuelled by McCarthy (ultimately McCarthy)