The Second Term of Harry Truman: Foreign Conflicts and Domestic Tensions

Truman's Foreign Policy Pillars and the "Loss" of China

The Three Pillars of Anti-Communist Foreign Policy: In his $1949$ inaugural address, President Harry Truman established a strategy resting on three foundational institutions: * The United Nations (UN). * The Marshall Plan. * The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Chinese Civil War Background: A long-standing conflict between the Chinese Nationalists and the Communists that had been ongoing since the $1920s$ . * Nationalist Leadership: Led by Chiang Kai-shek, whose administration was characterized in the text as corrupt. * Communist Leadership: Led by Mao Zedong, who successfully won the support of the majority of the Chinese peasantry following the Second World War.
The Communist Victory: By the end of $1949$ , the Nationalist government was forced to flee the mainland to the island of Formosa, which they subsequently renamed Taiwan.
Political Fallout in the U.S.: Truman's critics, primarily Republicans, raised the question: "Who lost China to communism?" * The text notes that critics failed to explain how Truman could have prevented this without a massive U.S. military intervention that would have been "risky, unpopular, and expensive."
Diplomatic Stance: The United States continued to recognize the Nationalist government in Taiwan as the official government of China, which delayed formal diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China ("Red China") for nearly $30$ years.

NSC-68 and the Escalation of Containment

Shifting Containment Strategy: NSC-68 was a top-secret report that re-evaluated George Kennan's original containment strategy. * George Kennan's Approach: Focused on political and economic counterpressure. * NSC-68 Approach: Authored by Paul Nitze (Kennan's successor as director of policy planning), it called for a massive military buildup and a "policy of calculated and gradual coercion" against Soviet expansionism globally.
Threat Assessment: Nitze claimed the Soviets were becoming increasingly "reckless" and predicted they would invade Western Europe by $1954$ , by which time they would possess enough nuclear weaponry to destroy the United States.
Long-term Impact: NSC-68 became the definitive guidebook for future American policy, particularly as the conflict in Korea intensified the global struggle between communism and capitalism.

Post-War Governance in Japan and the Division of Korea

Reconstruction of Japan: In the mid- $1950s$ , while European tensions reached a "balance of terror" due to atomic weapons, Japan was recovering rapidly. * General Douglas MacArthur: Acted as the consul in charge of U.S.-occupied Japan. He oversaw the disarming of the military, the drafting of a democratic constitution, and economic recovery effort.
The Division of the Korean Peninsula: Japan had occupied Korea since $1910$ , leaving an administrative vacuum after their departure in $1945$ . * The 38th Parallel: This line served as the dividing mark for accepting Japanese surrenders. Soviet troops accepted surrenders north of the line; U.S. forces accepted surrenders south of the line. * Establishment of Two Governments: * North: The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (Communist). * South: The Republic of Korea (Democratic).
Withdrawal and Migration: By the end of $1948$ , both Soviet and U.S. forces had withdrawn. Approximately $2,000,000$ North Koreans fled to the South during this period.

The Outbreak of the Korean War and the UN Response

Initial Invasion: On June $25$ , $1950$ , the Soviet-equipped North Korean People's Army, numbering $135,000$ soldiers, invaded South Korea with the encouragement of the Soviet Union and Communist China.
Capture of Seoul: The North Korean army captured the South Korean capital, Seoul, within three days.
Truman's Immediate Reaction: Truman famously declared, "By God, I'm going to let them have it!"
Constitutional Precedent: Truman initiated military action without consulting the Joint Chiefs of Staff or seeking a formal declaration of war from Congress. * He officially termed the conflict a "police action." * This set a precedent for a President ordering war without a Congressional vote, despite U.S. Constitutional requirements.
UN Intervention: At an emergency UN Security Council meeting in late June $1950$ , the council censured the "breach of peace." * Soviet Absence: The Soviet delegate was boycotting the council because the UN refused to seat Communist China in place of Nationalist China. This meant the Soviets could not use their veto power.
UN Military Force: On June $27$ , the Security Council called members to assist South Korea. Approximately $20$ nations participated, though the U.S. provided the largest contingent of non-Korean forces at $330,000$ troops.
Command: Truman appointed $70$ -year-old Douglas MacArthur as the supreme commander of UN forces.

Military Reversal: Inchon and the Advance to the Yalu River

The Pusan Perimeter: For the first three months, the war went poorly for the UN, with South Korean troops pushed into the southeast corner of the peninsula by September $1950$ .
Inchon Landing: On September $15$ , $1950$ , MacArthur executed a surprise amphibious landing behind North Korean lines at Inchon. This maneuver forced a retreat, with only $25,000$ North Korean soldiers escaping back across the border.
Shift from Containment to Elimination: After recapturing Seoul, an overconfident MacArthur convinced Truman to allow troops to push north of the $38th$ parallel to unify Korea and eliminate the "red menace."
Truman's Concerns: Truman feared MacArthur's plan might provoke China, privately referring to MacArthur as a "son-of-bitch" who might involve the U.S. in a war with China.
Wake Island Meeting: On October $15$ , Truman flew $7,000$ miles to meet MacArthur. MacArthur contemptuously refused to salute Truman. During the meeting, MacArthur dismissed the threat of Chinese intervention despite reports of massed troops on the border.
Reaching the Border: On October $20$ , UN forces entered P'yongyang. By October $26$ , advance units reached Ch'osan on the Yalu River, the border between North Korea and China.

Chinese Intervention and the Stalemate

The Chinese Counterattack: On the night of November $25$ , approximately $300,000$ Chinese "volunteers" crossed the border, forcing UN forces into a full retreat.
MacArthur's Request for Escalation: MacArthur cabled that it was "an entirely new war." He requested reinforcements of the "greatest magnitude" and suggested the use of several dozen atomic weapons on China.
Recapture of Seoul: By January $15$ , $1951$ , Chinese and North Korean forces had retaken Seoul.
The Counter-Counterattack: By March $1951$ , UN forces had rallied, re-secured lines below Seoul, and launched a counterattack.

The Sacking of General Douglas MacArthur

Insubordination: While Truman began negotiations for a cease-fire to restore the pre-war boundary, MacArthur undermined him by issuing an unauthorized ultimatum to China to make peace or face attack.
The Martin Letter: On April $5$ , the Republican minority leader read a letter from MacArthur to Congress that criticized Truman's policy and asserted, "there is no substitute for victory."
The Removal: On April $11$ , $1951$ , Truman fired MacArthur for failing to respect presidential authority and replaced him with General Matthew B. Ridgway.
Public and Political Backery: * $69\%$ of the American public initially opposed the decision. * The Chicago Tribune called for Truman's impeachment. * Truman defended the decision as necessary to prevent "World War III."

Armistice and the Costs of War

The Cease-fire Proposal: Proposed by the Soviet representative at the UN on June $24$ , $1951$ .
The Negotiation Process: Truce talks began July $10$ , $1951$ , but lasted two years due to: 1. Prisoner-of-war (POW) exchange issues (many did not want to return home). 2. South Korea's demand for full unification.
The Armistice: Reached on July $27$ , $1953$ , under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. No formal peace treaty was ever signed.
Casualty Figures: * United States: Over $33,000$ battle deaths; $103,000$ wounded or missing. * South Korea: Approximately $2,000,000$ . * North Korea and China: Estimated $3,000,000$ .
Geopolitics: Korea remained divided, and the war spurred Truman to expand global military presence and begin assistance to French forces in Indochina (Vietnam).

The Second Red Scare and Government Loyalty Programs

The Loyalty Order: On March $21$ , $1947$ , Truman signed an executive order requiring background investigations of federal workers. * By early $1951$ , over $3,000,000$ workers were cleared; only $378$ were dismissed for "doubtful loyalty." * Truman privately called the Communist threat a "bugaboo" but felt pressured by FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and Attorney General Tom Clark.
The Hollywood Ten: In May $1947$ , the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) investigated the film industry. * Ten witnesses, including screenwriters Ring Lardner, Jr. and Dalton Trumbo, refused to testify based on First Amendment rights. * They were imprisoned for contempt of Congress and blacklisted. * Cultural Reflection: Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible ( $1953$ ) as a metaphor for this anti-communist hysteria.

Major Espionage Cases: Alger Hiss and the Rosenbergs

The Alger Hiss Case: Whittaker Chambers (a former Soviet spy) accused Hiss (president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace) of passing secret documents in the $1930s$ . * Hiss was convicted of perjury in $1950$ after Chambers produced microfilm of documents.
The Smith Act of 1940: Used in $1949$ to convict $11$ Communist Party leaders for advocating the government's overthrow. The Supreme Court upheld these convictions under the "clear and present danger" doctrine.
Atomic Spying and Klaus Fuchs: In $1950$ , the FBI uncovered a network that passed atomic secrets to the Soviets. This led to the arrest of physicist Klaus Fuchs.
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg: * The Rosenbergs were identified as part of the same spy ring, the confession of Ethel's brother implicated them. * J. Edgar Hoover called their actions the "crime of the century." * Judge Irving Kaufman stated their crime was worse than "plain, deliberate murder." * They were the first Americans ever executed for spying.

The Rise of Joseph McCarthy and McCarthyism

The Wheeling Speech: On February $9$ , $1950$ , Senator Joseph R. McCarthy claimed he had a list of Communists in the State Department (though he never produced it).
McCarthyism: A term for the smear campaigns and "reign of terror" where McCarthy accused Democrats of being "dupes" or "fellow travelers" of Communists. * He even accused war hero George Marshall of making "common cause with Stalin."
Political Atmosphere: Senator Lyndon B. Johnson noted that McCarthy had "people scared to death."
Outcome: McCarthy never uncovered a single actual Communist agent in government, but his actions caused thousands to lose their jobs.

The McCarran Acts and the Fair Deal

McCarran Internal Security Act (1950): Passed over Truman's veto. Required Communist organizations to register with the Justice Department and authorized concentration camps for Communists during national emergencies.
Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (McCarran-Walter Act): * Renewed the national origins quota system favoring northern and western Europe (allocating $85\%$ of the $154,277$ annual visas to them). * Gave officials power to search and deport "aliens." * Removed the ban on Asian immigrants but barred "subversives" and "immoral" individuals (including gays and lesbians).
Truman's Fair Deal: An expansion of social welfare involving: * Increasing the minimum wage. * Expanding Social Security to an additional $10,000,000$ workers. * Slum-clearance and public-housing programs.
Congressional Resistance: A bipartisan conservative coalition of Southern Democrats and Republicans rejected key Fair Deal proposals, including national health insurance, civil rights bills, and federal aid to education.