Post-WW2 America

World War II left much of Europe in ruins by shattering the balance of power and leaving it between the United States and USSR. Western Europe could no longer control the colonies in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, known as third world countries.

The United States is the sole authority in Japan: they remake Japanese society, abolish monopolies, abolish the futility state, introduce land reform and democracy, and bar them from having nuclear weapons.
Japanese prisoners are starting to be put on trial, some of them being the Nuremberg Trials. In these trials, 21 German officials are put on trial for war crimes and atrocities, and it lasts for 10 months.

United Nations

Split into the General Assembly and Security Council.

The assembly consists of 193 delegates from all member nations, and a 2/3 majority is needed to approve any "important question" and to admit new members.
The Security Council has 5 permanent members (one from France, Russia, China, United States, and Britain), and the other 10 members are exchanged every 2 years. The permanent members all have veto power on decisions made in the General Assembly. They can also investigate any dispute and send it to the "world court" in The Hague, Netherlands.

The United Nations relies on member nations to contribute to military efforts. The Secretariat, headed by the Secretary General (elected to 5-year terms by the General Assembly), keeps things running smoothly.

The Cold War

The Cold War began during World War II. This is because the Soviets are determined to dominate Eastern Europe, proven by Stalin breaking the Yalta accord and installing spies in the Manhattan Project. Soviets are also angry with the United States for wanting to build a new world order along with a free government in Germany.

Soviets ask the United States for a $6 billion loan to rebuild their economy, and they say they'll only provide if the Soviets work cooperatively on international problems. The Soviets refused and rejected an offer to join the world bank and the IMF (International Monetary Fund).

Winston Churchill gave the "Iron Curtain" speech on March 5, 1946, highlighting the differences between Eastern and Western Europe and the need to work cooperatively with the United States on solving world problems.
In 1947, George Kennan outlined the Containment Policy of the United States, which shook United States foreign policy for the next 40 years. The main element of this policy is to contain communism.
In 1947 and 1948, the United States intervened in elections in France and Italy to ensure communist candidates were defeated. Despite this, Kennan argued that containment will work best through economic and political means. In 1950, Kennan left the state department because of his disagreement with the growing militarization between the United States and the Soviet Union.

In Greece, there was a civil war that pitted communists against a British-backed democratic government. In Turkey, the Turks were being pressured by the Soviet Union to grant them joint control of the Dardanelles, which linked the Black and Mediterranean Sea. Because of this, Truman called for $400 million in aid to Greece and Turkey via the Truman Doctrine of 1947 as well as sending military personnel to train their troops. Using this money, the Turks were able to achieve economic stability and the Greeks prevailed.

The National Security Act of 1947 created the...

Department of Defense: This organizes the Army, Navy, and Air Force and becomes a cabinet agency.
Joint Chiefs of Staff: Composed of heads of Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and National Guard to brief the President.
National Security Council (NSC): Cabinet level advisory body to coordinate military and foreign policy for the President.
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA): National Security Agency created in 1949 under this to improve spying.

Also passed is the Marshall Plan (named after George C. Marshall), which serves to help Europe rebuild after the war and forgive the loans that were given to them in World War I. It approves $5.3 billion (later increased to $15 billion) to donate to Europe, and it helps not only Europe, but home too with ensuring trade access.

Land Disputes

Austria and Vienna were divided into 4 occupation zones from 1945 to 1955 by the Soviet Union, United States, France, and Britain. They struggled economically because of post-war economic chaos but were helped by the Marshall Plan. In 1955, the Soviets agreed to restore full Austrian sovereignty and evacuate their troops, only if Austria declared itself permanently neutral. They agreed, and the Soviets formally restored the Austrian Republic with pre-1938 frontiers.

In 1948, Germany and Berlin were also divided after the war, but the Americans, British, and French merged occupation zones. The United States wants to rebuild Germany into a democratic capitalist society, but the Soviets pose a problem as they occupy the land around Berlin.

In June 1948, Soviets shut down all western access routes to Berlin called the Berlin Blockade to push western democratic ideas out of western Berlin. In response, the United States develops the Berlin airlift, which gives western Berlin the supplies they need to stay afloat.
After roughly a year, the soviets cancel the Blockade, and then west Germany becomes the Federal Republic of Germany while East Germany becomes the Democratic Socialist Republic of Germany.

In 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created when the US believed they needed military measures. During this time, more countries began experimenting with nuclear weapons. (Soviets explode an atomic bomb in 1949, a hydrogen bomb in 1953, and the U.S. exploded a hydrogen bomb in 1952)

NATO originally consisted of Canada, US, and 10 European countries. In response to this, the Soviets created the Warsaw Pact.
Article V of NATO says, "an armed attack against 1 or more members shall be considered an attack against them all."

Conflicts in China

In the 1920s, there was a civil war going on between the nationalist party, led by Chiang Kai-Shek, and the Communist party, by Mao Zedong. In 1937, the Japanese invaded China, and the civil war was put on hold. Both Stalin and FDR believe that Chiang Kai-Shek can win control of China and make the government corrupt, unstainable and inefficient.

In 1949, the Chinese communist party won, and the Nationalists left for Taiwan, known as Formosa at the time. As a result, the United States recognized Formosa as the official Chinese government. This negatively affects the US because it means a communist party has a United Nations permanent seat.
The NSC68 (national security council) is a secret paper that shapes US Cold War policy for the next 20 years. It assumes that conflict between the US and USSR will continue and that within a few years, the USSR will achieve enough nuclear capability to destroy the US. It calls for a massive buildup of the US military to resist the Soviet Union.

Conflicts in Korea

At the end of the war when Japan was destroyed, Japan could no longer occupy Korea, so the United States and the Soviet Union started to occupy Korea and divide it at the 38th parallel. Kim Il-Sung led the North, and Syngman Rhee led the South. In 1948, efforts failed to unify Korea.

In 1950, Kim invaded the South with assistance from the USSR and China, anticipating an easy victory. Truman knew the North would easily overrun the South, so he sent in troops as United Nations troops. The Soviet Union was boycotting the UN at the time because they would not recognize China, so their permanent seat did not stop the troops from coming over.
General MacArthur (US) heads the action in Korea. Truman believed that the Soviet Union was planning on invading western Europe and using the Korean war as a distraction, so he also occupied troops in Europe. Within three months, the north overruns all the south except Pusan. MacArthur lands forces in Pusan and Inchon, and by September of 1950, the North is pushed back to the 38th parallel.
Considering this success, he decided to try to liberate all of Korea. In response, China sends the Americans warnings that if they try to go past the 38th parallel, they'll get involved, but Truman concurs. A day after the final offensive is launched by Americans, Chinese get involved. MacArthur wants to strike China in response, but Truman disagrees because he's fearing a third World War. He does it anyway and gets fired.

In 1951, truce talks began between the US, Chinese, and North Koreans. The US refused to give back North Korean soldiers, but they didn't want to return anyway because of bad conditions. South Korea wanted to be unified with the north.

Red Scare

America feared the spread of communism more than ever. Before the CIA, there was the O.S.S., or the Office of Strategic Services. They uncovered that classified documents were delivered to the Soviet Union and Canada, and Canada also exposed a spy ring within the two countries.

In March of 1947, Truman established a loyalty program for federal employees, and it established that security risks were alcoholics, homosexuals, and debtors. The attorney general also baselessly published 90 organizations considered disloyal. Many resign.
In October, the HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) launched an investigation into Hollywood, which was notoriously liberal. The President of SAG-AFTRA, Ronald Reagan, appears to defend the loyalty of the industry. Despite this, uncooperative writers, directors, actors were blacklisted and could not find work and it spread to radio and TV.

The fear of anyone “disloyal” spreads, and professors and teachers begin to be fired for expressing dissenting views. Books are moved, liberal ministers are harassed, and unions are purged of communists.

In 1940, the Smith Act made it a federal crime for anyone to advocate the overthrow of the government. In 1950, the McCarran Internal Security Act, passed over Truman's veto, made it unlawful to conspire or agree with any act which contributed to the establishment of a totalitarian government. This required communist organizations to register with the Department of Justice. Any immigrants belonging to totalitarian parties in home countries couldn't enter the U.S.

During any future national emergencies, communists were herded into concentration camps.

Alger Hiss

Hiss was a participant in communist spying.

In 1948, Whittaker Chambers tells HUAC of Hiss’ identity, but offers no evidence. Hiss threatened him with a liable suit if he makes the accusations public, but Chambers does it anyway. Many prominent public figures supported Hiss, but Nixon believes Chambers.
Hiss is tried twice, with the first being unsuccessful because of an undecided jury. The second acknowledged new documents that Chambers had uncovered and sentenced him to 5 years for perjury. Hiss was not convicted of espionage due to an expired statute of limitations.

McCarthyism

Senator Joe McCarthy was a freshman Wisconsin seat holder and wanted to be reelected.

On February 9, 1950, he attended a lady's Republican lunch in West Virginia and told them that there are communists in the state department (specifically 205). The Senate investigates and finds nothing.
He continues and accuses Owen Labnor of being part of an espionage ring, and George Marshall of being a liar. He names names and tells outright lies because he has a following and wants to make them think he is the only option to save Americans from communism. He was careful to make his charges when he was shielded by a senatorial cloak of immunity.
Several factors account for his success:
1. Years of cold war conflict exacerbated by the media.
2. McCarthy's ruthless tactics voice the fears of many ordinary Americans.
3. Stalemated Korean war.

In the middle of this, the British discover the Manhattan spy ring. Klaus Fuchs is arrested, then Harry Gold and David Greenglass, then Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. The Rosenberg’s are tried and convicted for espionage, being killed in an electric chair.

McCarthy also targets homosexuals, called the lavender menace. President Eisenhower, trying to abide by what the country is listening to, passes an executive order to rid the government of homosexuals. Senate colleagues despised McCarthy but did not speak out against him because they would be accused of communism.

McCarthy attacks the US army at Fort Mammoth, NJ, which was a site of very sensitive communications and technology. He blackmails this camp because his friend wanted a job.

On April 22, 1954, the Army-McCarthy hearings began and lasted for six weeks. They end inconclusively but it is becoming increasingly apparent that McCarthy is a security risk. Eisenhower had it with him at this point and sent Nixon to the Senate.

In the end, McCarthy is censured but still makes accusations of communists despite not uncovering anything.

Truman Administration

Truman was ill prepared when he started being a president after FDR died. He was originally the compromise candidate as he wasn't told much, including the Manhattan Project. His promise was "The buck stops here" meaning no more blaming others and he’s in charge. He worked hard to get through his difficulties (New Deal aftermath) and did not fear unpopularity.

He appoints his own group called the Missouri gang (not an actual gang) because he did not have much experience. The first major act after WWII as president was to demobilize the armed forces and convert to a peacetime economy. The military was reduced and there was a small arsenal of nukes. In 1946, the Civilian Atomic Energy committee was created.

Fortunately, the economy stays high and does not reserve to Great Depression. Tax cuts restored money and rations during the war meant there was savings in American pockets. The Servicemen's Readjustment Act (or GI Bill) gives low interest loans that allow veterans to buy homes, businesses, and farms, as well as money for college and trade schools.

Due to this, there is initially runaway inflation. The cost of living rises and there are shortages of goods (like beef). Strikes were threatened in railroad and coal industries, and a walkout in these important industries would have paralyzed the United States.

Truman was frustrated with this and threatened to draft unions for the Korean War (very big whoopsie). Republican congressional candidates said, "to Err is Truman." Because of this, the working class deserts the Democratic Party. In 1946, the Republicans won a majority in both houses of Congress. This 80th Congress includes many veterans, JFK, and Nixon. The 22^nd Amendment is passed and limits president terms to 2 terms or 10 years.

Economics

The “Fair Deal” was Truman's economic plan, a 21-point program that tried to out-deal the New Deal because Americans did not like the welfare system created by FDR. Since Republicans controlled congress, not much of the Fair Deal was passed.

The plan tries to introduce health insurance, expand social security, expand civil rights. Out of it, the U.S. got a minimum wage raise, expanded social security, and a national housing act. This creates the "projects," which are homes for the poor.

In 1950, the Fair Deal lost momentum and Truman spent the rest of his presidency on foreign policy.

Labor

In 1947, the Taft-Hartley Act was passed and modified the Wagner Act. Passed over Truman's veto, it was called the "Slave-labor" Act by unions. It was an extended concept of "unfair labor practices'' previously confined to management of unions.

It forbade closed shops but permitted union shops, meaning that employers could not reject applicants for not being a part of a union but could force them to join one.
Unions had to file annual financial statements. It was also prohibited for union contributions to go to national political campaigns.
Forbade strikes by federal employees.
Union leaders had to take a loyalty oath that they were not part of the communist party.

Despite this, union membership increases, wages increase, and people get better fringe benefits (like health insurance, stock options).

1948 election

Truman (D) appeared to have no chance at winning. However, they do a whistle stop campaign and got people excited and say "Give 'em hell Harry."

The campaign was so poor that he collected money at rallies.
Truman stressed adherence to the New Deal and called the 80th congress "Do nothing, Good for Nothing" congress.

The Democrats were the first party to ever put a strong civil rights plank into their platform. This angers southern Democrats, and because of this, the Dixiecrats are born (a.k.a. the States’ Rights Party). They ran Strom Thurmond; he was a segregationist.

Thomas Dewey (R) was expected to win because of this divide. He was a New York governor and polls showed him running far ahead of Truman. He never brought up controversial topics on the campaign trail, and he lost.

A New Generation

Baby boomers started here. Men come home from war and there are many babies as a result, where in ten years (1950-1960) the population increased from 153 million to 179 million people. Also revived in the 1950s is the cult of domesticity.

Dr. Spock the pediatrician, educated ladies on how to take care of children, saying, "Let them be themselves."
Women are torn between working in and outside the home.

New Technology

Vinyl, Teflon, aerosol spray cans, A/C, laundry machines, small appliances, TV, and cars all experience advancements and/or industry growth. Especially notable about the growth of cars is their friend, the growth of the suburbs (and subsequently, the middle class).

40 million people flee the cities for the suburbs and highways connect cities to suburbs. Levittowns were created, which were basically manufactured communities. 17,000 homes were built, and many of their contracts excluded minorities (declared unconstitutional).
The Beatniks are the precursor to the hippies, which don’t agree with conformity and rebelled against the horrors of war and middle-class life. They didn't work or study, and smoked pot instead. Their growth brought a literary movement with authors such as Jack Kerouac, JD Salinger, and Allen Ginsberg.

For the first time, manual labor gives way to mental labor (also known as the growth of white-collar employees and reduction of blue-collar employees. Big business got bigger, and anti-trust was not as much as an issue because it helped the economy.

The first McDonalds and Disney Land were created in 1955.
Rock and roll emerged as a musical genre, with Elvis Presley one of the most popular artists.

Civil Rights

The black Civil Rights movement started in the 1950s, in part because the Cold War put additional pressure on the US for integration and unity.

Russians use segregation to highlight inequities of American democracy and compare segregation of blacks to Nazi’s treatment of Jews.
After 1945, there was a massive migration of blacks to the north for jobs.

Truman’s Impact

Truman was an unusual sympathizer because of his childhood. He held a delegation of Civil Rights activists at the White House in 1946 and is shocked about the incidents of torture and intimidation of blacks in the U.S. He appoints a committee for civil rights.

In 1948, he calls for a federal anti-lynching law, for the permanence of the Fair Employment Practices Commission (FAPC), an end of segregation in interstate Congress, and federal protection of voting rights. Congress rejects all of these.

He passed an executive order that bans discrimination in government bureaucracies and began desegregation of the military.

Extra Stuff:

1947: Jackie Robinson is added to the Dodgers that paves the way for desegregated sports
1953: Eisenhower appoints California governor Earl Warren to be chief justice of the U.S. supreme court
- he does massive decisions that go against what people thought
- headed the most liberal court in U.S. history
supreme court had been chipping away at racial divide since the 40s.

Education Stirs

On May 17, 1954, the Brown family sued the Board of Education because their daughter had to walk far to get to school, and the liberal court unanimously agreed that segregation in school is unconstitutional. This is justified with the 14^th amendment and is a landmark case as it (supposedly) overturns Plessy vs. Ferguson.

Ruby Bridges, the daughter, needed security to walk around her new school.

Eisenhower refuses to take part in leading the south to compliance after the Brown case, but the threat of withholding public funding finally desegregated public schools.
In 1954, the Citizen's Council, which is a middle- and upper-class version of the KKK, was created. They used economic coercion instead of violence.

In Sept 1957 in Little Rock Arkansas, the Little Rock 9 tried to enroll 9 students in Central High School.

Governor Orval Faubus prevents integration by ordering the national guard to block the entrance to the high school. Federal court orders the troops to leave, the blacks enroll, and the white students threaten them so badly that they're in fear for their lives.
Eisenhower steps in and sends in federal troops because the US was making world headlines. It marked the first time since reconstruction that a president sent federal troops into the south. The soldiers acted as the students’ escorts to walk from class to class.
Faubus orders all schools to close to prevent integration and is not the only state to do this, as many states gave the governors the power to close schools.

Protests

On Dec 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, the beginning of the modern Civil Rights movement was marked when Rosa Parks planned a protest where she sat where she wanted on a bus (bus drivers were given police power to arrange seating). JoAnn Robinson laid out the plans for the bus boycott, but she didn't want the spotlight because she was afraid of losing her job. Others were chosen to lead the movement, but they needed someone lighter black and not poor. This incident brings to light Martin Luther King Jr.

Five women sued Mayor Gail and the bus company and testified about their experiences. It puts on the record their arrests, which happened because of a bus seat refusal to move. In the end, segregated buses were a violation of the 14th amendment. This case technically overturns Plessy vs. Ferguson and forces Montgomery to close their bus service after 381 days due to Browder v. Gayle (1956).

Eisenhower’s Impact

Eisenhower supported the Civil Rights Act of 1957, which was the first new Civil Rights legislation since the reconstruction period.

Strong Thurmond was in the senate at this time and conducted the longest filibuster against integration. It takes 1 year to get it through, and it is because of the help of Lyndon B. Johnson.
It establishes a Civil Rights commission as well as the Civil Rights division of the DOJ.

by 1961, not one African American voter is added

Mexican Americans are denied access to education, medicine, and housing benefits.

in 1955, Eisenhower launches operation Wetback, which was a massive effort to capture and deport undocumented Mexicans. They were dropped off in the Southern part of Mexico with no food, water, or nearby people.

1952 & 1956 elections

Both these elections had the same people and numbers as each other. On the Republican side, Eisenhower ran with Nixon, and they are anti-communist and committed to maintaining US strength during the Cold War. On the Democratic side, there was Adlai Stevenson, the Illinois governor.

Eisenhower said he was on a great crusade for honest and efficient government and freedom abroad, but in Sept 1952, it was discovered that Nixon had a slush fund (free money) that came from wealthy southern California businessmen who paid for his campaign expenses. Anti-Nixon sentiment sweeps the U.S. and Eisenhower considers dropping him.

RNC purchases airtime for Nixon, which he uses to deliver the Checkers Speech. Through this, he convinces TV audiences that he did not break the law or do anything wrong.
Becomes a landslide victory.

Eisenhower Administration

Eisenhower tied religion to patriotism and added "under god" to the pledge in 1954, along with adding "In God We Trust" on US dollars.
He added Alaska and Hawaii as states.

His domestic policy is known as Dynamic Conservatism, which means to be conservative with money and liberal with human beings (they've come to accept that the welfare state is here to stay). He warns repeatedly of creeping socialism and enlarging bureaucracy.

This policy ended wage and price controls, reduced farm subsidies, gave a tax reduction to the rich and corporations, and slashed expenditures by $6.5 billion.
The New Deal is status quo, therefore, he expanded Social Security, raised minimum wage, extended unemployment insurance, and created new departments such as Dept. of Health, Education, and Welfare to coordinate government social programs.

In 1956, he created the largest public works program, the Federal State Highway Construction Program (not done until the 70s), which is a 42k mile network of roads.

Eisenhower’s foreign policy is called the "New Look," and is based around containment.

In 1952, he claimed that Truman and Atchison (his Sec. of State) had failed in containment.
John Foster Dulles, Eisenhower's Sec. of State, employs the idea of massive retaliation and brinkmanship to contain communism AND liberate countries. This is an all or nothing policy.
It was said it wouldn't work because small countries don't warrant an all-out attack, but it uses NSC68 to deploy the CIA to topple governments considered pro-communist and promote U.S. economic interests. Using this, the US invaded Iran in 1953, Guatemala in 1954, and Cuba in 1960.

China Crisis

Since 1953, nationalist pilots had been bombing mainland shipping and ports (‘twas a civil war).

In Sept 1945, the mainland began shelling 2 small islands 100 miles from Formosa in the Taiwan strait. As a result, the US increased their military presence in Taiwan strait and issued a stern warning to Beijing.
In December, the US and Taiwan signed the mutual defense treaty, which gave the President authority to use force if necessary.

At this time, China was not receiving support from the Soviet Union, nor did they have nuclear bombs.

Mainland China reduces shelling and offers to negotiate, but the US refuses to negotiate because they don't recognize them. They stop war prep anyway.

In August 1958, the Chinese renewed their bombing and Eisenhower suggested a ceasefire, while China ordered one.

Geneva Summit

Occurred in 1955 between the United States and Soviet Union because they now both possess hydrogen bombs and intercontinental missiles and want to reduce the possibility of nuclear catastrophe. Both sides concede that a Cold War cannot be won militarily.

The U.S. proposes "Open Skies," which permits surveillance of nuclear development and testing facilities of both countries. The Soviets reject this, but tensions relax anyway.
After this is over, the US and USSR agree to suspend any atmospheric testing of nukes

Trouble in the Suez

The Cold War spread to the Middle East after World War II.

Many Jews fled to Palestine because it included the Holy Land. It was originally a British colony, but they were handed over to the UN in 1947. The UN general assembly voted to partition it into Palestine and Israel (Jewish homeland). This was met with fierce Arab opposition.
On May 14, 1948, the British mandate expired (something that said the British must provide a haven for a Jewish population in Palestine, and it dated back to 1920), and Israel declared independence. The US and Soviet Union immediately recognized Israel.
Arab armies immediately attack to destroy Israel to preserve Palestine for the Arabs. The Israelis are easily driven back and ask for a truce, so the US and Soviet Union do it for them.
Violating the truce, the Soviets fly in huge quantities of arms to Israelis and fighting resumes once the equipment is received. They easily overran the Arabs and took far more additional land than the UN granted them.
In 1949, the Arabs sued for peace and the U.S. arranged an armistice to end their first conflict. The new Israeli borders include thousands of Palestinians.

. . .

In Egypt, Gamal Abdul Nasser comes to power.

In 1868, the Suez Canal was created, which links the Mediterranean Sea to the Indian Ocean.
In 1875, the British acquired the largest block of stock in the Suez Canal and posted their forces on the canal to protect their colonies.

Egypt presses the British to leave the Suez Canal, and the US supports Egypt.

In 1954, the British and Egyptians agreed to the Suez Canal Base Agreement where the British withdrew in 20 months. The US then offers $270 million to build the Aswan Dam, trying to tilt Middle Eastern policy in a pro-US direction.

In 1955, the Middle East Treaty Organization (METO or Baghdad Pact) was made and links British, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Pakistan with the objective of keeping the Soviet Union out of the Middle East. This angers Naser because it seems like an effort to bring the Cold War to the Middle East.

The Soviet Union created the Arab League (Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia), which is committed to the destruction of Israel.
Egypt and Israel clash on the Gaza Strip, but it is inhabited mostly by Palestinian refugees. Israel then attacks Egypt.
Nasar is angry and asks the US for arms, but they refuse and turn to the Soviet Union. They concluded an arms deal with the Soviets and recognized Communist China. Pissed off because of this, the US withdrew aid for the Aswan Dam.
Nasar nationalized the Suez Canal even though the British and French were there and prevented any Israeli ships from passing through the Canal ($30 million/yr. gain for them).
The British and French depend on the Persian Gulf oil that comes through the Suez Canal, so they overturn Nasser and include Israel.
On Oct 29, 1956, Israeli forces invaded Egypt. One week later the British and French troops landed to seize the canal. The US condemns the actions of the British and French and threatens to wage financial warfare on them.
In the end, Nasser pays the British and French $81 million for the Suez Canal, and the Soviets provide funds for the Aswan Dam.

The US faces negative consequences from this: NATO is weakened, they’ve humiliated their allies, angered Nasser and Israel, helped the Soviets get a military base in Egypt, and don't improve relations with any countries.

1958: Eisenhower Doctrine offers economic and military aid to resist the Communist threat and extends containment to Middle East
- U.S. uses to send troops in 1957 for Jordan, 1958 for Lebanon

Hungarian Uprising

In October 1956, students and workers in Hungary overthrew the Soviet puppet government and replaced it with Imre Nagy, who was a more moderate communist. Nagy demanded the removal of the Red Army and wanted democracy implemented, to which the Soviets agreed.

The US promised economic aid if they left the Soviet Union.
Soviets didn’t like when they broke the Warsaw pact and invaded them
Eisenhower never considers sending troops to avoid WWIII.
Soviets then install János Kádár

U.S. Soviet relations

The Soviets test fired the first ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile), and then launched the first satellite, called Sputnik. Less than a month later, they launched Sputnik 2. It appeared like the US had a missile gap and space lag.

Eisenhower is attacked because he had nothing to respond with, but then NASA was introduced (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). In 1958, Congress passed the National Defense Education Act (math, language, and science program funding).
In the summer of 1959, Krushiv became the first Soviet leader to set foot in the U.S. by spending two weeks there. He also invites Eisenhower to the Soviet Union.
Nixon goes to Moscow at the world's fair and an example of an American kitchen was there. They argued about the merits of capitalism and came about was the Kitchen debate.
In May of 1960, the Soviets shot down a U2 spy plane. Eisenhower lies initially and says it was a weather reconnaissance plane that flew off course, but pilot Francis Gary Powers was captured and admitted it was a spy mission. Eisenhower then took responsibility and Krushiv withdrew the invitation to the Soviet Union.
Soon, U.S. spy satellites flew over Russia

Cuba Relations

The United States dominated the Cuban economy, as they owned their oil industry, most of their mining, utilities, etc. However, in 1958, Fidel Castro overthrew Fulgencio Btista, who was a corrupt dictator who protected US interests. Citizens didn’t know this and supported Castro in hopes of a democracy in Cuba.

First thing he did was nationalize all American property, and by the end of 1959, he confiscated $1 billion worth of American property. Because of this, US - Cuban relations deteriorate.
In 1960, Castro signed an agreement with the Soviet Union where they traded oil and machinery for sugar. The Soviets also lent Cuba $100 million. This became a cause of great American concern.
The people who hate Castro flee, and Eisenhower created a secret CIA project to train these Cubans to overthrow Castro. However, he did not act on it until after the election because of concerns it would seem like he was trying to influence the election.This project was eventually passed off to JFK.

As a soldier, Eisenhower highlighted the dangers of a military establishment in peacetime. In WWII, the US did not have a permanent armaments industry. Eisenhower warned that great and sustained spending for defense and war created power groups that could disastrously harm the nation's future. This concerned Congress as industry would see benefits for themselves in military spending.