The Cold War Begins

1. The Cold War Begins 1945-1952

2. Postwar Economic Anxieties • the decade of the 1930's left deep scars -joblessness and insecurity pushed up the suicide rate -birth rate decreased -greater divorce rate -GIs entered the world of the unemployed -labor strikes occurred all over the US

3. Taft-Hartley Act • passed by the first Republican Congress in 14 years • labor leaders condemned it as a "slave labor law" • it outlawed the "closed" (all union) shops, made unions liable for damages that resulted from jurisdictional disputes among themselves, and required union leaders to take a noncommunist oath

4. "Operation Dixie" • created by the CIO • aimed at unionizing southern textile workers and steelworkers • failed miserably in 1948 Union membership would peak in the 1950's and then begin a long decline.

5. GI Bill of Rights 1944 • made generous provisions for sending the former soldiers to school • gave loans to Veteran housing By raising educational levels and stimulating the construction industry, the GI bill nurtured the economic expansion that eventually took hold in the late 1940's.

6. GI Bill of Rights

7. The Long Economic Boom 1950-1970 • Gross National Product (GNP) began to climb in 1948 • National income doubled in the 1950's • size of the middle class doubled • employment for women • more Americans owned homes and at least one car

8. The Roots of Postwar Prosperity • military budgets and defense spending • cheap energy • American and European companies controlled the oil overseas • highways and roadways • electricity • increase in productivity • rising educational level • work force shifted from agriculture to industry

9. The Smiling Sunbelt • sunbelt= a fifteen state area stretching in a smiling crescent from Virginia through Florida to California • 1950's, California replaced New York as the most populated state • the dramatic shifts of population and wealth broke the historic grip of the north on the nation's political life.

10. The Rush to the Suburbs • "white flight"=middle to upper class white population moved from the clustered cities to the airy suburbs, leading to race riots and civil rights movements in the cities • supported by the FHA and the VA • tax deductions for interest payments, and rapid construction of highways added to this movement • Levitt brothers revolutionized methods of home construction --> "Levittown"

11. Levittowns

12. The Postwar "Baby Boom" • baby boom= huge leap in birthrate in the decade and a half after 1945 • elementary school enrollments increased before undergoing a steady decline

13. Truman: The "Gutty" Man from Missouri • no college education • judge to US Senate • "Missouri Gang" • "The Buck Stops Here"

14. Yalta: Bargain or Betrayal? • the Big Three met in Yalta in February, 1945 • Stalin agreed that Poland should have a representative government, a pledge he later broke • Bulgaria and Romania were to also have free elections, a promise also broken • The UNITED NATIONS was established • questions were brought up about dealing with Japan and China

15. The US and the USSR • Communism vs. Capitalism • the US refused to recognize the Bolshevik government until 1933 • US and Britain excluded the Soviet Union concerning the Atomic Bomb • US terminated the lend-lease aid to the USSR in 1945 while it approved a reconstruction loan to Britain in 1946 • "Spheres of Influence" • Mutual distrust

16. Shaping the Postwar World • in 1944, the Western Allies established the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to encourage world trade and the World Bank to promote economic growth • in contrast to its behavior after WWI, the US took the lead in mending the world after the war

17. The United Nations • unlike the League of Nations, the United Nations was formed before the war's end as to promote international cooperation • the League presumed great-power conflict while the UN advocated great-power cooperation • the US Senate approved of this arrangement • helped to create Israel • created UNESCO, FAO, WHO

18. The Problem of Germany • nobody knew how to punish the Nazis, for their crimes hadn't been crimes at the beginning of the War • nobody knew how they should repair the German Economy • Germany was physically and politically divided into four sections, each with different governing ideals and political agendas

19. Berlin • Berlin, while located squarely in the Communist side of Germany, was occupied by all four major powers • in 1948, it was cut off from the outside world and divided with the BERLIN WALL • the US sent in regular airlifts carrying food, clothing, and other basic necessities • Soviets lifted their blockade in in May 1949 • by this time, the two governments of Germany had formed

20. Berlin Airlift

21. The Cold War Congeals • seeking to secure oil concessions similar to those held by the British and the Americans, Stalin in 1946 broke an agreement to remove his troops from Iran's northernmost province. Instead, he used his troops to aid a rebel movement. • "Containment plan"= Russia was expansionist and could be stemmed by firm containment

22. The Truman Doctrine • March 12, 1947, appearance in Congress • $400 million to aid Greece and Turkey • promise to aid those fighting communism • made the fight against the USSR and moral war

23. Marshall Plan • At this time, France, Italy, and Germany were all suffering from hunger and economic chaos after the war • Secretary of State George C Marshall proposed that Europe work out a joint plan for economic recovery and the US would provide economic assistance

24. Israel • Arab oil countries opposed the creation of the Jewish state of Israel in Palestine • defying Arabian wishes and the ideas of Europe and his own Defence department, Truman officially recognized the state of Israel on the day of its birth, May 14, 1948 • Truman's strong support for Israel would vastly complicate US relations with the Arab world in the decades ahead

25. America Begins to Rearm • In 1947, Congress passed the National Security Act, creating the Department of Defense in the Pentagon • The NSA also created the National Security Council (NSC) to advise the president on security matters and it created the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to coordinate the government's foreign fact-gathering • Military draft was enacted

26. North Atlantic Treaty Organization • April 4, 1949 • Britain, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, and Luxembourg joined with the US, Greece, Turkey, and West Germany • "Keep the Russians out, the Germans down, and the Americans in" • all Cold War policy was based off of NATO

27. Reconstruction and Revolution in Asia • MacArthur took charge of Japanese Reconstruction • western style economics were put in place and boosted Japan's economy to make it the powerhouse it is today • China, however, was a huge failure. The fall of China could be blamed on American intervention. Nearly 500 million people were swept away to communism.

28. Bombs! • In September of 1949, President Truman announced that the Soviets had exploded an atomic bomb. To stay ahead, Truman ordered the development of the H-Bomb • J. Robert Oppenheimer, former scientist of the Manhattan project lead this on, and the US exploded an H-Bomb in 1952 • The Soviets countered with their own H-Bomb explosion in 1953

30. Ferreting Out Alleged Communists • 1947, Truman launched a massive "loyalty" program • loyalty oaths were becoming common in businesses • House of Un-American Activities (HUAC) created in 1938 (Richard Nixon attacked Alger Hiss in 1948) • schools were searched for "subversive" textbooks • the Rosenbergs were convicted in 1951 and were sentenced to the electric chair

32. Dennis v. United States • In 1949, 11 communists were brought before a NY jury for violating the Smith Act of 1940. This was the first peacetime antisedition law since 1798. • Convicted of advocating the overthrow of the American Government by force, the defendants were sent to prison. • The Supreme Court upheld their convictions in Dennis v United States (1951)

33. Democratic Divisions in 1948 • The Republicans won control of Congress in 1946 • Henry A. Wallace • Governor J Strom Thurmond and the Dixiecrats • Thomas E. Dewey • With the Democratic Party split, Truman takes the presidency once more

34. The Korean Volcano Erupts 1950 • When Japan collapsed in 1945, Soviet troops had accepted the Japanese surrender north of the 38th parallel and the US on the south

35. Korean War