Joseph McCarthy
Born in 1908 and died in 1957, Joseph McCarthy was an influential American politician who served as the Republican U.S. Senator. His actions and input during the cold war changed the American nation. He was a notable leader who fought hard to identify people who ruined the American government. His tactics and desires of basing his campaign on communist gained him recognition in that many people feared to talk about it. In the early 1950s, Joseph McCarthy became the most notable public figure in a period of cold war when he searched for communists and spies in the United States. McCarthy ruined the reputations and lives of many people in the leadership. He exposed the fact that communist agents were ruining the American government and plotting for its downfall.
In 1950s, McCarthy goals were closely linked with issues pertaining civil liberties and communist. His goal was to identify the communist agents and spies in the U.S. federal government. His influence in the government affected many aspects of American life ranging from education, laws established, to the basic structure of the government agencies like the US Army. Indeed, Senator McCarthy had a remarkable influence on the American history in that his anti-communist campaign and his subject surrounding the communist threat promoted the civil liberties of Americans. His freedom of expression created a strong ground for many people to comprehend the importance of expressing their thoughts, complaints, and ideas without fear. McCarthy’s actions established the need for the American government to exercise justice in that many feared to be exposed for their injustice in ruling. From the ongoing discussion, one would sum up that McCarthy gained popularity for capitalizing the fact that the American government had been affected and infiltrated by Soviet spies and Communists (Faragher et al, 2009).
Reference
Faragher, J. M., Buhle, M. J., Czitrom, D., & Armitage, S. H. (2009). Out of many: A history of the American people, Volume II (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.