AP Success - AP US History: Red Scare & McCarthyism Primary Sources
Senator Joseph McCarthy to President Harry Truman, February 11, 1950"In the Lincoln Day speech at Wheeling Thursday night I stated that the State Department harbors a nest of Communists and Communist sympathizers who are helping to shape our foreign policy. I further stated that I have in my possession the names of 57 Communists who are in the State Department at present. A State Department spokesman promptly denied this, claiming that there is not a single Communist in the Department. You can convince yourself of the falsity of the State Department claim very easily. You will recall that you personally appointed a board to screen State Department employees for the purpose of weeding out fellow travelers—men whom the board considered dangerous to the security of this Nation. Your board did a painstaking job, and named hundreds which had been listed as dangerous to the security of the Nation, because of communistic connections."
Question 1
What does Senator Joseph McCarthy claim to have in his possession in his letter to President Harry Truman?
Evidence of Soviet espionage within the State Department.
Confidential communications between State Department officials and the Soviet Union.
A list of State Department policies influenced by Communism.
The names of 57 Communists in the State Department.
Question 2
Senator McCarthy's letter to President Truman is most closely associated with which period in American history?
The Second Red Scare of the late 1940s and early 1950s.
The Cold War détente of the 1970s.
The First Red Scare following World War I.
The post-Cold War era of the 1990s.
Question 3
Senator McCarthy's reference to a 'board' appointed by President Truman is indicative of what broader government action during the era?
The implementation of policies to promote freedom of speech and political diversity.
The creation of new departments to manage post-war reconstruction.
Efforts to investigate and remove alleged subversives from government positions.
The establishment of diplomatic relations with Communist countries.
Question 4
The 'Lincoln Day speech at Wheeling' mentioned in the source is significant because it marks:
The passage of the McCarran Internal Security Act.
President Truman's endorsement of McCarthy's claims.
The beginning of McCarthy's public campaign against alleged Communists in the government.
The end of McCarthy's influence in the Senate.
Question 5
The immediate context of the source, a letter from Senator McCarthy to President Truman, reflects which broader trend in American society at the time?
The expansion of civil liberties and protections for accused individuals.
The growing fear of Communist infiltration and influence in American institutions.
The decline of partisan politics and the rise of bipartisan cooperation.
The shift towards isolationism in American foreign policy.
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