The Truman PresidencyOverall, how would you grade Truman as president?

(Excellent, good, average, fair or failure)

Think about: Potsdam Conference and his diplomatic acumen, his handling of the atomic bomb and its use on Japan, his cold war strategy and his handling of cold war battles including Greece/Turkey, Czechoslovakia, Berlin, USSR acquiring the atomic bomb, the fall of China and

the conflict in Korea.

The 1952 Presidential Election

Adlai Stevenson (D)(popularity impacted by Truman legacy and his opponent’s background)

vs.

Dwight D. Eisenhower (R)(popularity impacted by the fact that he was a famous military hero)

1952: Eisenhower won the election…surprise…Democrats were “soft of communism”…

“Ike” would not be “soft on communism”...

•Eisenhower had NO POLITICAL EXPERIENCE… he was a career soldier.

•He cut defense budgets and increased our military capability

•He tried to expand US military and economic influence around the world.

•“You win World War 3 by making sure it doesn’t happen”

•Soviet leader Josef Stalin died on March 5, 1953.

Eisenhower’s Foreign Policy: 1952 - 1960 COLLECTIVE SECURITY MEASURES (Alliances):

• San Francisco Peace Treaty (1951)-W/Japan• Mutual Defense and Assistance Agreement w/Great Britain (1952)• ANZUS - Australia, New Zealand and US (1952)• Mutual Defense Treaty with South Korea (1954)• SEATO - Southeast Asian Treaty Organization (1954)• MEDO - Middle East Defense Organization-US and Israel (1952)• CENTO-Central Treaty Organization/Baghdad Pact (1955-56: Iraq)

Ike’s FOREIGN POLICY had 4 components:

1. BRINKSMANSHIP: a VERY aggressive policy … – push a situation to the “brink of disaster” in order to achieve an

advantageous outcome.• Make the “other guy” back down first.

– This altered the Truman Doctrine to fit a “new, more dangerous time”.2. MASSIVE RETALIATION :

– disproportional response if attacked by USSR– Example: if USSR contaminated our drinking water, we’d launch a nuclear

attack against them3. NEW LOOK POLICY – rely on nuclear power and economic resources 4. ROLLBACK POLICY – to reduce, not contain Soviet communism

EISENHOWER DOCTRINE (1957) – promote Marshall Plan in Middle East (OIL)

Journalist Ed Sullivan said, “The fifties were as great as the twenties”.

Sociologist Paul Goodman called the decade an “extraordinarily senseless and unnatural" period in history.

Writer Norman Mailer went further, saying it was "one of the worst decades in the history of man."

Eisenhower’s Cold War Battles: • 1953 – Iran: Pres. Mohammed Mosaddeq wanted to nationalize oil industry

– CIA overthrew him, put “Shah” Reza Pahlavi in power• 1954 - Guatemala – Pres. Jacob Arbenz Guzman wanted to ‘nationalize’ fruit

industry– CIA overthrew him, put Carlos Castillo Armas in power

• 1945 to 1954 – French-Indochina War – French lost to Vietnamese “nationalist forces” of Ho Chi Minh at

Dienbienphu– Ho Chi Minh’s war for independence “successful”…almost…– 1954: Geneva Accords – Laos, Cambodia, North Vietnam, South Vietnam

• 1955 - Formosa Resolution *– US military defense of Taiwan/Nationalist China

• 1956 – “Reverse” domino theory: East Berlin/Poznan, Poland/Hungarian REVOLTS– US does NOTHING to support the revolt

• 1956 - Suez Crisis (distracts attention from Hungary)– Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal (built by Egypt and France in 1869)

• Egypt sold GB their share of the canal in 1875 – Our allies (GB, France, Israel) attacked Egyptian forces in Egypt to stop

nationalization of the canal - they were “condemned by the world”– Ended British and French influence in middle east; US assumed that

role– USSR crushed Hungarian revolt and re-occupied Hungary

More “battles”…• 1957 - SPUTNIK (began the “space race”)

- USSR continually tested better satellites and better nukes• 1958: US military intervention in Lebanon *• 1959 – US/USSR “cultural exchanges” to ease cold war• 1959 - Castro wins civil war in Cuba (supported by the US)• 1959-1960 - Castro makes some “unpopular” decisions

–Imposed radical land reform policy in Cuba–Imprisoned/executed political opponents–Nationalized important industries and outlawed casinos–Announced that he was a MARXIST–Established trade agreement with USSR–1960 - US plans to “remove” Castro from power

• 1960 – Paris “summit” conference with Khrushchev scheduled *• 1960 - U2 Incident (Re-freezing of the Cold War)

–Francis Gary Powers

• Brinksmanship, “McCarthyism”, “modernization” of Japan, birth of the civil rights movement, 1950’s popular American culture

• HOW WOULD YOU GRADE EISNEHOWER’S PRESIDENCY?

Journalist Ed Sullivan said, “The fifties were as great as the twenties”.

Sociologist Paul Goodman called the decade an “extraordinarily senseless and unnatural" period in history.

Writer Norman Mailer went further, saying it was "one of the worst decades in the history of man."

Presidential Election of 1960

• Because of events in Southeast Asia, Hungary, the Middle East and Latin America, and because of Sputnik and the U2 incident, the Cold War had intensified a great deal by the end of 1960.

• Election of 1960:– John F. Kennedy (Dem) v. Richard M.

Nixon (Rep)• JFK narrowly defeated Nixon.

John F. Kennedy and the Cold War1961-1963

Like every American president, JFK inherited many serious foreign crises (in

particular Cuba, Berlin and Vietnam) when he was inaugurated in January of

1961.

“The torch has been passed to a new generation”

President John F. Kennedy

• Bay of Pigs invasion (1961)

• Berlin Crisis (1961)

• Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)

• The Assassination-22 Nov 1963

JFK’s First Dilemma

Cuba and its revolutionary leader:

Fidel Castro

US-Cuban relations

between 1959 and 1962

• Cuban Revolution of 1959– Fidel Castro led a successful overthrow of the

right wing dictatorship of Fulgencio Battista.– Castro’s government was recognized by the US

as the legitimate government of Cuba.– Many Cubans who opposed Castro began to

flee Cuba and came to America.

• What did Castro do to damage relations with the USA?

• Many things:– Land reform laws: aided peasant population;

hurt wealthy Cubans– Many wealthy Cubans emigrated to America– Marxist propaganda appears throughout Cuba– Arrests of political opposition– Castro invited Soviet diplomats to Cuba– US-Cuban relations deteriorated– Castro demonized USA to his people– Castro nationalized industries; US land

holdings seized (casinos, hotels, office buildings, etc.)

– US trade embargo on Cuba– Jan 3, 1961: US severed diplomatic ties with

Cuba– Cuban counter-revolution against Castro

regime– Cuban exiles trained by CIA for an invasion of

Cuba– “Operation Mongoose”

“Operation Mongoose”

• Plots to assassinate Castro that are ascribed to the CIA:

• poisoning his cigars or exploding cigars• exploding seashells to be planted at a scuba diving site;• a gift diving wetsuit impregnated with noxious bacteria and

mold spores, or with lethal chemical agents; • infecting Castro's scuba regulator apparatus with tuberculosis

bacilli;• dousing his handkerchiefs, tea and coffee with lethal bacteria • having a former lover slip him poison pills• exposing him to various other poisoned items such as a

fountain pen and even ice cream.

The Bay of Pigs Invasion:Did the US have the “right” to

intervene in Cuba?

• JFK inherited the “plan” from Eisenhower (set in March 1960).– Our leaders believed that the invaders would be welcomed as

liberators and other Cubans would join them.– April 15, 1961: US planes scheduled to bomb Cuban air bases– April 16,1961: Castro officially proclaims that Cuba was

socialist.– April 17, 1961: Scheduled invasion of Cuba at “the Bay of

Pigs”.• *JFK did not authorize US air force nor military ground support

– Invasion was a HUGE failure and a political disaster for Kennedy

• Castro denounced the US as aggressors, claimed Cuba was a MARXIST nation, and, fearing other US attempts to overthrow him or invade Cuba, he signed mutual defense treaties with the USSR and other Warsaw Pact nations.

1962:JFK’s “October Surprise” – Cuban Missile Crisis• Castro/Cuba feared another invasion by the US • US U2 missions: 65 missile sites on Cuba• Missile range: 1000-3000 miles • 22,000 Soviet troops in Cuba• US had nuclear missile bases in Turkey, England, Italy and Germany

(5500 nukes)• Why would Cuba accept Soviet missiles?• Why would the USSR want to place missiles in Cuba?• What are the options for the United States? Can war be avoided?• US REACTION?• JFK ordered “quarantine” of Cuba (naval blockade• USSR to dismantle weapons or US would ‘dismantle’ them for them.• 2 messages from Khrushchev: (why TWO messages?)

– 1. USSR would dismantle missiles & leave Cuba if US promised not to invade Cuba

– 2. US must dismantle missiles in Turkey. • US agreed not to invade Cuba and the USSR withdrew its forces

from Cuba.• WHO WON THIS BATTLE?

Crisis in Berlin - 1961(after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion)

• Khrushchev: JFK weakened diplomatically by the Bay of Pigs invasion.

• About 4000 East Berliners defecting weekly.

• Soviet demand: US troops be withdrawn from West Berlin or “firm measures” would be taken.

• JFK sent 200,000 more US troops to West Berlin.

• Soviets response: surrounded border between East and West Berlin with soldiers and built a wall stop defections from the East.

• The US refused to back down to the Soviets and, by late 1961, the Berlin crisis slowly faded away into obscurity, but the wall remained, symbolizing a “re-freezing” of the Cold War.

• JFK had met strength with strength• And the crisis was defused…peacefully• June ’63: JFK went to Berlin and

promised to protect the city from Soviet threat and declared “Ich bin ein Berliner”…we win!

Easing the Tension of the Cold War• Crises with Cuba and the building of the

Berlin Wall increased tension between the two sides, but were resolved peacefully in the end.

• 1962: JFK had a 77% approval rating• Alliance for Progress, Peace Corps

successful.• These steps to ease Cold War tension in

1963:– April: The “Hot-line” to Moscow– June: Nuclear test ban proposal– July: Nuclear test ban treaty– October: Sale of wheat to USSR

• November 22: JFK assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald; Oswald killed by Jack Ruby on 24 November; Lyndon Johnson (LBJ) becomes President…why would someone want to assassinate the most popular president in US history?