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Essay on America’s Role in the Cold War

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America’s role in the Cold War

After World War II, the United States had effectively become the most powerful and influential country in the world both militarily and politically. During America’s rise to power, however, hostilities mounted between America and the Soviet Union, resulting in a fierce rivalry. The Cold War, which never involved direct military confrontations between the two nations, involved of the struggle to contain the spread of communism, extreme anti-communist attitudes in America, and a reemergence of the civil rights issue. During the war against Germany, America tended to neglect the military desires of the Soviet Union. Roosevelt hesitated to open a second front against the Nazis and this hesitation saved many …show more content…

Chinese involvement in the war, which lasted another two years, resulted in a stalemate. After Truman, President Eisenhower devised his own foreign policy. His “New Look” involved using massive nuclear arsenal for military leverage, manipulating Third World countries with CIA, and doing everything possible to contain the spread of communism. After World War II, President Truman lifted the controls on prices, causing drastic inflation and prompting workers to demand higher wages. He put several mining and railroad companies under federal control, sparking hostility from the Democratic Party. To jumpstart economic growth, Truman began enacting what he called the Fair Deal. This expansion of the New Deal addressed civil rights in addition to economic concerns. Due to opposition from Congress, only some parts of Truman’s Fair Deal were passed: an increase in the minimum wage, an increase in the scope of social security, and the enactment of the National Housing Act of 1949, which called for the construction of hundreds of thousands of low-budget housing units.

In the midst of the political and economic discord, tensions were rising in America over the spread of communism at home. This sparked the creation of the House of Un-American Activities Committee, whose duty was to investigate communist influence in labor unions and New Deal organizations. During the “Great Fear,” all

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