The Cold War was a state of tension between the Communist Soviet Union and the United States. The threat of nuclear war incited panic among all Americans. According to The Encyclopedia Britannica, both America and the Soviet Union began making intercontinental ballistic missiles, and the Soviets began installing missiles in Cuba that could be used to launch nuclear attacks on the United States. (Cold War | Summary, Causes, history, years, timeline, & facts). People were not only afraid of the potential nuclear warfare, but there was also mass hysteria of Communist ideas spreading throughout the country, and that there were spies or people loyal to the communist party plotting inside the United States. All this internal pressure led to the rise of McCarthyism, where people would falsely accuse others of being involved with communism for personal benefit. The Cold War heavily impacted foreign policies and changed the way Americans thought about national security.
The Cold War started after World War II, as tensions grew between the United States and the Soviet Union. Originally, The Soviet Union and The United States were Allies in World War II. This changed as a result of their opposing ideologies. The democracy in America heavily contrasted with the communism in the Soviet Union, and caused the two countries to lose trust in each other. After World War II, the Soviet Union started expanding and spreading the communist Ideals. The United States became increasingly worried about the spread of communism and started trying to oppose the communists. This rivalry led to a long period of political and military war. The Cold War was not an active war involving fighting; it was a standoff between the two countries, each trying to prove their power and trying to race to create more lethal weaponry. These conflicts led to a war that lasted more than four decades and heavily influenced the American Government.
The stalemate between the United States and the Soviet Union was not only an issue for the Government and the Military. The fear of communism made its way into the country and severely impacted the citizens in America. This period in time was called the Red Scare, in which people would constantly be under the impression that they were being watched by spies of the Soviet Union or people of the communist Party. This hysteria led to multiple false accusations of normal people being associated with the communist party. Multiple people were investigated and charged wrongfully, often with unstable evidence. These accusations could not be proved or disproved, as the communist ideals were not openly practiced; rather, they were beliefs that were not outwardly verifiable. The Idea of assumed innocence was heavily challenged, as many people were charged even without reasonable suspicion of guilt. Many of the actions taken violated the First Amendment, such as freedom of speech, where many people were judged solely based on what they said. These events raised questions about whether the government was protecting citizens’ rights and following the constitution, or infringing on citizens’ rights.
The Cold War profoundly impacted the U.S. Government, causing the federal government to refine the power structure of the executive branch. Due to the rising tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union, Congress passed the National Security Act of 1947, which was meant to better organize the military and also created new agencies to handle national defense. According to Britannica, the National Security Act established the office of Secretary of Defense to supervise America’s military establishment, and it also established the National Security Council (NSC). (National Security Act). These changes affected the executive branch, as it gave the President more control over foreign policy and defensive decisions, shifting the responsibility of security over to the President. Along with the National Security Act, the United States also established the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949. Britannica states that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was a military alliance formed in 1949 that sought to create a counterweight to Soviet armies stationed in central and eastern Europe after World War II. (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). This alliance gave the United States allies that would support it against the Soviets. The expansion of Executive power and the extension of a Treaty prove how the Cold War influenced the entire structure of the American government, along with how the United States responds to National threats.
The Cold War began as a conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union over democracy and communism, but eventually found its way into the United States. It made a profound impact on the United States and the interpretation of the Constitution through its prolonged periods of tension and increased hysteria. Fear of communism led to government actions that limited citizens’ rights and gave the president more power and responsibility. These changes illustrate how Internal and external conflict can reshape the government and impact citizens. It is important to learn about events such as the Cold War because they shaped the United States to become what it is today. We still undergo the same procedures as they did in the Cold War, and we still have treaties with foreign powers as a result of the Cold War. Events like the Cold War led America to become the country it is today.
Netflix Cold War Documentary - https://www.netflix.com/title/81614129
The Cold War | Crash Course Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C72ISMF_D0
BBC: Reasons for the Cold War - https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/z8qnsbk/revision/3
The Cold War Museum - https://coldwar.org/Default.asp
The Cold War | THE AMERICAN YAWP. - https://www.americanyawp.com/text/25-the-cold-war/
The Warsaw Pact | Britannica - https://www.britannica.com/event/Warsaw-Pact
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