Pros And Cons Of Executive Order 9835

After the defeat of the Nazis in World War II, America entered a time of “cold war” at home. The Nazis were conquered but the Soviets and the communist party had put a target on America, causing the second Red Scare. The government was terrified of being spied on, as they too had spies in communist countries. President Truman crafted Executive Order 9835 or the Loyalty Order, to try and identify spies within the government. This order was over the line for many, like Henry Steele Commager, but to others, like Joseph R. McCarthy, it was not enough to catch all the communist who infiltrated the American government. Harry Truman signed Executive Order 9835 on March 21, 1947 . It was known as the loyalty program because it was used to root out communism in the federal government. That was probably the biggest pro to the act, as we were on the defense from communism. However there were many cons, such as many people felt betrayed, there was a lot of blame, and unnecessary trials. More than 3 million people were questioned, while only 300 were actually terminated. …show more content…
One of the most extreme was Joseph R. McCarthy. McCarthy believed that there should be a time of peace after war but that the government has allowed some unrest . He called Americans blind if they did not see the war that was happening between the democratic Christian world and the Communist world. McCarthy believed that the government should be doing so much more and would pay the price. He claimed to have a list of 57 individuals within the State Department who were communist. He said that they should be taken care of immediately since they are traitors who are more dangerous than spies as they were helping to shape our government and guide our