US in WWII: Industrial Output and Costs

• WWII effectively ended the Great Depression

Mobilization for WWII

• Involved re-tooling of industries, drafting soldiers, and integrating women and minorities into the workforce

US Industrial Output in WWII

• In the first six months of 1942, the US launched more merchant ships than Japan did in all of WWII
• Kaiser built one liberty ship in just four days, and outfitted two more while afloat
• The US produced 300,000 planes during WWII, doubling the aircraft production of Germany and Japan by 1943
• US factories produced 3 jeeps in just 4 minutes

Resource Usage in WWII

• The average US soldier used 4 tons of material, while the average Japanese soldier used only 2 pounds

WWII Costs

• WWII cost $300 billion, twice the total spent from the Revolutionary War to WWI
• Ten times more Americans had to pay income tax during WWII

Casualties in WWII

• Millions of people were injured in industrial accidents during WWII
• In Europe in 1943, 2/3 of US air crews did not return

The Economy during WWII

• Rationing and a 25% black market were present
• Increased employment for wartime production was key to Allied success
• Migration from rural areas and the Dust Bowl to California increased by 53%
• Wartime propaganda encouraged support for the war effort
• One pint of blood was donated at a rate of every 20 seconds

Funding the War

• The war was financed through taxes and bonds

Civil Rights during WWII

• Japanese-Americans faced internment under Executive Order 9066
• African-Americans campaigned for civil rights through the "Double V" campaign

Post-War Legislation

• The GI Bill of Rights was enacted in 1944

The Impact of WWII

• The role of the US government grew dramatically both domestically and internationally
• The US remained a major power after the war, unlike after WWI, and was regarded as the most respected nation
• Domestic values and life in America changed significantly and permanently

Post-War Fears

• A major post-war fear was a relapse into war

Truman's Fair Deal

• Truman sought to continue the New Deal with his Fair Deal in 1948

Obstacles to the Fair Deal

• High costs, the Cold War, imposed post-war wage and price controls, a coalition of status quo supporters, and the Korean War

Political Shift in 1946

• The Republican Party gained control of Congress, due to traditional Republicans and Southern Democrats forming a status quo coalition

Key Legislation in 1947

• The Taft-Hartley Act aimed at post-war consolidation and retrenchment of policies
• The Marshall Plan was created to provide funding for the rebuilding of Europe, including the Soviet Union, which ultimately rejected it, seeing it as a Trojan Horse
• all goods provided under the Marshall Plan were American made and provided on credit

Anti-Communism Measures

• The National Security Association, CIA, and Department of Defense were founded to prevent communism

Truman's Domestic Policy (HST)

• Truman passed very little new progressive legislation
• Loyalty oaths and the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) were established in response to fears of communism

1948 Presidential Election

• Truman (Democrat) ran on a civil rights platform
• Dewey (Republican) ran against Truman
• Wallace ran as a Progressive
• Thurmond ran as a Dixiecrat, advocating for states' rights

Cold War Intensification

• 1947-1953 was a period of intensified Cold War tensions

Korean War

• The Korean War took place from 1950-1953

Truman's Civil Rights Record

• Truman desegregated armed services in 1948 and advocated for civil rights, keeping the New Deal spirit alive
• Truman proposed national health care and the 1949 Fair Housing Act, and fought for labor; the US GDP rose 39% from 1945-1952

Eisenhower's "New Look" Policy (1952)

• Developed the Domino Theory, which posited that the spread of communism in one nation would lead to its spread in others; untested theory underpinning American foreign policy
• The Cold War involved friction between two expanding nations
• Americans feared communism, which evolved into a broader fear of terrorism

Key Cold War Events

• 1947: Greece and Turkey were focal points as the Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, NSA, CIA, and DOD were established
• 1948: Stalin took control of the government in Czech Republic
• 1949: Germany and the US sought to reunify the German economy and establish a common currency, opposed by Stalin
• 1950: The Korean War began
• 1953: Stalin died

Geneva Accords

• Involved multiple countries agreeing to cease interference in Vietnam

Spirit of Geneva (1955)

• Encouraged diplomacy and dialogue
• 1956: In Egypt, Nassar seized the Suez Canal, prompting intervention by Israel, the UN, and France, who were then told by Eisenhower to withdraw

The Hungarian Revolution

• The US encouraged a revolution against the Soviet Union, which crushed it, leading to mistrust

The Launch of Sputnik (1957)

• The Soviet Union launched the first satellite, gaining a technological advantage that raised concerns about potential weapon deployment in orbit

National Defense Education Act (NDEA) (1958)

• Provided funding for colleges' STEM programs to catch up with the Soviet Union

NASA

• NASA was created to lead the Space Race and achieve success in landing a man on the moon

Cuban Revolution (1959)

• Led by Fidel Castro, who turned to the Soviet Union after the US refused to assist him;
• Castro expelled the mafia back to the United States; Cuba did not cause other countries to fall to communism, thus contradicting the Domino Theory

Factors Preventing the Recurrence of Depression

• 1940-45: Wartime economy
• 1945-53: Peacetime economy on a war footing
• Post-1953: High military spending, entitlements, and a war-footing economy contributed to the national debt

Eisenhower's Domestic Policy

• Characterized by a moderate Republicanism similar to Ike

Eisenhower and the New Deal

• Involved more consolidation of policies without rejecting the New Deal

Economic Policy

• The plan was to cut taxes, reduce government size, and decrease spending, under the foreign policy slogan of "The New Look"
• The reality involved cutting taxes, increasing domestic and military spending, and borrowing to cover the debt

McCarthyism

• McCarthy led a red scare from 1950-1954, during the height of the Cold War
• Concerns included atomic war, economic recession/consumerism, communism, and social change

Civil Rights Milestones

• 1954: The Supreme Court, under Chief Justice Earl Warren, ruled on Brown v. Board of Education
• 1957: Crisis in Little Rock, Arkansas

Infrastructure Development

• The Interstate Highway System was proposed by FDR in 1944 but delayed by WWII

Social Issues

• Concerns over juvenile delinquency and the development of polio vaccines by Salk and Sabin

Space Race Developments

• 1957: The launch of Sputnik and the passage of the NDEA
• 1958: The establishment of NASA

Social Commentary

• 1958: Galbraith published "The Affluent Society"

Cultural Shifts

• TV became a dominant form of pop culture, with Elvis Presley, rock and roll, and teenagers gaining prominence; consumerism increased, and Americans moved to the suburbs with cars and oil