Paper Example: What Were the Major Concerns Driving Truman's Presidency?

Harry Truman (1884-1972), historically remains known as the 33rd head of State of the US who assumed the highest office in the land after the demise of President Franklin Roosevelt (1882-1945). As the US president, Truman made a number of major pronouncements that include among others atomic bomb against Japan, support in the rebuilding of Europe after the war, the operation to contain communism, and leading the US into Korean War. It is in 1922 that Truman instigated his calling in politics as a county judge advocates in Missouri upon which in 1934, voted as the US senate. After becoming vice president in 1945, Truman climbed to the presidency three months later. Atomic bomb construction, domestic fear of the communist, inflation, labor unrest, the Korean War, and shortage of housing and goods remains the domestic and foreign significant concerns driving Truman's Presidency.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

Major Concerns Driving Truman's Presidency

Upon assuming the presidency, Truman is said to have privately encountered with Roosevelt a few times before his death. Truman ought not to have been updated by the then-president concerning the atomic bomb creation. Thus, he confronted a sequence of immense trials as well as decisions. In the course of the early months of Truman in office, the warfare in Europe came to an end following the acceptance of Nazi German's surrender by Allies on May 8. At the same time, there was a signing of the United Nations agreement upon which the Truman took part in the Potsdam convention in a discussion with Winston Churchill of Great Britain about the post-war treatment of German along with Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union. Being committed to ending the combat in the Pacific besides preventing the gigantic fatalities in the US that would result following the attack of Japan. He approved the plummeting of nuclear bombs on the metropolises of Japan. The surrender of Japan was announced on 14th August 1945. Still, the use of a nuclear weapon by Truman ends up as one of the greatest provocative decisions maker concerning all presidents of America (Davidson 536).

In the outcome of the warfare, Truman contended with worsening US-Soviet relations along with cold war commencement (1946-1991). The president adopted the strategy of containment to the expansion of soviet as well as communism widespread. In the year 1947, his administration came up with the Truman doctrine to give support to Turkey and Greece in that way, protecting them from the aggression of the communist. At the same time Truman's administration established the Marshall Plan, which released a lot of billions to assist towards stimulating the European nations' economic recovery. The plan was defended by the president stating that communism had the capacity of thriving in the economically depressed regions. It is in the year 1948 that Truman began airlifting of food along with essential supplies to the western areas of the Berlin then blocked by soviets. Truman as well documented Israel as the new-fangled state (Davidson 540)

Concerning home front, Truman confronted with the contest of having to transition America to an armistice budget. Amid labor differences of opinion, scarcity of the end user goods as well as nationwide railroad strike, Truman had seen his support scores dropping. However, he went for reelection in the year 1948 in an election that he broadly considered by many to be defeated by Thomas Dewey, the Republican rival. However, after conducting an enthusiastic whistle-stop campaign to the point of travelling around the country by train, thereby giving lots of speeches, Truman together with his team mate Alben Barkley secured the victory with 303 electoral votes along with 49. 6 per cent concerning the popular vote. In January 1949 Truman took oath for the second term. He set out a social transformation agenda referred to as Fair deal. The plan comprised state medical insurance, higher minimum wage, housing plans, and the increment of the social safety, civil rights improvements, and assistance for farmers among others (Davidson 511). The conservatives in congress much opposed the proposed concerns for Truman. Nevertheless, Truman had legislative achievements that include the Housing Act of 1949 besides issuing exclusive orders that aimed at ending segregation in US armed forces as well as prohibiting discrimination regarding federal government jobs.

In the second term of Truman's presidency threat of the communism continued being one of the significant concern of Truman. He supported the conception of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) in 1949. The military association of the democratic nations comprising of the US, Canada, UK, France and other eight nations selected Dwight Eisenhower as their firstly commander. At the same year, China upheaval assumed Communists to power upon which the Soviet had their primary nuclear weapon tested. More to that, during this second term, Truman contended with unproven accusations that were instigated by US senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin. One of the allegations was that the Truman administration, along with the US State Department and other organizations stand to have been infiltrated by the communists' spies (Davidson 522). In June 1950, at the time when communist forces invaded South Korea from North Korea, Truman sent in US airplanes, boats along with ground troops to back South Koreans. The skirmish became a protracted stalemate that led millions of the Americans upset besides hurting the popularity of the Truman. But his decision of intervening conserved the independence of South Korea. Even if Truman was eligible for running for the high-level office once more, he declared in March 1952 his intention of leaving the office. Hence in the succeeding presidential election Adlai Stevenson was the democrat candidate who lost to Dwight Eisenhower, the republican candidate (Davidson 541).

Conclusion

In conclusion, Americans are said to have for an extensive period apprehensive of Soviet communalism. However, Stalin's violent attitude to Eastern Europe together with the Persian Gulf expanse following World War 2 resulted in new fears among the policymakers in America. Truman's government adopted the strategy of containment in response via the Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan as well as NSC-68. Because of the inflation, labor unrest along with shortage of housing and goods, the internal changeover from war to peace went slow. However, consumer, along with government spending manifested the commencement of 30-year expansion of the economy. Internal fear of communist subversion fueled Senator Joseph McCarthy led Truman to devise a government loyalty program. Following the Soviet blast of the atomic bomb and descent of china to hands of communalists, and after the Korea War, all these led to the deterioration of Harry Truman's popularity. The Democrats' reputation was also undermined hence making way forward for Dwight Eisenhower's triumph in 1952 general election as the successor of Truman.

Work Cited

US A Narrative History, Volume 2 since 1865, 8th Edition by Davidson.pdf