5. Americans take pride in the idea of ​​living in a country that embodies the ideals of democracy and freedom for all. Is it possible to reconcile the Cold War moment of McCarthyism, the fervent search for communist sympathizers in the United States, and the subsequent suppression of civil liberties with this “land of the free” tradition? Does it represent an anomaly? Or is this one example among many in which the freedom of individual Americans was (unnecessarily) sacrificed to protect perceived threats to the United States? Senator Joseph McCarthy went from being a Wisconsin farm boy to a famous politician during the Cold War era. His meteoric rise to fame has been attributed to his patriotic ideas and fight against communism in the name of democracy. McCarthy claimed that many communists were attempting to infiltrate and sabotage the U.S. government, particularly the State Department. He slandered communists as God-hating terrorists who people should be wary of. McCarthy's crusade against communism led to numerous hearings held by the House of Un-American Activities (HUAC) in which alleged communists were interrogated and forced to confess. Many accused communists were American citizens whose rights had been denied in the name of national security. McCarthy's claims of widespread communist infiltration into American society turned out to be fictitious political smears and were subsequently ridiculed by politicians. However, the lies and fear that accompanied McCarthyism stripped Americans of their civil liberties. This begs the question: how did the United States allow this grave civil injustice, surely this is an anomaly given that the United States is the “land of the free”. Unfortunately, this is… half the paper… http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/23524152.pdf?acceptTC=true&jpdConfirm=trueMorgan, Ted (November–December 2003) . "Judge Joe: How the Youngest Judge in Wisconsin History Became the Country's Most Famous Senator." Legal affairs. Retrieved August 2, 2006 http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/dictionary/index.asp?action=view&term_id=290&letter=L&keyword=&search_term=Mui, V. Information, Civil Liberties, and the Political Economy of Witch Hunts. Journal of Law, Economics and Organization, 503-525. Retrieved May 13, 2014, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/3555065.pdf?&acceptTC=true&jpdConfirm=true&acceptTC=trueRoark, J. L. (2012). The American Promise of a History of the United States (fifth edition, Value ed.). Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's.http://billofrightsinstitute.org/resources/educator-resources/americapedia/americapedia-documents/executive-order-9066/