Ghosts never disappear. They merely hide, only to reappear once more.
The terrifying ghost of McCarthyism is a good example. This spring marks 75 years since Senator Joe McCarthy was at the height of his rampage in the United States. He claimed to see communists and enemies of the people everywhere, unleashing an unparalleled uproar. It took four years to stop him.
He berated his political opponents mercilessly and labeled people from all walks of life. Those who protested quickly realized how hopeless it was. Thousands lost their jobs. Many, like Charlie Chaplin, chose to leave the country, while others took their own lives. For a few dreadful months in 1950 and beyond, the rule of law was tossed overboard and replaced with farcical hearings and political hysteria. Many see striking similarities between McCarthy and today’s hard-hitting American president.
McCarthy made no secret of his methods: “To those of you who dislike my tough tactics, I would remind you that any farm boy knows how to kill a rattlesnake or a skunk. We use our fists, and I intend to keep doing that.”
He was born on a farm in Wisconsin in 1908, excelled in the classroom, and became a lawyer. During World War II, he served with the Marines in the Pacific. Upon returning home, he was elected to the Senate as a Republican. In his early years, he kept a low profile, but in February 1950, he slammed his fist on the table so hard that the entire nation took notice. In a speech in West Virginia, he claimed the U.S. State Department had been infiltrated by communists.
“I have here a list,” he shouted, waving a document. “A list of 205 names that the Secretary of State is aware of; they are members of the Communist Party, and yet they continue to work and shape the department’s policies.”
The next day, newsboys shouted themselves hoarse. The Cold War had already been underway for several years. In the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin had cemented his dictatorship, in Eastern Europe, one country after another had become “people’s democracies,” and in China, Mao and his communists had just seized power. Many Americans were fearful of these developments—especially the politicians in Washington. McCarthy’s scare tactics thus found fertile ground with many, but not all.
Tensions escalated when North Korea went to war against South Korea in June. Months later, American troops found themselves in battle in Korea against both North Korean and Chinese soldiers.
McCarthy was likely surprised by the publicity he received. When pressed to provide evidence for his claims, he chose to reduce the number of “communists” on his list. In return, he opened a new front, targeting the “hordes of homosexuals” he believed had wormed their way into government—even into the CIA and FBI. These immoral individuals, he claimed, would be easy prey for unscrupulous Soviet agents. Even President Dwight Eisenhower and a host of Republican and Democratic leaders were accused of being weak in the fight against the red threat.
McCarthy quickly gained many followers, and the claims he hurled out became so numerous that the Senate formed a committee to investigate them. After being re-elected in 1952, he himself became the chairman of the Senate committee leading the investigation. With McCarthy playing the role of grand inquisitor, the proceedings became even more dramatic.
The uproar reached its climax during the televised hearings in 1954. McCarthy picked up where he left off, but faced fierce resistance and received his final blow after six intense weeks.
Author Clay Risen describes the moment in his recent book, Red Scare: Blacklists, McCarthyism, and the Making of Modern America (2025). After harassing a supposed enemy of the people for some time, McCarthy was sharply rebuked by attorney Joseph Nye Welch:
“Until this moment, Senator, I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness. But now I do. Let us not assassinate this lad further, Senator. You’ve done enough. Have you no sense of decency?”
The hearings ended with the Senate voting by a large majority to censure McCarthy.
Afterward, he became noticeably subdued. On the few occasions he spoke, it was to a nearly empty chamber, and in 1957 he died. Liver disease, said the doctors. Did he drink himself to death? It was no secret that he had become quite an alcoholic over the years. Perhaps the public condemnations and media witch hunt became too much for him. But he left behind McCarthyism, a term still widely understood today.
“Have you no sense of decency?”
Today, the same question can rightly be asked of Donald Trump. Once again, the U.S. is shaken by baseless allegations and outrageous accusations. From his Oval Office, Trump rages against supposed communists, sympathizers, and enemies of the people. He has described his predecessor Joe Biden as “a puppet of the radical left” and claimed that Biden is controlled by “Marxists and communists.” Bernie Sanders is a “raving mad communist,” and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is both a “socialist,” “Marxist,” and “communist.”
Anyone prominent who dares to criticize the president risks being viciously attacked—this includes artists like Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, and Bruce Springsteen. Will they soon, like Charlie Chaplin, seek refuge in Europe?
Joe McCarthy was a demagogue. Rather than admit to any faults, he struck back with ferocity. Trump behaves in much the same way. Perhaps because they had the same mentor? Roy Cohn was only 27 when he became McCarthy’s chief counsel in 1954. Many years later, he became a powerful figure in Donald Trump’s inner circle. His “four sacred rules” were unmistakable:
1. Attack.
2. Deny everything.
3. Never defend.
4. Never admit a mistake.
Cohn and Trump worked closely together for thirteen years, from 1973 until the mid-1980s, when Cohn fell ill and died. Trump later said: “If you need someone to do a dirty job for you, Roy is the best.”
Of course, today’s American president is not a carbon copy of McCarthy. Simply put, Trump is more concerned with money than ideology. Otherwise, the similarities are many.
McCarthy’s reign of terror lasted four years and—thank God—he never became president. Trump, on the other hand, is well into his second term in the White House. Since he took office in January, at least 275,000 federal employees have been dismissed. That’s 12 percent of the federal workforce of 2.4 million. And more are expected to go.
The reasons for the dismissals have varied greatly, but many have been politically motivated, and—as during McCarthy’s heyday—there is little point in protesting.
