lawyer who confronted joesph mccarthy

by Jaquelin Jacobi 3 min read

Joseph Nye Welch (October 22, 1890 – October 6, 1960) was an American lawyer and actor who served as the chief counsel for the United States Army while it was under investigation for Communist activities by Senator Joseph McCarthy's Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, an investigation known as the Army– ...

Who did Joseph McCarthy hire as his chief counsel?

McCarthy appointed Roy Cohn as chief counsel and 27-year-old Robert F. Kennedy as an assistant counsel to the subcommittee. Later, McCarthy also hired Gerard David Schine, heir to a hotel-chain fortune, on the recommendation of George Sokolsky.

What happened to Joseph McCarthy after the McCarthy hearings?

The Fall of Joseph McCarthy. By the time the hearings were over, McCarthy had lost most of his allies. The Senate voted to condemn him for his “inexcusable,” “reprehensible,” “vulgar and insulting” conduct “unbecoming a senator.” He kept his job but lost his power, and died in 1957 at the age of 48.

Who was Joseph McCarthy?

At the time, McCarthy was a first-term senator from Wisconsin who had won election in 1946 after a campaign in which he criticized his opponent’s failure to enlist during World War II while emphasizing his own wartime heroics.

Who was the lawyer who fought back against McCarthy?

In mid-1954, a riveted nation watched Senator Joseph McCarthy accuse the U.S. Army of being infiltrated by communists. But the army's lawyer, Joseph Welch refused to be bullied, and struck back.

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Who was involved in the McCarthy hearings?

Army–McCarthy hearingsTimeApril–June 1954PlaceWashington DCParticipantsThe two sides of the hearing: US Army (accusing their opponents of blackmail) Joseph McCarthy, Roy Cohn and G. David Schine (accusing the Army of communism)ChairmanSenator Karl Mundt3 more rows

Who did Joseph McCarthy accuse?

McCarthy and the Truman administration It was the Truman Administration's State Department that McCarthy accused of harboring 205 (or 57 or 81) "known Communists".

Who said to Joe McCarthy Have you no decency?

Joseph N. WelchDiedOctober 6, 1960 (aged 69) Hyannis, Massachusetts, U.S.EducationGrinnell College (1914) Harvard Law School (1917)OccupationLawyer, ActorKnown forArmy–McCarthy hearings4 more rows

Why did many Americans believe Senator McCarthy's accusations quizlet?

So many people believed Sen. McCarthy's accusations because they, too, believed in a potential Soviet infiltration of America and because, in the prevailing atmosphere of suspicion, they wanted to both seem as anti-Communist as possible and to find any possible Communists.

Who challenged Roy Cohn to provide Herbert Brownell Jr. with McCarthy's list of 130 Communists or subvers

On June 9, 1954, the 30th day of the Army–McCarthy hearings, Welch challenged Roy Cohn to provide U.S. Attorney General Herbert Brownell Jr. with McCarthy's list of 130 Communists or subversives in defense plants "before sundown". McCarthy stepped in and said that if Welch was so concerned about persons aiding the Communist Party, ...

Who was the senator who questioned Welch?

Welch (left) being questioned by Senator Joe McCarthy (right) at the Army–McCarthy hearings, June 9, 1954. Until this moment, Senator, I think I have never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness.

Who played the judge in Anatomy of a Murder?

Welch played a Michigan judge in Otto Preminger 's Anatomy of a Murder (1959). He said he took the role because "it looked like that was the only way I'd ever get to be a judge." Welch actually took the part on the condition that his wife, Agnes, would be in the film. She was cast as a juror. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture and a BAFTA Award for Best Newcomer for the role. He also narrated the television shows Omnibus and Dow Hour of Great Mysteries.

Who was Joseph Welch?

2. Joseph Nye Welch (October 22, 1890 – October 6, 1960) was an American lawyer and actor who served as the chief counsel for the United States Army while it was under investigation for Communist activities by Senator Joseph McCarthy 's Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, an investigation known as the Army–McCarthy hearings.

Who quoted Welch's comments?

In a 2017 Op-Ed for the Washington Post, in which he announced his intention not to seek re-election, Senator Jeff Flake (R-Arizona) quoted Welch's remarks when criticizing the actions of President Donald Trump and the state of the Republican Party.

What movie was about the Army hearings?

The 2005 film Good Night, and Good Luck , which dramatized the work of television journalists Edward R. Murrow and Fred Friendly at CBS, uses footage of the Army–McCarthy hearings, including Welch's challenge to McCarthy.

The Crusty Boston Lawyer Who Helped Shatter McCarthyism: This Week In History

Boston attorney Joseph Nye Welch during the 1954 McCarthy-Army hearings. It was during these hearings that Welch uttered the famous phrase, 'Have you no sense of decency, sir?'

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Who performed the most famous act of journalistic evisceration in American television history?

Please try again later. Sixty years ago, Edward R. Murrow performed one of the most famous acts of journalistic evisceration in American television history.

Who was the journalist who wrote "See it Now"?

On March 9th, 1954, Murrow—who was then perhaps the country’s most highly revered journalist—devoted an entire episode of his CBS program “See it Now” to the words and deeds of Senator Joseph McCarthy, who had already done much to earn his notorious place in history. Using McCarthy’s own statements, Murrow painted a picture ...

Was Murrow's attack on McCarthy true?

But what’s undoubtedly true is that Murrow’s attack on McCarthy has become legendary—an iconic example of journalistic guts, and one that contains a directness which would almost certainly not be allowed in any of Murrow’s modern-day successors.

Who was the lawyer who represented the Army during McCarthy's time?

Army was “soft” on communism. As Chairman of the Senate Government Operations Committee, McCarthy opened hearings into the Army. Joseph N. Welch, a soft-spoken lawyer with an incisive wit and intelligence, represented the Army. During the course of weeks of hearings, Welch blunted every one ...

What was McCarthy's contempt of the Senate?

Just a week later, the hearings into the Army came to a close. McCarthy, exposed as a reckless bully, was officially condemned by the U.S. Senate for contempt against his colleagues in December 1954. During the next two-and-a-half years McCarthy spiraled ...

What did Welch say about McCarthy?

During the course of weeks of hearings, Welch blunted every one of McCarthy’s charges. The senator, in turn, became increasingly enraged, bellowing “point of order, point of order,” screaming at witnesses, and declaring that one highly decorated general was a “disgrace” to his uniform.

What was the impact of Welch's assault on McCarthy?

Welch’s verbal assault marked the end of McCarthy’s power during the anticommunist hysteria of the Red Scare in America. Senator McCarthy (R- Wisconsin) experienced a meteoric rise to fame and power in the U.S. Senate when he charged in February 1950 that “hundreds” of “known communists” were in the Department of State.

Who was the attorney who confronted McCarthy?

Fifty-five years ago, on June 9, 1954, in one of the most famous moments in Cold War history, Joseph N. Welch, an attorney representing the US Army, confronted Senator Joseph McCarthy during a televised hearing, with the memorable question:

Who was the journalist who criticized Joseph McCarthy?

In March 1954, CBS journalist Edward R. Murrow produced his “Report on Senator Joseph McCarthy,” further damaging McCarthy. (Murrow’s battle with McCarthy is recounted in the film Good Night and Good Luck .) By the end of 1954, McCarthy was condemned by his peers, and his public support eroded. Advertisement.

How did McCarthy die?

His hold on the Senate and the public gone, McCarthy spiraled downward in a drunken tailspin. He died in May 1957 of health problems brought on by alcoholism. Joseph Welch died in 1960. Roy Cohn died of complications from AIDS in 1986.

Why was McCarthy so powerful?

He became one of the most powerful and feared men in Washington as the hunt for Communists in government and the media consumed the country. In 1954, McCarthy took up a battle that turned against him when he challenged the U.S. Army to purge supposed Communists from the Pentagon.

Who was the lawyer who turned the tables on McCarthy?

During the thirty-six days of the televised Army-McCarthy hearings, McCarthy came undone. The hearings dissolved as Joseph Welch, the respected lawyer representing the Army, turned the tables on McCarthy and routed him in public. In March 1954, CBS journalist Edward R. Murrow produced his “Report on Senator Joseph McCarthy,” further damaging ...

Who was the attorney who helped McCarthy eradicate communism?

With the assistance of Roy Cohn, a young attorney whom McCarthy had earlier dispatched overseas to eradicate “communistic books” from U.S. International Information Administration libraries, McCarthy had begun to attack certain army officers as Communists.

Who was Eisenhower's turf?

The Army was President Eisenhower’s turf. Eisenhower and the army started to hit back, first by investigating David Schine, Roy Cohn’s wealthy companion on his book-purge trip, who, having subsequently been drafted into the army, had used McCarthy’s influence to win soft military assignments.

Who was Joseph McCarthy?

e. Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician and attorney who served as a Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957 .

When was McCarthy admitted to the bar?

McCarthy was admitted to the bar in 1935. While working at a law firm in Shawano, Wisconsin, he launched an unsuccessful campaign for district attorney as a Democrat in 1936. During his years as an attorney, McCarthy made money on the side by gambling.

Why did Ray Bradbury write Fahrenheit 451?

Bradbury said that he wrote Fahrenheit 451 because of his concerns at the time (during the McCarthy era) about the threat of book burning in the United States.

How did McCarthy die?

It was hinted in the press that he died of alcoholism (cirrhosis of the liver), an estimation that is now accepted by modern biographers. He was given a state funeral that was attended by 70 senators, and a Solemn Pontifical Requiem Mass was celebrated before more than 100 priests and 2,000 others at Washington's St. Matthew's Cathedral. Thousands of people viewed his body in Washington. He was buried in St. Mary's Parish Cemetery, Appleton, Wisconsin, where more than 17,000 people filed through St. Mary's Church in order to pay him their last respects. Three senators— George W. Malone, William E. Jenner, and Herman Welker —had flown from Washington to Appleton on the plane that carried McCarthy's casket. Robert F. Kennedy attended the funeral in Wisconsin. McCarthy was survived by his wife, Jean, and their adopted daughter, Tierney.

What did McCarthy say about Truman?

Truman, in turn, once referred to McCarthy as "the best asset the Kremlin has", calling McCarthy's actions an attempt to "sabotage the foreign policy of the United States" in a cold war and comparing it to shooting American soldiers in the back in a hot war. It was the Truman Administration's State Department that McCarthy accused of harboring 205 (or 57 or 81) "known Communists". Truman's Secretary of Defense, George Marshall, was the target of some of McCarthy's most vitriolic rhetoric. Marshall had been Army Chief of Staff during World War II and was also Truman's former Secretary of State. Marshall was a highly respected general and statesman, remembered today as the architect of victory and peace, the latter based on the Marshall Plan for post-war reconstruction of Europe, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953. McCarthy made a lengthy speech on Marshall, later published in 1951 as a book titled America's Retreat From Victory: The Story of George Catlett Marshall. Marshall had been involved in American foreign policy with China, and McCarthy charged that Marshall was directly responsible for the loss of China to Communism. In the speech McCarthy also implied that Marshall was guilty of treason; declared that "if Marshall were merely stupid, the laws of probability would dictate that part of his decisions would serve this country's interest"; and most famously, accused him of being part of "a conspiracy so immense and an infamy so black as to dwarf any previous venture in the history of man".

Why was McCarthy critical of the 1944 Malmedy massacre?

McCarthy was critical of the convictions because the German soldiers' confessions were allegedly obtained through torture during the interrogations. He argued that the U.S. Army was engaged in a coverup of judicial misconduct, but never presented any evidence to support the accusation. Shortly after this, a poll of the Senate press corps voted McCarthy "the worst U.S. senator" currently in office. McCarthy biographer Larry Tye has written that antisemitism may also have factored into McCarthy's outspoken views on Malmedy. McCarthy frequently used anti-Jewish slurs, received enthusiastic support from antisemitic politicians including Ku Klux Klansman Wesley Swift, and according to friends would display his copy of Mein Kampf, stating, "That’s the way to do it." Tye also cites three quotes from European historian Steven Remy, chief Malmedy prosecutor COL Burton Ellis JAG USA, and massacre victim and survivor Virgil P. Laru, Jr:

How many loyalty risks did McCarthy have?

During a five-hour speech, McCarthy presented a case-by-case analysis of his 81 "loyalty risks" employed at the State Department.

Who is Joseph McCarthy?

Joseph McCarthy, in full Joseph Raymond McCarthy, (born November 14, 1908, near Appleton, Wisconsin, U.S.—died May 2, 1957, Bethesda, Maryland), American politician who served in the U.S. Senate (1947–57), representing Wisconsin, and who lent his name to the term McCarthyism.

What was Joseph McCarthy's crusade?

McCarthy proceeded to instigate a nationwide militant anticommunist “crusade ”; he appeared to his supporters as a dedicated patriot and guardian of genuine Americanism, to his detractors as an irresponsible self-seeking witch-hunter who was undermining the country’s traditions of civil liberties. Joseph McCarthy.

What was the Army report alleging about McCarthy?

The Army then submitted a report alleging that McCarthy’s attorney had improperly pressured the Army secretary into giving preferential treatment to a McCarthy associate. McCarthy disputed the Army’s claims, and an ensuing 1954 Senate investigation exposed McCarthy’s lies and tactics on national television. Learn more.

What committee did McCarthy serve on?

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. After McCarthy’s reelection in 1952, he obtained the chairmanship of the Committee on Government Operations of the Senate and of its permanent subcommittee on investigations.

When did McCarthy become famous?

McCarthy was at first a quiet and undistinguished senator. He rose to prominence in February 1950 when his public charge—in a speech given in Wheeling, West Virginia—that 205 communists had infiltrated the State Department created a furor and catapulted him into headlines across the country.

Who was the Republican nominee for Senate in 1946?

A Wisconsin attorney, McCarthy served for three years as a circuit judge (1940–42) before enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps in World War II. In 1946 he won the Republican nomination for the Senate in a stunning upset primary victory over Sen. Robert M. La Follette, Jr.; he was elected that autumn and again in 1952.

Did McCarthy die before his second term?

McCarthy was largely ignored by his colleagues and by the media thereafter and died before he had completed his second term in office. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen, Corrections Manager. History at your fingertips.

Who was the freshman senator who spoke against McCarthy?

Those words, spoken by Margaret Chase Smith, freshman senator from Maine, never mentioned Joseph McCarthy by name, but it was abundantly clear to all who listened that her criticisms were leveled directly at him. Her speech represented a highlight for the congressional maverick with a career full of similar moments of bipartisanship.

Who did McCarthy dismiss as Snow White?

McCarthy’s response was typical of his behavior to any critics: he dismissed her, nicknaming Smith and her colleagues “Snow White and the Six Dwarfs.”.

Where were the art stolen during the Nazi occupation?

During the Nazi occupation of France, many valuable works of art were stolen from the Jeu de Paume museum and relocated to Germany. One brave French woman kept detailed notes of the thefts

Who said "It is high time we stopped thinking politically as Republicans and Democrats about elections and started thinking patriotically

Those words, spoken by Margaret Chase Smith, freshman senator from Maine, never mentioned Joseph McCarthy by name, ...

Who was the first woman to serve in both the House and the Senate?

Margaret Chase Smith was the first woman to serve both the House and the Senate and always defended her values, even when it meant opposing her party. Margaret Chase Smith became the first woman ever to serve in both the House of Representatives and the Senate—and the first senator to stand up against Joseph McCarthy's Red Scare.

Did McCarthy exaggerate his claims?

It soon became clear that McCarthy had grossly exaggerated his claims. By the spring of 1950, Smith said, “Distrust became so widespread that many dared not accept dinner invitations lest at some future date McCarthy might level unproved charges against someone who had been at the same dinner party.”.

What was the environment for Joseph McCarthy?

All of these factors combined to create an atmosphere of fear and dread, which proved a ripe environment for the rise of a staunch anticommunist like Joseph McCarthy. At the time, McCarthy was a first-term senator from Wisconsin who had won election in 1946 after a campaign in which he criticized his opponent’s failure to enlist during World War II while emphasizing his own wartime heroics.

What was McCarthy's redbaiting campaign?

In 1953, at the beginning of his second term as senator, McCarthy was put in charge of the Committee on Government Operations, which allowed him to launch even more expansive investigations of the alleged communist infiltration of the federal government.

How old was McCarthy when he died?

He kept his job but lost his power, and died in 1957 at the age of 48.

How long did Senator McCarthy try to expose communists?

Senator McCarthy spent almost five years trying in vain to expose communists and other left-wing “loyalty risks” in the U.S. government. In the hyper-suspicious atmosphere of the Cold War, insinuations of disloyalty were enough to convince many Americans that their government was packed with traitors and spies.

How many government employees lost their jobs as a result of McCarthy's investigations?

Despite a lack of any proof of subversion, more than 2,000 government employees lost their jobs as a result of McCarthy’s investigations.

How did the Army undermine McCarthy's credibility?

First, the Army undermined the senator’s credibility by showing evidence that he had tried to win preferential treatment for his aides when they were drafted.

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Overview

Joseph Nye Welch (October 22, 1890 – October 6, 1960) was an American lawyer and actor who served as the chief counsel for the United States Army while it was under investigation for Communist activities by Senator Joseph McCarthy's Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, an investigation known as the Army–McCarthy hearings. His confrontation with McCarthy durin…

Early life

Welch was born in Primghar, Iowa, on October 22, 1890, the seventh and youngest child of English immigrants Martha (Thyer) and William Welch. He attended Grinnell College and graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1914, then attended Harvard Law School and graduated in 1917, magna cum laude, with the second highest grade point average in his graduating class. Welch married Judith Lyndon (1888–1956) on September 20, 1917. They had two sons, Joe and Lyndon. He enlisted in the Uni…

Career

Beginning in 1923, Welch was a partner at Hale and Dorr, a Boston law firm, and lived in nearby Walpole, Massachusetts.
On June 9, 1954, the 30th day of the Army–McCarthy hearings, Welch challenged Roy Cohn to provide U.S. Attorney General Herbert Brownell Jr. with McCarthy's list of 130 Communists or subversives in defense plants "before su…

Personal life

His first wife, Judith Lyndon, died on December 21, 1956, and he married Agnes Rodgers Brown in 1957. After remarrying, he moved to Harwichport, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod, where he lived until his death.
Sixteen days before his 70th birthday, and fifteen months after the release of Anatomy of a Murder, Welch suffered a heart attack and died on October 6, 1960, at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, Mas…

In popular culture

• The documentary film Point of Order! (1964) includes excerpts from the Army–McCarthy hearings.
• In the 1977 NBC biopic Tail Gunner Joe, Welch was played by Burgess Meredith.
• The rock band R.E.M. sampled some of the audio from the Army-McCarthy hearings for their song "Exhuming McCarthy", on their album Document (1987).

External links

• Joseph N. Welch at IMDb
• McCarthy–Welch exchange: "Have You No Sense of Decency" (transcript and sound file)
• History of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr
• Joseph Welch on the cover of Life Magazine