Eisenhower's presidential years and domestic policy

Eisenhower Presidential Years

Dwight David Eisenhower was considered a popular President throughout his two terms in office, and his moderate Republican policies secured him numerous victories in the Democratic majority Congress (Dwight pp). He strengthened established programs, such as Social Security, and launched new ones, such as the Interstate Highway System, which was the single largest public works program in the nation's history (Dwight pp).

During this Cold War era, Eisenhower often relied on covert action in an effort to avoid taking public responsibility for controversial interventions (Dwight pp). He believed that the Central Intelligence Agency, CIA, was a particularly effective tool to counter Communist expansion and assist friendly governments (Dwight pp). Although he authorized the CIA's use of unsavory tactics, such as assassination and bribes, he maintained denial and carefully concealed all evidence of U.S. involvement (Dwight pp).

Within six months of taking office, Eisenhower agreed to an armistice that ended three years of fighting in Korea, and only on one other occasion did he send troops into action and that was in Lebanon in 1958 (Dwight pp). He relied on nuclear strength to prevent the outbreak of war, but also authorized the CIA to undertake covert actions to secretly overthrow unfriendly governments and protect anti-Communists leaders who found themselves threatened (Dwight pp).

In fact, the CIA was involved in toppling the governments of Iran in 1953 and Guatemala in 1954, however failed in 1958 when it intervened in Indonesia (Dwight pp).

One of the main themes that emerges from the volumes of Eisenhower's papers, is the underlying tension in his foreign policy objectives (Field pp). While the containment of Communism necessitated an "unbreachable" solidarity between the U.S. And allies such as Great Britain and France, he "fervently" believed that those two countries needed to divest themselves of their colonies in Asia, Africa and the Pacific, for he felt that colonialism was a thing of the past (Field pp). Although he could not afford to alienate either country by setting an "overtly anti-colonial course ... he chose quiet, behind the scenes diplomacy" (Field pp). As to whether this diplomacy was successful is still being debated among historians (Field pp). However, one source believes that Eisenhower was very restrained about wielding American power, and that both allies and enemies found him rather disconcerting (Field pp). As France and Britain tried to preserve their empires, Eisenhower would not fight those wars on their behalf, for he was "married to the idea of restraint in the exercise of power," and though the times were hot, he "knew how to keep his cool" (Field pp).

As a realist who recognized the limits of American's capabilities, Eisenhower understood the importance of balancing the nation's resources with U.S. foreign policy commitments (Staten pp). He initiated a pragmatic foreign policy by redefining and limiting the goals of containment (Staten pp). Recognizing the costs involved in the liberation of North Korea, he negotiated a cease-fire agreement between the North and South at the thirty-eighth parallel in 1953 (Staten pp). He redirected support for the French efforts in Indochina and agreed only to economic aid to the Diem government in South Vietnam (Staten pp). Eisenhower relied on the resources of other countries through alliances, "such as the Baghdad Pact and the Southeast Asian Treaty Organization, to counter the communist threat," but did not offer support during the Hungarian uprising because he felt that the U.S. did not have the military resources to challenge the Soviet Union in its sphere of influence (Staten pp). In 1953, he created the United States Information Agency with the purpose of using American culture, such as film and music, to counter the appeal of communism (Staten pp). Moreover, he actually reduced the size of the military and developed the "strategic doctrine of massive retaliation," which is represented in the memorable phrase, "the most bang for our buck" (Staten pp).