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Charles Lindbergh
Joseph McCarthy was a U.S. senator who led a congressional effort to blacklist communists, both real and suspected, in the 1950s. Levitsky and Ziblatt argue that this is one of a select few times that the U.S. abandoned norms of mutual toleration in the 20th century. In fact, the Senate eventually rejected McCarthy’s tactics and formally censured him, which shows how strongly it was once committed to mutual toleration.
Joseph McCarthy Quotes in How Democracies Die
The How Democracies Die quotes below are all either spoken by Joseph McCarthy or refer to Joseph McCarthy. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 2
Quotes
In short, Americans have long had an authoritarian streak. It was not unusual for figures such as Coughlin, Long, McCarthy, and Wallace to gain the support of a sizable minority—30 or even 40 percent—of the country. We often tell ourselves that America’s national political culture in some way immunizes us from such appeals, but this requires reading history with rose-colored glasses. The real protection against would-be authoritarians has not been Americans’ firm commitment to democracy but, rather, the gatekeepers—our political parties.
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Explanation and Analysis:
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Joseph McCarthy Quotes in How Democracies Die
The How Democracies Die quotes below are all either spoken by Joseph McCarthy or refer to Joseph McCarthy. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 2
Quotes
In short, Americans have long had an authoritarian streak. It was not unusual for figures such as Coughlin, Long, McCarthy, and Wallace to gain the support of a sizable minority—30 or even 40 percent—of the country. We often tell ourselves that America’s national political culture in some way immunizes us from such appeals, but this requires reading history with rose-colored glasses. The real protection against would-be authoritarians has not been Americans’ firm commitment to democracy but, rather, the gatekeepers—our political parties.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
