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106-790: National Committee to Secure Justice in the Rosenberg Case , also known as the Rosenberg Committee , was an organization formed by the National Guardian to defend Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and secure clemency for them. In August 1951, the journalist William A. Reuben began writing articles concerning the trial of the Rosenbergs. When readers began sending money in, he and his friends formed their committee "in my Manhattan apartment" in October 1951. They used

212-418: A Defensive Sector Clasp. He was also the recipient of two Armed Forces Reserve Medals . After his wartime service, Truman returned to Independence, where he married Bess Wallace on June 28, 1919. The couple had one child, Mary Margaret Truman . Shortly before the wedding, Truman and Jacobson opened a haberdashery together at 104 West 12th Street in downtown Kansas City . After brief initial success,

318-548: A Republican wave led by President Calvin Coolidge 's landslide election to a full term. Two years selling automobile club memberships convinced him that a public service career was safer for a family man approaching middle age, and he planned a run for presiding judge in 1926. Truman won the job in 1926 with the support of the Pendergast machine, and he was re-elected in 1930. As presiding judge, Truman helped coordinate

424-405: A better income than that earned by a farmer. In fact, Wallace later told Truman she did not intend to marry, but if she did, it would be to him. Still determined to improve his finances, during his years on the farm and immediately after World War I, Truman became active in several business ventures. These included a lead and zinc mine near Commerce, Oklahoma , a company that bought land and leased

530-717: A broad range of Communist and non-party radicals, including NAACP founder W. E. B. Du Bois , writer Ring Lardner, Jr. , economist Paul Sweezy , journalist Anna Louise Strong , activist Ella Winter , and others. The debut issue featured contributions by young novelist Norman Mailer , a supporter of the Progressive Party, as well as a piece written for the paper by head of the party's electoral ticket Henry Wallace. The paper became known for its original foreign coverage, with contributions not only from Strong but also from veteran radical journalists Agnes Smedley and Wilfred Burchett . The National Guardian launched with

636-492: A circulation of 5,000 and was initially received very positively, with its press run approaching the 100,000 mark by the end of the paper's first year. The editors envisioned continued growth and a lowering of the paper's cover price, with a view to establishment of an influential mass weekly with a circulation of 500,000 or even 1,000,000 copies. With over 1 million voters casting ballots for Henry Wallace in November 1948, such

742-662: A connection that had a profound influence on Truman's later life. In mid-1918, about one million soldiers of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) were in France. Truman was promoted to captain effective April 23, and in July became commander of the newly arrived Battery D, 129th Field Artillery, 35th Division . Battery D was known for its discipline problems, and Truman was initially unpopular because of his efforts to restore order. Despite attempts by

848-464: A daily basis, as well as his own liaison with Congress—a body he already knew very well. He was not well prepared to deal with the press, and never achieved the jovial familiarity of FDR. Filled with latent anger about all the setbacks in his career, he bitterly mistrusted journalists. He saw them as enemies lying in wait for his next careless miscue. Truman was a very hard worker, often to the point of exhaustion, which left him testy, easily annoyed, and on

954-696: A faltering political movement. Seemingly damaged by its close linkage to the personality of defeated Presidential aspirant Henry Wallace and subjected to severe criticism for its suspected connections to the Communist Party, the Progressive Party dissolved in the 1950s. Similarly, the New York-based American Labor Party (ALP), a local organization strongly supported by the National Guardian, lost considerable support when its most popular figure, Congressman Vito Marcantonio , lost his reelection in 1950. An even greater blow

1060-501: A goal seemed within realization, and the editors tied their hopes to the continued growth and success of the Progressive Party movement. Circulation peaked at 75,000 by 1950. However, the paper's initial financial needs were met by a one-year subsidy provided by Anita McCormick Blaine , an heir to the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company fortune, which soon expired, leaving the editors in charge of

1166-409: A great deal to the weekly newsmagazine style pioneered by such conservative journalistic mainstays as Time and Newsweek , with regular sections on "The Nation," "The World," "Sports," and so forth, with the coverage of "Business" by the glossy magazines transformed into coverage of the labor movement under the header "Labor's Week" in the new publication. This subject-sectional approach favored by

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1272-604: A large loving cup upon their return to the United States after the war. The war was a transformative experience in which Truman manifested his leadership qualities. He had entered the service in 1917 as a family farmer who had worked in clerical jobs that did not require the ability to motivate and direct others, but during the war, he gained leadership experience and a record of success that greatly enhanced and supported his post-war political career in Missouri. Truman

1378-507: A law license. A friend who was an attorney began working out the arrangements, and informed Truman that his application had to be notarized. By the time Truman received this information he had changed his mind, so he never followed up. After the discovery of Truman's application in 1996 the Missouri Supreme Court issued him a posthumous honorary law license. Due to the lack of funds for college, Truman considered attending

1484-461: A load of hay fall on you, but when they told me what happened yesterday, I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me." Truman asked all the members of Roosevelt's cabinet to remain in place, but he soon replaced almost all of them, especially with friends from his Senate days. Truman benefited from a honeymoon period from the success in defeating Nazi Germany in Europe and

1590-524: A massive prearranged assault barrage on September 26, 1918, at the opening of the Meuse–Argonne offensive . They advanced with difficulty over pitted terrain to follow the infantry, and set up an observation post west of Cheppy . On September 27, Truman saw through his binoculars an enemy artillery battery deploying across a river in a position which would allow them to fire upon the neighboring 28th Division . Truman's orders limited him to targets facing

1696-566: A more hostile probe by the House of Representatives. The main mission of the committee was to expose and fight waste and corruption in the gigantic government wartime contracts. Truman's initiative convinced Senate leaders of the necessity for the committee, which reflected his demands for honest and efficient administration and his distrust of big business and Wall Street. Truman managed the committee "with extraordinary skill" and usually achieved consensus, generating heavy media publicity that gave him

1802-466: A national reputation. Activities of the Truman Committee ranged from criticizing the " dollar-a-year men " hired by the government, many of whom proved ineffective, to investigating a shoddily built New Jersey housing project for war workers. In March 1944, Truman attempted to probe the expensive Manhattan Project but was persuaded by Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson to discontinue with

1908-412: A paper with a production cost of 12 cents an issue and a cover price of just 5 cents. The paper skipped issues and slashed pay of its office staff, barely surviving the financial crisis. The paper's cover price was hiked to 10 cents in an effort to balance costs and revenues. In addition to falling returns, the National Guardian found its growth hampered by its connection to what was seen by many to be

2014-464: A relationship between Truman and Roosevelt's aide Harry Hopkins and assured Truman's avid support for the New Deal. After serving as a county judge, Truman wanted to run for governor of Missouri or Congress , but Pendergast rejected these ideas. Truman then thought he might serve out his career in some well-paying county sinecure; circumstances changed when Pendergast reluctantly backed him as

2120-453: A similar pro-Soviet and anti-militarist political line. The paper differed with the Communist Party primarily on the question of independent political action, which the CPUSA had abandoned as futile during the 1950s but which the National Guardian continued to support. Additional separation took place after Khrushchev's Secret Speech of 1956 , including support of Yugoslav independence from

2226-808: A special investigating committee than did Missouri's Harry S. Truman." Roosevelt's advisors knew that Roosevelt might not live out a fourth term and that his vice president would very likely become the next president. Henry Wallace had served as Roosevelt's vice president for four years and was popular on the left, but he was viewed as too far to the left and too friendly to labor for some of Roosevelt's advisers. The President and several of his confidantes wanted to replace Wallace with someone more acceptable to Democratic Party leaders. Outgoing Democratic National Committee chairman Frank C. Walker , incoming chairman Hannegan, party treasurer Edwin W. Pauley , Bronx party boss Ed Flynn , Chicago Mayor Edward Joseph Kelly , and lobbyist George E. Allen all wanted to keep Wallace off

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2332-541: The 1900 Democratic National Convention in Kansas City ; his father had many friends active in the Democratic Party who helped young Harry to gain his first political position. After graduating from Independence High School in 1901, Truman took classes at Spalding's Commercial College, a Kansas City business school. He studied bookkeeping, shorthand, and typing but stopped after a year. Segregation

2438-545: The 1948 Presidential campaign . This took the form of a new political organization, the Progressive Party , which launched a national campaign with a ticket headed by former Vice President Henry A. Wallace . A broad political movement, backed by the CPUSA, emerged in support of Wallace's insurgent candidacy. James Aronson and Cedric Belfrage were committed activists in the Wallace for President campaign and in

2544-897: The American Jewish Committee , the Jewish War Veterans of the United States of America , the Jewish Labor Committee , and the American Jewish Congress . The committee later changed its name to the National Committee to Reopen the Rosenberg Case. It picketed the Manhattan federal courthouse each year near the execution date, ending in 1992 with Judge Irving Kaufman's death. Aaron Katz led the group from 1963 to 2005. National Guardian In February 1968

2650-687: The American South at the time. A brother, John Vivian, was born soon after Harry, followed by sister Mary Jane. While Truman's ancestry was primarily English , he also had some Scots-Irish , German , and French ancestry. John Truman was a farmer and livestock dealer. The family lived in Lamar until Harry was ten months old, when they moved to a farm near Harrisonville, Missouri . They next moved to Belton and in 1887 to his grandparents' 600-acre (240 ha) farm in Grandview . When Truman

2756-787: The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , which required him to sleep in workmen's camps along the rail lines. Truman and his brother Vivian later worked as clerks at the National Bank of Commerce in Kansas City. In 1906, Truman returned to the Grandview farm, where he lived until entering the army in 1917. During this period, he courted Bess Wallace . He proposed in 1911, but she turned him down. Believing Wallace turned him down because he did not have much money, Truman later said he intended to propose again, but he wanted to have

2862-603: The Democratic Party , he assumed the presidency after Franklin D. Roosevelt 's death, as he was vice president at the time. Truman implemented the Marshall Plan in the wake of World War II to rebuild the economy of Western Europe and established both the Truman Doctrine and NATO to contain the expansion of Soviet communism . He proposed numerous liberal domestic reforms, but few were enacted by

2968-725: The Freemasons , military reservist, and member of the American Legion. In the general election, Truman defeated incumbent Republican Roscoe C. Patterson by nearly 20 percentage points in a continuing wave of pro- New Deal Democrats elected during the Great Depression . Truman assumed office with a reputation as "the Senator from Pendergast". He referred patronage decisions to Pendergast but maintained that he voted with his own conscience. He later defended

3074-571: The Guardian and also published a theoretical journal Line of March , which advocated that American supporters of the New Left reconcile themselves with the Soviet Union. Jack Smith was succeeded as editor by William A. Ryan, who attempted to continue the Guardian ′s previous non-party New Left posture, with an editorial line that sometimes favored revolutionary movements not in favor with

3180-522: The Guardian to support the Green Party ideologically. The Guardian ceased publication in 1992 after years of financial difficulties and declining circulation. Correspondents included George Shaw Wheeler in Prague. Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States , serving from 1945 to 1953. A member of

3286-506: The Guardian ′s staff now proudly declared. A factional split developed among the editorial staff in 1970, leading to the creation of a short-lived rival publication, the Liberated Guardian . This controversy severely impacted the original publication, with The Guardian ′s circulation falling to just 14,000 in the aftermath. In the 1970s, the Guardian began to outspokenly embrace a Marxist–Leninist ideology aligned with

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3392-433: The National Guardian saw print on October 18, 1948 — just three weeks before the November presidential election. In concert with the Wallace for President campaign, the paper proclaimed itself a "progressive weekly" and declared its support for "a continuation and development of the progressive tradition set in our time by Franklin D. Roosevelt ", albeit with an unabashed socialist slant. The paper's form initially owed

3498-709: The New Deal coalition during the 1948 presidential election , despite a divided Democratic Party , and won a surprise victory against Republican Party nominee Thomas E. Dewey that secured his own presidential term. Truman presided over the onset of the Cold War in 1947. He oversaw the Berlin Airlift and Marshall Plan in 1948. With the involvement of the US in the Korean War of 1950–1953, South Korea repelled

3604-802: The Second Red Scare , the National Community Relations Advisory Council (NCRAC) alleged that the Rosenberg Committee was promoting public panic within the Jewish community due to the committee's belief that antisemitism was a factor in the Rosenberg trial. The advisory council considered the Rosenberg Committee a communist group. The NCRAC included the Union of American Hebrew Congregations ,

3710-677: The Soviet bloc and efforts at honest coverage of purges in Eastern Europe and the Hungarian Revolution . In the 1960s the paper became known for its independent and investigative journalism , including groundbreaking work by Joanne Grant on the Civil Rights Movement. As the decade of the 1960s progressed, the United States government became deeply embroiled in the bloody and divisive Vietnam War , while

3816-642: The Ten Year Plan , which transformed Jackson County and the Kansas City skyline with new public works projects, including an extensive series of roads and construction of a new Wight and Wight -designed County Court building . Also in 1926, he became president of the National Old Trails Road Association, and during his term he oversaw dedication of 12 Madonna of the Trail monuments to honor pioneer women. In 1933, Truman

3922-487: The Third-worldist and Maoist New Communist Movement , later orienting itself toward a political tendency known as The Trend . The paper editorially called for a new Marxist–Leninist party in the United States. The paper attempted to carve an independent role for itself, never formally aligning with any particular group and remaining critical of the plethora of small New Left party organizations which emerged after

4028-777: The Truman Committee , which was aimed at reducing waste and inefficiency in wartime contracts. Truman was elected vice president in the 1944 presidential election and became president upon Roosevelt's death in April 1945. Only then was he told about the ongoing Manhattan Project and the atomic bomb . Truman authorized the first and only use of nuclear weapons in war against the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki . Truman's administration engaged in an internationalist foreign policy by working closely with Britain . Truman staunchly denounced isolationism . He energized

4134-485: The U.S. Armed Forces . Investigations revealed corruption in parts of the Truman administration, and this became a major campaign issue in the 1952 presidential election , although they did not implicate Truman himself. He was eligible for reelection in 1952 but, with poor polling, he chose not to run. Truman went into a retirement marked by the founding of his presidential library and the publication of his memoirs. It

4240-657: The United States Military Academy at West Point, New York , which had no tuition, but he was refused an appointment because of poor eyesight. He enlisted in the Missouri National Guard in 1905 and served until 1911 in the Kansas City-based Battery B, 2nd Missouri Field Artillery Regiment, in which he attained the rank of corporal . At his induction, his eyesight without glasses was unacceptable 20/50 in

4346-645: The conservative coalition that dominated Congress . Truman was raised in Independence, Missouri , and during World War I fought in France as a captain in the Field Artillery. Returning home, he opened a haberdashery in Kansas City, Missouri , and was elected as a judge of Jackson County in 1922. Truman was elected to the United States Senate from Missouri in 1934. Between 1940 and 1944, he gained national prominence as chairman of

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4452-536: The 1950s and 1960s. Chief among these was the publication's opposition to the Cold War and militarism, with the paper serving as one of the few public voices that stood in opposition to the Korean War. The paper also supported emerging anti-colonial movements in Africa and Asia, with reporters dispatched abroad to provide first-hand coverage of these revolutionary movements. The paper was also deeply involved in

4558-588: The 20,000 to 30,000 range throughout this interval. In the early 1980s, the paper established Guardian Clubs for readers and discussed forming a new political party. After a political dispute, Guardian executive editor Irwin Silber left the paper to build a new political formation around the Guardian Clubs. This new "party building" formation published the Frontline newspaper as a direct competitor to

4664-456: The 35th Division, but he ignored this and patiently waited until the Germans had walked their horses well away from their guns, ensuring they could not relocate out of range of Truman's battery. He then ordered his men to open fire, and their attack destroyed the enemy battery. His actions were credited with saving the lives of 28th Division soldiers who otherwise would have come under fire from

4770-879: The Civil Rights Movement intensified and radicalized with the emergence of Black nationalism and the Black Panther Party . A new radical youth movement emerged, typified by such groups as Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Young Socialist Alliance , and the National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam . A reinvigorated feminist movement also exploded on

4876-601: The Germans. Truman was given a dressing down by his regimental commander, Colonel Karl D. Klemm, who threatened to convene a court-martial, but Klemm never followed through, and Truman was not punished. In other action during the Meuse–Argonne offensive, Truman's battery provided support for George S. Patton 's tank brigade, and fired some of the last shots of the war on November 11, 1918. Battery D did not lose any men while under Truman's command in France. To show their appreciation for his leadership, his men presented him with

4982-551: The Kansas City Law School (now the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law ) but dropped out after losing reelection as county judge. He was informed by attorneys in the Kansas City area that his education and experience were probably sufficient to receive a license to practice law but did not pursue it because he won election as presiding judge. While serving as president in 1947, Truman applied for

5088-823: The London Daily Express who had since the 1930s lived in Hollywood , California where he worked as a screenwriter . United by radical political beliefs, the two journalists vaguely discussed establishing a new radical newspaper in the United States following their demobilization. This plan initially came to naught, however, as the two returned to the United States after their German mission and resumed their independent lives. Many American liberal and radical intellectuals were deeply disaffected with President Harry S. Truman and his hardline anti-Soviet foreign policy and perceived lack of commitment to New Deal social programs and sought an electoral alternative in

5194-556: The Roosevelt administration) were responsible for the boss's downfall. St. Louis party leader Robert E. Hannegan 's support of Truman proved crucial; he later brokered the deal that put Truman on the national ticket. In the end, Stark and Milligan split the anti-Pendergast vote in the Senate Democratic primary and Truman won by a total of 8,000 votes. In the November election, Truman defeated Republican Manvel H. Davis by 51–49 percent. As senator, Truman opposed both Nazi Germany and Communist Russia. Two days after Hitler invaded

5300-430: The Rosenberg case was particularly passionate, with the paper helping to coordinate the legal defense efforts on behalf of the jailed New Yorkers at a time when the Communist Party and its Daily Worker attempted to distance itself from the unpopular case. The paper was so closely tied to the Rosenberg defense that after the pair were executed on the electric chair for espionage , National Guardian editor James Aronson

5406-442: The Senate, as usual, had just adjourned the session for the day and was preparing to have a drink in House Speaker Sam Rayburn 's office when he received an urgent message to go immediately to the White House, where Eleanor Roosevelt told him that her husband had died after a massive cerebral hemorrhage . Truman asked her if there was anything he could do for her; she replied, "Is there anything we can do for you ? For you are

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5512-426: The Soviet Union in June 1941, Truman said: If we see that Germany is winning we ought to help Russia, and if Russia is winning we ought to help Germany, and that way let them kill as many as possible although I don't want to see Hitler victorious under any circumstances. This quote without its last part later became a staple in Soviet and later Russian propaganda as "evidence" of an American conspiracy to destroy

5618-522: The Soviet Union, such as in Western Sahara and in Eritrea , where the Soviet Union supported the position of the pro-Soviet Ethiopian government . Under Ryan, the Guardian changed its tax status to that of a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization and attempted to solicit foundation support to make up for the support lost to the Frontline organization. With the rise of the non-Marxist Green Party in Germany and various other countries, some Guardian writers and supporters unsuccessfully attempted to re-fashion

5724-527: The U.S. Senate, Truman was transferred to the General Assignments Group, a holding unit for less active officers, although he had not been consulted in advance. Truman protested his reassignment, which led to his resumption of regimental command. He remained an active reservist until the early 1940s. Truman volunteered for active military service during World War II , but was not accepted, partly because of age, and partly because President Franklin D. Roosevelt desired that senators and congressmen who belonged to

5830-401: The White House. During the U.S. Senate election in 1940 , U.S. Attorney Maurice Milligan (former opponent Jacob Milligan's brother) and former governor Lloyd Stark both challenged Truman in the Democratic primary. Truman was politically weakened by Pendergast's imprisonment for income tax evasion the previous year; the senator had remained loyal, having claimed that Republican judges (not

5936-426: The camp canteen with Edward Jacobson , a clothing store clerk he knew from Kansas City. Unlike most canteens funded by unit members, which usually lost money, the canteen operated by Truman and Jacobson turned a profit, returning each soldier's initial $ 2 investment and $ 10,000 in dividends in six months. At Fort Sill, Truman met Lieutenant James M. Pendergast, nephew of Tom Pendergast , a Kansas City political boss,

6042-421: The country. In late 1940, Truman traveled to various military bases. The waste and profiteering he saw led him to use his chairmanship of the Committee on Military Affairs Subcommittee on War Mobilization to start investigations into abuses while the nation prepared for war. A new special committee was set up under Truman to conduct a formal investigation; the White House supported this plan rather than weather

6148-422: The decade of the 1930s, the Communist Party USA (CPUSA) cast a long shadow as the largest Marxist political organization in the United States of America. In addition to a vast array of monthly, weekly, and daily publications in languages other than English , the Communist Party published an English-language daily newspaper in New York City, the Daily Worker . As an official organ of the CPUSA, this publication

6254-402: The defense of controversial American political figures during the McCarthy era, including Soviet spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg and Alger Hiss , union leader and deportation target Harry Bridges , the blacklisted writers remembered as the Hollywood Ten , and jailed Communist Party leaders prosecuted under the Smith Act . The National Guardian ' s coverage of the twists and turns of

6360-399: The demise of SDS in 1970. The traditional news-first approach of the original National Guardian was gradually attenuated in the paper's outspokenly revolutionary 1970s incarnation, with editorial and commentary material supplanting straight news reporting. These party-building efforts ultimately failed, owing in some measure to the exhaustion of the Cultural Revolution in China as well as

6466-423: The educational system, to expand voting rights, to end discrimination in housing and employment, and to resist terrorist acts such as the murder of Emmett Till . As part of these efforts the paper forged close bonds with leading black intellectuals such as W. E. B. Du Bois and singer Paul Robeson . Throughout it all the National Guardian maintained friendly ties with the Communist Party USA, generally advancing

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6572-400: The general population. Truman was born in Lamar, Missouri , on May 8, 1884, the oldest child of John Anderson Truman and Martha Ellen Young Truman . He was named for his maternal uncle, Harrison "Harry" Young. His middle initial, "S", is not an abbreviation of one particular name. Rather, it honors both his grandfathers, Anderson Shipp Truman and Solomon Young, a somewhat common practice in

6678-412: The glossy news weeklies was rapidly abandoned, with only a "Better Living" section surviving into the 1950s. The paper initially maintained no editorial page but editorialized freely with the published content, selecting and rewriting news stories from wire services and mainstream daily newspapers with a new radical focus. Regular contributors to the National Guardian in its formative period included

6784-514: The help of the Kansas City Democratic machine led by Tom Pendergast , Truman was elected in 1922 as County Court judge of Jackson County 's eastern district—Jackson County's three-judge court included judges from the western district (Kansas City), the eastern district (the county outside Kansas City), and a presiding judge elected countywide. This was an administrative rather than a judicial court, similar to county commissions in many other jurisdictions. Truman lost his 1924 reelection campaign in

6890-405: The invasion by North Korea . Domestically, the postwar economic challenges such as strikes and inflation created a mixed reaction over the effectiveness of his administration. In 1948, he proposed Congress pass comprehensive civil rights legislation. Congress refused, so Truman issued Executive Order 9980 and Executive Order 9981 , which prohibited discrimination in federal agencies and desegregated

6996-423: The investigation. The committee reportedly saved as much as $ 15 billion (equivalent to $ 260 billion in 2023), and its activities put Truman on the cover of Time magazine. According to the Senate's historical minutes, in leading the committee, "Truman erased his earlier public image as an errand-runner for Kansas City politicos", and "no senator ever gained greater political benefits from chairing

7102-433: The lack of popular support for extreme political solutions and revolutionary phrasemaking in the United States. By the decade of the 1980s the paper had begun to moderate its tone, lending critical support to revolutionary movements of whatever stripe, without regard to the Sino-Soviet split, and opening its pages to a range of diverse views by a broad spectrum of political activists. Circulation recovered somewhat, floating in

7208-427: The machine's choice in the 1934 Democratic primary election for the U.S. Senate from Missouri , after Pendergast's first four choices had declined to run. In the primary, Truman defeated Congressmen John J. Cochran and Jacob L. Milligan with the solid support of Jackson County , which was crucial to his candidacy. Also critical were the contacts he had made statewide in his capacity as a county official, member of

7314-601: The men to intimidate him into quitting, Truman succeeded by making his corporals and sergeants accountable for discipline. He promised to back them up if they performed capably and reduce them to private if they did not. In an event memorialized in battery lore as "The Battle of Who Run", his soldiers began to flee during a sudden night attack by the Germans in the Vosges Mountains ; Truman succeeded at ordering his men to stay and fight, using profanity from his railroad days. The men were so surprised to hear Truman use such language that they immediately obeyed. Truman's unit joined in

7420-414: The military reserves support the war effort by remaining in Congress, or by ending their active duty service and resuming their congressional seats. He was an inactive reservist from the early 1940s until retiring as a colonel in the then redesignated U.S. Army Reserve on January 20, 1953. Truman was awarded a World War I Victory Medal with two battle clasps (for St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne ) and

7526-426: The monies to publish the trial record with Reuben's Guardian articles in pamphlet form. After readers began sending money, Reuben and his friends formed a committee in Reuben's Manhattan apartment in October 1951. They used the monies to publish the trial record with Reuben's National Guardian articles in pamphlet form. After the organization was assembled, Reuben served as the provisional chairman. In 1953, during

7632-435: The new publication were obtained. Gitt quickly dropped out of the effort, however, pleading lack of time to commit to the project, leaving Aronson, Belfrage, and McManus to finalize plans. In the publication that would emerge the three apportioned definite tasks among themselves, with Aronson taking the role of Executive Editor, Belfrage becoming Editor, and McManus assuming the position of Managing Editor. The first issue of

7738-551: The newspaper's editorial staff was reorganized. The paper shortened its name to The Guardian and gradually turned towards a pro-Chinese orientation and support of the Maoist New Communist Movement in the United States. During the early 1980s the publication's ideological line shifted once again, this time towards an independent non-communist radicalism. The Guardian was terminated in 1992 owing to declining circulation and financial difficulties. From

7844-422: The oil drilling rights to prospectors, and speculation in Kansas City real estate. Truman occasionally derived some income from these enterprises, but none proved successful in the long term. Truman is the only president since William McKinley (elected in 1896) who did not earn a college degree. In addition to having briefly attended business college, from 1923 to 1925 he took night courses toward an LL.B. at

7950-556: The one in trouble now!" He was sworn in as president at 7:09 p.m. in the West Wing of the White House, by Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone . At the White House, Truman replaced Roosevelt holdovers with old confidants. The White House was badly understaffed with no more than a dozen aides; they could barely keep up with the heavy workflow of a greatly expanded executive department. Truman acted as his own chief of staff on

8056-687: The paper into a more radical and activist publication. The break came in February 1968 when Aronson sold his National Guardian stock to the newspaper's staff and the paper was reorganized under new editorial leadership and a new name — The Guardian. Continuity with the earlier incarnation of the paper was limited, with radical foreign correspondents Anna Louise Strong in China and Wilfred Burchett in Southeast Asia continuing in their previous roles. Jack A. Smith began his 13-year stint as editor of

8162-471: The patronage decisions by saying that "by offering a little to the machine, [he] saved a lot". In his first term, Truman spoke out against corporate greed and the dangers of Wall Street speculators and other moneyed special interests attaining too much influence in national affairs. Though he served on the high-profile Appropriations and Interstate Commerce Committees, he was largely ignored by President Roosevelt and had trouble getting calls returned from

8268-403: The president and vice president met alone together only twice during their time in office. In one of his first acts as vice president, Truman created some controversy when he attended the disgraced Pendergast's funeral. He brushed aside the criticism, saying simply, "He was always my friend and I have always been his." He had rarely discussed world affairs or domestic politics with Roosevelt; he

8374-638: The revamped paper as part of the change, stepping down only in 1981. An intensified orientation towards revolutionary events in the People's Republic of China and the armed struggle against colonialism in the Third World came into vogue. With respect to domestic American coverage, the new Guardian shaped its activity around the slogan "The duty of a radical newspaper is to build a radical movement" attempting in particular to forge closer ties with SDS and SNCC. "We are movement people acting as journalists,"

8480-423: The right eye and 20/400 in the left (past the standard for legal blindness). The second time he took the test, he passed by secretly memorizing the eye chart. He was described as 5 feet 10 inches tall, gray eyed , dark haired and of light complexion. When the United States entered World War I on April 6, 1917 , Truman rejoined Battery B, successfully recruiting new soldiers for the expanding unit, for which he

8586-410: The run-up to the Progressive Party nominating convention they renewed their acquaintance and revived plans for an independent radical newspaper in the United States. The duo were joined in this effort by John T. McManus , a former staff member of the liberal newspaper PM and former head of the left wing Newspaper Guild in the state of New York, and Josiah Gitt , publisher of a liberal newspaper in

8692-420: The scene. This broad New Left tended to reject the cautious party politics approach of their Old Left forebears, favoring the direct action tactics of street protest. The National Guardian evolved with these changes, but nevertheless developed its own internal strife between James Aronson and the publication's Old Left tradition with a new generation of explicitly revolutionary staffers, who sought to turn

8798-416: The store went bankrupt during the recession of 1921 . Truman did not pay off the last of the debts from that venture until 1935, when he did so with the aid of banker William T. Kemper , who worked behind the scenes to enable Truman's brother Vivian to buy Truman's $ 5,600 promissory note during the asset sale of a bank that had failed in the Great Depression . The note had risen and fallen in value as it

8904-478: The task of purging those deemed as Nazi collaborators from the German newspaper industry and replacing them with a new crop of publishers, editors, and journalists with verifiable anti-fascist bona fides. Among these journalists tapped to help "denazify" the country through establishment of a democratic press were James Aronson , a resident of New York City, and Englishman Cedric Belfrage , a former theatre critic for

9010-486: The ticket. Roosevelt told party leaders that he would accept either Truman or Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas . State and city party leaders strongly preferred Truman, and Roosevelt agreed. Truman had repeatedly said that he was not in the race and that he did not want the vice presidency, and he remained reluctant. One reason was that his wife and sister Mary Jane were both on his Senate staff payroll, and he feared negative publicity. Truman did not campaign for

9116-517: The town of York, Pennsylvania . In July 1948 these four — with Gitt listed as publisher and Aronson, Belfrage, and McManus as editors — launched a sample publication called The National Gazette and circulated it at the Progressive Party Nominating Convention. Response to the proposed new weekly publication among the Progressive Party conventioneers was positive and several hundred pledges for subscriptions to

9222-501: The treasury, Fred Vinson and John Snyder . His closest friend in the White House was his military aide Harry H. Vaughan , who knew little of military or foreign affairs and was criticized for trading access to the White House for expensive gifts. Truman loved to spend as much time as possible playing poker, telling stories and sipping bourbon. Alonzo Hamby notes that: ... to many in the general public, gambling and bourbon swilling, however low-key, were not quite presidential. Neither

9328-529: The verge of appearing unpresidential or petty. In terms of major issues, he discussed them in depth with top advisors. He mastered the details of the federal budget as well as anyone. Truman was a poor speaker reading a text. However, his visible anger made him an effective stump speaker , denouncing his enemies as his supporters hollered back at him "Give Em Hell, Harry!" Truman surrounded himself with friends and appointed several to high positions that seemed beyond their competence, including his two secretaries of

9434-505: The vice-presidential spot, though he welcomed the attention as evidence that he had become more than the "Senator from Pendergast". Truman's nomination was dubbed the "Second Missouri Compromise " and was well received. The Roosevelt–Truman ticket achieved a 432–99  electoral-vote victory in the election, defeating the Republican ticket of Governor Thomas E. Dewey of New York and running mate Governor John Bricker of Ohio. Truman

9540-425: The war were Catholics, and one of his close friends was the 129th Field Artillery's chaplain, Monsignor L. Curtis Tiernan. The two remained friends until Tiernan's death in 1960. Developing leadership and interpersonal skills that later made him a successful politician helped Truman get along with his Catholic soldiers, as he did with soldiers of other Christian denominations and the unit's Jewish members. Truman

9646-604: Was sworn in as vice president on January 20, 1945. After the inauguration, Truman called his mother, who instructed him, "Now you behave yourself." Truman's brief vice-presidency was relatively uneventful. Truman mostly presided over the Senate and attended parties and receptions. He kept the same offices from his Senate years, mostly only using the Vice President's official office in the Capitol to greet visitors. Truman

9752-420: Was bought and sold, interest accumulated and Truman made payments, so by the time the last bank to hold it failed, it was worth nearly $ 9,000. Thanks to Kemper's efforts, Vivian Truman was able to buy it for $ 1,000. Jacobson and Truman remained close friends even after their store failed, and Jacobson's advice to Truman on Zionism later played a role in the U.S. Government's decision to recognize Israel. With

9858-461: Was brought up in the Presbyterian and Baptist churches, but avoided revivals and sometimes ridiculed revivalist preachers. He rarely spoke about religion, which to him, primarily meant ethical behavior along traditional Protestant lines. Truman once wrote in a letter to his future wife, Bess: "You know that I know nothing about Lent and such things..." Most of the soldiers he commanded in

9964-527: Was constrained by tight central direction and rather mechanical adherence to the party's political line — factors which somewhat limited the paper's appeal to radical American intellectuals. In 1945 an American plane carried a number of newspaper men to Germany, whose Nazi regime had recently been defeated in World War II . These were part of a "Psychological Warfare Division" consisting of American, British, and Canadian newspaper editors and writers given

10070-667: Was elected as their first lieutenant . Before deployment to France, Truman was sent for training to Camp Doniphan , Fort Sill , near Lawton, Oklahoma , when his regiment was federalized as the 129th Field Artillery . The regimental commander during its training was Robert M. Danford , who later served as the Army's Chief of Field Artillery. Truman recalled that he learned more practical, useful information from Danford in six weeks than from six months of formal Army instruction, and when Truman served as an artillery instructor, he consciously patterned his approach on Danford's. Truman also ran

10176-489: Was honorably discharged from the Army as a captain on May 6, 1919. In 1920, he was appointed a major in the Officers Reserve Corps . He became a lieutenant colonel in 1925 and a colonel in 1932. In the 1920s and 1930s he commanded 1st Battalion, 379th Field Artillery Regiment, 102nd Infantry Division . After promotion to colonel, Truman advanced to command of the regiment. After his election to

10282-574: Was long thought that his retirement years were financially difficult for Truman, resulting in Congress establishing a pension for former presidents, but evidence eventually emerged that he amassed considerable wealth, some of it while still president. When he left office, Truman's administration was heavily criticized. Despite this controversy, scholars rank Truman in the first quartile of American presidents. In addition, critical reassessment of his presidency has improved his reputation among historians and

10388-587: Was named Missouri's director for the Federal Re-Employment program (part of the Civil Works Administration ) at the request of Postmaster General James Farley . This was payback to Pendergast for delivering the Kansas City vote to Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1932 presidential election . The appointment confirmed Pendergast's control over federal patronage jobs in Missouri and marked the zenith of his power. It also created

10494-490: Was named a trustee of the fund established on behalf of the couple's orphaned children. William A. Reuben , the National Guardian ' s main reporter on the Rosenberg case, later published an expanded version of his journalism in book form as The Atom Spy Hoax (1954). A third area of emphasis for the National Guardian was the ongoing Civil Rights Movement in America, including ongoing coverage of efforts to integrate

10600-409: Was practiced and largely accepted where Truman grew up. While he would later come to support civil rights, early letters of the young Truman reflected his upbringing and prejudices against African and Asian Americans . Truman was employed briefly in the mailroom of The Kansas City Star before making use of his business college experience to obtain a job as a timekeeper for construction crews on

10706-618: Was six, his parents moved to Independence, Missouri , so he could attend the Presbyterian Church Sunday School. He did not attend a conventional school until he was eight years old. While living in Independence, he served as a Shabbos goy for Jewish neighbors, doing tasks for them on Shabbat that their religion prevented them from doing on that day. Truman was interested in music, reading, history, and math, all encouraged by his mother, with whom he

10812-519: Was struck in 1950 with the advent of the Korean War — which the National Guardian vehemently opposed. Attacked for Communist sympathies or worse, circulation of the newspaper plummeted, falling to 50,000 by 1951. A slow attrition of readership continued throughout the years of the "Second Red Scare" and McCarthyism , with circulation dipping to 45,000 in 1953; to 35,000 in 1957; and to just 29,000 in 1961. The National Guardian revisited several themes with regularity in its news coverage throughout

10918-458: Was the first vice president to have a Secret Service agent assigned to him. Truman envisioned the office as a liaison between the Senate and the president. On April 10, 1945, Truman cast his only tie-breaking vote as president of the Senate, against a Robert A. Taft amendment that would have blocked the postwar delivery of Lend-Lease Act items contracted for during the war. Roosevelt rarely contacted him, even to inform him of major decisions;

11024-427: Was the intemperant "give 'em hell" campaign style nor the occasional profane phrase uttered in public. Poker exemplified a larger problem: the tension between his attempts at an image of leadership necessarily a cut above the ordinary and an informality that at times appeared to verge on crudeness. On his first full day, Truman told reporters: "Boys, if you ever pray, pray for me now. I don't know if you fellas ever had

11130-534: Was uninformed about major initiatives relating to the war and the top-secret Manhattan Project , which was about to test the world's first atomic bomb. In an event that generated negative publicity for Truman, he was photographed with actress Lauren Bacall sitting atop the piano at the National Press Club as he played for soldiers. Truman had been vice president for 82 days when President Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945. Truman, presiding over

11236-407: Was very close. As president, he solicited political as well as personal advice from her. Truman learned to play the piano at age seven and took lessons from Mrs. E.C. White, a well-respected teacher in Kansas City . He got up at five o'clock every morning to practice the piano, which he studied more than twice a week until he was fifteen, becoming quite a skilled player. Truman worked as a page at

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