US as World Power, the Progressive Era, World War I, the Roaring 20’s and the Great Depression and New Deal all contributed to the different roles the government played affecting the Cold War and dealing with communism.
The Spanish-American war is easily comparable to the events of the Cold War. The United States went to war with Spain because the United States recognized Cuba making an effort to gain their independence from Spain, and decided to help Cuba. This was because if Spain continued to have control over Cuba it would be a major threat. During the Cold War the United States saw the Soviet Union as a threat as well. The governments in both situations recognized the threats and concluded that the most logical thing to do was go to war.
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The Progressive Era’s ideology was much like the Cold War's. During the Progressive Era, it was a time of government intervening and solving all of the problems. It was also a time of the government trying to prove how great the democratic system was. The Cold War was similar in the sense of trying to justify that a democratic government is the best form and the correct ways to run a country. It was also similar due to the fact that the United States was trying to demonstrate the greatness of democracy.
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World War I played a role in creating the initial tension between the Soviet Union and the United States. The United States government was initially hostile to the Soviet Union leaders for taking Russia out of World War I. This is when the US first became opposed to a state ideologically based on communism. The government had to be involved at this point trying to have the Soviet Union refrain from communism.
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The early 1920’s brought a time of caring and help between the United States and Soviet Union. In the early 1920’s, the United States worked on a famine relief program in the Soviet Union. American businessmen established commercial ties in the Soviet Union during the 1920’s. However, these two countries didn’t establish diplomatic relations until 1933. The disagreement between how a country should be governed was not until later. In the '20’s the relation between the Soviet Union and the United States had a better relationship that eventually worsened throughout the proceeding years.
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During the Great Depression, given the circumstances, people began to ponder the thought of the benefits of communism. Because of the poor and unbearable conditions that people were living in during the Great Depression, people questioned if the way the American government being run was the right way. The government had to reassure people that a communistic government was the right way to run a country and the America should remain a democratic nation.
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