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The Rosenbergs: A Case Of Nuclear Secrecy And National Hysteria

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The Rosenbergs: A Case of Nuclear Secrecy and National Hysteria

Introduction
In the spring of 1951, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg found themselves in the unfortunate situation of being the first American citizens to be convicted of espionage during peacetime. Their case has become an emblem of the American nuclear age, and especially of the American attitude toward nuclear secrecy. Today, the Rosenberg case has become a highly disputed event that provides a debate between the importance of national security and secrecy and the impacts of national hysteria. At the time of the case, the ongoing Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union saw the nation place national security and nuclear development as its highest priorities, and the …show more content…

The administration needed a “win” against Communism to show that Truman was remaining aggressive in the Cold and Korean War rhetoric. At this point in time, the Rosenberg trial was just underway, and Truman saw his opportunity to take his strike against Communism and win approval from the American people. The administration believed that a chain of events occurred leading to the American casualties and conflict in Korea :
The Rosenbergs gave the secrets of the American nuclear project and the atomic bomb to the Soviets.
With the information from the Rosenbergs, the Soviets were able to obtain their own atomic weapon many years earlier and gain the confidence to become more aggressive in Korea.
The North Korean and Chinese governments accepted the authority of the Soviets after knowledge of the Soviet atomic capabilities and invaded South Korea after instruction from …show more content…

The country elected former US Army General Dwight D. Eisenhower who promised to take a stand against the Soviets and who criticized Truman’s efforts against the spread of Communism in Korea. Eisenhower would inherit the Rosenberg case in 1952, specifically the appeals and clemency processes requested by the couple. This election would prove to be a terrible outcome for the Rosenbergs, as Eisehower would take up the Truman ideal of the Rosenberg’s execution as a positive look for his administration’s stand against Communism. With the failure of appeals from the Rosenbergs, Eisenhower publicly denied their clemency request from the Rosenbergs on February 11, 1953, and issued a statement that was similar to that of Judge

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