Thus began the great controversy over Communism in government, which roared on from 1946 to 1954. The liberals took the position that the degree of Communist infiltration of government was greatly exaggerated, and depicted McCarthy as the chief exaggerator. In public eyes, the controversy seemed more or less settled in 1954, when the Senate officially "censured" McCarthy -- not, to be sure, for his basic charges, but for his alleged assault on the dignity of a Senate panel. Still, the purpose was served.
I have long since given up hoping that the above reasonably accurate description of the so-called "McCarthy controversy" will overtake, at least in my time, the version of events I described at the outset: the "lie agreed upon." But I rejoice to report that Crown Forum (a trademark of Random House) has just published "Blacklisted by History -- the Untold Story of Senator Joe McCarthy and His Fight Against America's Enemies," by M. Stanton Evans. For anyone who wants, and has never been able to find, a true account of that epic battle, or who lived through it and simply wants to refresh those now distant recollections, this is the book for you.
Evans, a veteran journalist, doesn't shout. He displays, instead, a deadly meticulousness that is, at last, overwhelmingly convincing. After a generous look at the history preceding the controversy, he takes us through its various episodes step by step, refuting each canard that has passed, these many decades, for the truth.
He has performed a precious and indispensable service for the public record.