Have You No Sense of Decency? Theme of Betrayal

Cassius, Judas, Benedict Arnold, Nicholas Brody, Lando Calrissian—history's filled with traitors. Nobody's more despised than a turncoat.

Try putting a Yankees bumper sticker on your car in Southie and you'll know what we're talking about.

At the core of McCarthy's outrage is the idea that thousands upon thousands of Americans had betrayed the United States by joining the Red team. Starting in 1947, President Truman, worried about Communist infiltration, required all government employees to sign a loyalty oath pledging their allegiance to the U.S. and denying membership in any organization seeking to undermine the nation. Loyalty oaths became all the rage in the 1950s; anyone who refused to sign, even if they saw it as a violation of their civil liberties, was immediately suspect.

"Traitor" was one of the Senator's favorite terms to describe his political opponents. Even people just trying to make sure that their civil liberties weren't being trampled by loyalty oaths and committee investigations could be viewed as betraying their country. Either you were a patriot or a traitor: there was no middle ground.

And don't even get us started on Johnny Damon…

1. Isn't the right to believe whatever you like what makes the U.S. exceptional? Doesn't that include Communist ideas?
2. Are there political viewpoints so toxic they override any right Americans might have to express them? Does this include Communism?
3. If Communism really did pose this existential threat, then were McCarthy's tactics ultimately excusable?

McCarthy needed a refresher course on the Bill of Rights. He was betraying the basic freedoms of Americans.

McCarthy was used to calling people traitors and having it stick. That's why Welch's response was so effective.