The New McCarthy: How Trump’s Tactics Echo a Dark Chapter in American History
By Apirate Monk
In the spring of 1954, a single moment of moral clarity pierced through the fog of fear that had gripped America for years. Senator Joseph McCarthy, the Wisconsin Republican whose name became synonymous with baseless accusations and political terror, had been on a rampage, alleging Communist infiltration in every corner of American life—government, Hollywood, academia. His targets were often innocent, their lives ruined by the mere whisper of "traitor." The media amplified his claims, politicians cowered, and even President Dwight Eisenhower hesitated to confront him directly, wary of the political fallout. But on June 9, during the nationally televised Army-McCarthy hearings, a Boston lawyer named Joseph Welch delivered a rebuke that would echo through history: "Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?" With those words, McCarthy’s reign of terror began to unravel. The spell was broken. His allies abandoned him, the media stopped parroting his lies, and within three years, he was dead—a footnote in history, but a cautionary tale for the ages.
Fast forward to 2025, and America finds itself in the grip of another demagogue whose tactics bear an eerie resemblance to McCarthy’s. Donald Trump, the former president whose political comeback has defied all expectations, is once again dominating the national stage. His methods—fearmongering, baseless accusations, and the relentless targeting of perceived enemies—mirror McCarthy’s playbook with chilling precision. And just as in the 1950s, the institutions meant to check such overreach have been slow to respond, leaving many to wonder: Where is our Joseph Welch moment?
The Parallels: Fear as a Weapon
McCarthy’s power stemmed from the Red Scare, a paranoia about Communist infiltration that gripped the nation in the early Cold War years. Between 1950 and 1954, he launched highly publicized probes into alleged Communist sympathizers, claiming to have lists—ever-changing, never substantiated—of infiltrators in the State Department, the military, even the White House. His accusations were often baseless, but the fear they inspired was real. People were afraid to speak out, lest they be labeled Communists themselves. Careers were destroyed, First Amendment rights were chilled, and an atmosphere of dread prevailed.
Trump, too, has weaponized fear, but his boogeyman is not Communism—it’s a nebulous coalition of "elites," "deep state" operatives, and anyone who dares to oppose him. Since his return to the political spotlight after the 2020 election, Trump has relentlessly attacked his perceived enemies, from journalists to judges to members of his own party. His rhetoric is laced with McCarthyite echoes: unfounded claims of "election fraud" in 2020, accusations of "treason" against political opponents, and, more recently, assertions that his critics are part of a shadowy cabal bent on destroying America. At a rally in Ohio in March 2025, Trump declared, without evidence, that "the radical left is working with foreign agents to undermine our country—just like they did in 2020." The crowd roared, but the claim went largely unchallenged by mainstream media, many of whom have grown desensitized to his hyperbole.
The parallels don’t end there. Just as McCarthy used public hearings to amplify his accusations, Trump has turned his rallies and social media platforms—particularly X—into modern-day soapboxes for his grievances. A recent post from ColoradoIndependent (
@ColoradoIndepe1
) on May 30, 2025, captured the frustration of many: "Hold up. You’re telling me that according to the Constitution and Federal law only Congress can set tariffs? How come no one told the fucking entire GOP?" The post references Trump’s frequent use of executive power to impose tariffs, such as his 2019 threat of a 25% tariff on Mexico to pressure immigration enforcement—a move legal scholars have long argued exceeds constitutional limits. Yet, as the post notes, neither the GOP nor the media called it out at the time. The silence, much like in McCarthy’s era, has allowed Trump to consolidate power unchecked.The Silence of the Enablers
In the 1950s, McCarthy’s rise was enabled by the complicity of those who should have known better. The media, for the most part, repeated his claims without scrutiny, giving him a megaphone to spread fear. Politicians, even those who privately despised him, stayed silent out of self-preservation. President Eisenhower, a war hero who could have taken a stand, avoided direct confrontation until the very end, reportedly telling an aide, "I will not get in the gutter with that guy." It was a calculated decision, but it prolonged McCarthy’s reign.
Today, Trump’s enablers are similarly complicit. The Republican Party, once a bastion of constitutional conservatism, has largely bent the knee. Figures like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who in 2016 called Trump "a fraud," now offer tepid defenses of his actions, wary of alienating his base. The media, too, has struggled to adapt. Outlets like The Washington Post and The New York Times, called out in the ColoradoIndependent post, have been criticized for normalizing Trump’s behavior through false equivalence or "both-sides" reporting. A 2024 study by the Columbia Journalism Review found that mainstream media coverage of Trump’s tariff policies often failed to highlight their constitutional implications, focusing instead on the political horse race. "They just fucking let him do it," ColoradoIndependent wrote. "Not a peep."
The chilling effect is palpable. Just as McCarthy’s accusations silenced dissent in the 1950s, Trump’s attacks have created a climate of fear. Journalists who criticize him face death threats from his supporters; judges who rule against him are branded "corrupt." In December 2023, the Colorado Supreme Court disqualified Trump from the state’s 2024 ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, citing his role in the January 6 insurrection. Trump’s response was swift and McCarthyite: he called the justices "radical leftists" and "traitors," baselessly claiming they were part of a "deep state" plot. The justices received a flood of threats, and one reportedly went into hiding. The message was clear: cross Trump at your peril.
The Economic Fallout: Tariffs and Power Grabs
Trump’s tariff policies, a cornerstone of his economic agenda, offer a stark example of his McCarthy-like overreach. The Constitution is unambiguous: Article I, Section 8 grants Congress the exclusive power "to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises." Yet Trump has repeatedly bypassed Congress, using executive authority to impose tariffs on countries like China, Canada, and Mexico. In 2018, he slapped a 25% tariff on steel imports, citing "national security"—a justification legal scholars called dubious. In 2019, he threatened tariffs on Mexico to force immigration concessions, a move that had little to do with trade and everything to do with flexing power.
The economic consequences have been severe, particularly in states like Colorado. A 2024 report from the Colorado Fiscal Institute found that Trump’s tariffs contributed to a structural deficit in the state, raising costs for businesses and consumers alike. Nationally, a 2025 letter from 23 Nobel Prize-winning economists warned that Trump’s proposed "reciprocal tariffs" would increase prices, deepen inequality, and balloon the federal deficit. The Tax Foundation called his idea of replacing income taxes with tariff revenue "mathematically impossible." Yet Trump persists, and the GOP remains largely silent—a silence that echoes the cowardice of McCarthy’s enablers.
The Path Forward: A Call to Action
McCarthy’s downfall didn’t require a rebellion or an army. It took a moment of courage—Joseph Welch’s searing question, broadcast to a nation ready to wake up. But it also took persistence. After Welch’s rebuke, McCarthy’s allies deserted him, the media stopped amplifying his lies, and his Senate colleagues censured him. The system, flawed as it was, eventually worked.
Trump’s critics are waiting for a similar moment. Will it come from a courtroom, where his legal battles over January 6 and election interference continue to unfold? Will it come from a courageous politician willing to risk their career to speak truth to power? Or will it come from the American people themselves?
The answer lies in the ballot box. In 2026, every seat in the House of Representatives and 33 Senate seats will be up for grabs. If Trump’s tactics are to be challenged, it will require a Congress willing to stand up to him—a Democratic majority that can ask, as Welch did, "Have you no sense of decency?" Voting is not just a right; it’s a responsibility. Members of the military have fought and died to protect our democracy. All we have to do is show up.
In the 1950s, McCarthy’s reign ended when Americans found their voice. Today, as Trump channels the same fear and division, we must do the same. We’re in this together.
Joyce White Vance is a former U.S. Attorney and a professor at the University of Alabama School of Law. She writes frequently about democracy, justice, and the rule of law.
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