In response to the so-called Soviet threat to Southeast Europe, Truman put forward his political proposition, which was later called "Truman Doctrine" and divided the world into two camps: liberal democracy and totalitarian communism. Truman himself commented on his "ism" and said, "This is a turning point in American foreign policy. No matter where direct or indirect aggression threatens peace, it is related to the security of the United States. " "Truman Doctrine" not only led to the failure of the "Communist Revolution" in Greece and Turkey, but also contributed to the opposition between the two global military blocs headed by the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union.
The foreign aid and anti-communist policy advocated by Truman Doctrine has dominated American foreign policy for decades after the end of World War II, including not only Marshall aid plan for rebuilding Europe, but also NATO established by 1949 and the subsequent Korean War and Vietnam War.
Gal Alpewitz, a famous contemporary American historian, believes that Truman's tough proposition at that time was that the United States took the lead in possessing nuclear weapons, and it was still in an exclusive monopoly position at that time. He believes that without nuclear weapons, the Cold War would be completely different.
In the eyes of many Americans, Truman is a typical embodiment of the American dream: from childhood accountant, small landlord, down-to-earth, perseverance until he entered the White House. However, historian Albertowitz regards Truman as a typical negative politician: obsessed with power, ruthless, trampling on democracy and misleading the public. He believes that Truman was promoted by the Pandgas family in Missouri, Kansas at that time, and rose all the way in his political career. The Pendergast family was the most influential political force in Missouri at that time. In order to control the local regime, they did not hesitate to assassinate and buy votes. USA Today once published an analysis article, the summary of which is as follows: Under normal circumstances, what kind of political legacy a president left behind can only be seen after he left office, because the consequences of his policies will gradually become clear at that time ... When Truman was in office, the public's evaluation of him was very low, but at the turn of the century, we suddenly realized the great influence of Marshall Plan on the development of Europe and how important NATO's protection of Western alliances was. In this sense, Truman should be considered as an almost great president.
During President Truman's term, many world events took place. First, the allied forces defeated Nazi Germany, Hiroshima and Nagasaki exploded, Japan surrendered, and World War II officially ended. Then came the establishment of the United Nations, the confrontation between Truman Doctrine and communism, the beginning of the Cold War, the implementation of the Marshall Plan, the establishment of NATO and the outbreak of the Korean War. Among them, the Korean War made the United States pay a heavy price. This war resulted in the death or disappearance of 44,000 American soldiers, and directly destroyed Truman's re-election plan. In the end, dwight eisenhower of the Republican Party relied on the campaign against Truman and the slogan "North Korea! Communist corruption! " (Korea! Communism Corruption! ) and won the hearts of the people, and became president in 1952, ending the 20-year ruling of the Democratic Party.
Truman was a president who always showed a friendly and humble attitude. Many of his epigrams, such as "the responsibility stops here"! ) and "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen." And so on, have become well-known sayings. Compared with the former president, Truman's support rate is not high, but he still overcame many difficulties during his term of office. Although he was finally forced to give up the re-election of 1952, most scholars still regard him as one of the best American presidents today.