Eisenhower's treatment of McCarthy was, therefore, a delicate balancing act

and once again indicated the pitfalls of the broad spectrum of ideological opinion in

the Eisenhower leadership. Dewey, Lodge, and Adams wanted Eisenhower to avoid

any reference to McCarthy or McCarthyism and concentrate on anti-communism

broadly without mentioning specific investigations or individuals. On August 4,

Joseph and Stewart Alsop reported that Eisenhower planned to deliver a speech that

renounced both anti-communism and hate-mongering in an effort to separate

McCarthy from the communist issue. The Alsops also claimed that the nominee

would not campaign in Wisconsin.46 While this plan met approval from the liberal

Republicans, it angered Summerfield and a number of state parties in the Midwest.

Behind the scenes, Summerfield worked to reconnect with Coleman, his former

political ally and leader of the Wisconsin Republican Party, and convince him to work

actively for Eisenhower. The Chairman also scheduled a campaign stop in Wisconsin

for early September, but Hood asked for its cancellation, prompting the Alsops to

claim that such appeasement of the conservatives, who were obviously unreasonable

and ignorant of the political realities, indicated that the GOP had a "death wish."47

 The end result of this tug of war between liberals and conservatives was a

neutral stance towards McCarthy on the campaign trail. Eisenhower took a number of

thinly veiled shots at McCarthy and his methods, but rarely mentioned him by name.

In Boston, Ike told the crowd that "If we are to win this deadly struggle with

Communism, we must have a leadership that can do the job, that is morally and

spiritually strong...We must be able to take just pride in those who lead us -- in how


not grown any more cordial. See Ellen Schrecker, Many are the Crimes, and Richard Gid Powers, Not
Without Honor.
46 Washington Post, 4 August 1952.

47 Washington Post, 31 August 1952.