Defense Department Responds to Senator Joseph McCarthy’s Claims of Communists Working in Defense Plants (1954)

Date: June 3, 1954

Created By: Fred Seaton

Original or Replica: Original

Era: McCarthyism and the Red Scare, The Presidency

Collection: Eisenhower Presidential Library

Citations: Fred Seaton Papers, FAS Eyes Only Series, Box 4, McCarthy (1); NAID #16703231

In this June 3, 1954 letter, Assistant Secretary of Defense Fred A. Seaton responds to Senator Joseph McCarthy concerning his claim that approximately 130 alleged Communists were working in defense plants. Seaton recounts efforts by the Department of Defense to obtain McCarthy’s list after a Senate investigating subcommittee unanimously recommended that the names be provided to the Secretary of Defense. McCarthy offered to provide them only if a stenographer recorded his meeting with Seaton and the Department agreed to keep the identities secret.

Seaton accepts the presence of a stenographer but rejects any promise of secrecy that might prevent the Defense Department from acting on legitimate security concerns. He explains that the names would be investigated by the FBI and checked against Defense Department information. If necessary for national security, the Department could suspend security clearances or take other action without first consulting McCarthy. Seaton also discusses the broader problem of suspected Communists or other security risks working at facilities with defense contracts, particularly where classified information was involved. He points to proposed congressional legislation designed to remove Communist-controlled organizations and suspected subversives from sensitive defense work. The letter illustrates tensions between McCarthy’s congressional investigations and the Eisenhower administration over responsibility for investigating alleged Communist infiltration and protecting national security.