Acheson, Dean (Gooderham) 1893-1971. US
politician; as undersecretary of state
1945-47 in Truman's Democratic
administration, he was associated with George
C Marshallin preparing the Marshall Plan, and
succeeded him as secretary of state 1949-53.
He helped establish NATO, and criticized
Britain for having `lost an empire and not
yet found a role'. He was criticized for
accepting postwar Europe as it stood.
Acheson's foreign policy was widely
criticized by Republican members of Congress,
especially Senator McCarthy, for an alleged
weak response to Communist advances in SE
Asia, especially after the outbreak of the
Korean War. He advocated containment of the
Soviet Union. He survived a vote calling for
his resignation, but left the State
Department in 1952 following the election of
Eisenhower. His books include Power and
Diplomacy 1958 and Present at the Creation
1969, which won the Pulitzer prize for
history.

Subject by: Russell Webb