Truman took over as president after FDR died of a cerebral hemorrhage. Truman's first significant event took place at Potsdam. There was a meeting between him, Stalin, and Churchill and they spoke about the future of European Nations. The big question was about the fate of Poland. Poland was said to be given free elections but they never happen. Truman had an extreme dislike for the soviets and communism. Plans and policies such as the Marshal Plan and the Containment Policy were put into place under Truman. The Marshal Plan provided financial aid to European countries to keep them away from communism while the Containment Policy said that communism cannot be abolished but needs to be contained to where it is. The Truman Doctrine was an extension of the Containment Policy that gave 3 million dollars to Greece and Turkey to stop communism from spreading to there. During Truman's presidency There was much trouble in Berlin. The Berlin Blockade was the stoppage of resource and supply lines into Berlin. This put into action the Berlin airlift that dropped food to the people of Berlin.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
During his presidency, Eisenhower managed Cold War-era tensions with the Soviet Union under the threat of nuclear weapons, ended the war in Korea in 1953 and put together numerous anti-communist operations by the CIA around the world. On the home front, where America was enjoying a period of relaxation, Eisenhower strengthened Social Security, created the elaborate new Interstate Highway System and worked behind the scenes to discredit anti-Communist Senator Joseph McCarthy.
John F. Kennedy
When John F. Kennedy moved into the position of president in 1960, things would take a bad turn in the Cold War. In the same year as his election, the Berlin wall was constructed separating Germany into East and West Germany. As time went on in his presidency, everything looked to be improving as countries were moving towards a peace agreement. A meeting had been set up but the meeting never happened because of a US U-2 plane. This U-2 Plane was shot down in a restricted area in the Soviet Union and this caused an extreme lack of trust with in the US from the Soviets. Soon after, there was another setback. The Cuban Revolution had ended with the defeat of their government and Cuba fell to communism. Kennedy was also president at the beginning of the Vietnam War and was later assassinated.
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lydon B. Johnson was president after Kennedy's assassination. The majority of the Vietnam war was fought under Johnson and after the Gulf of Tonkin he was given a blank check by congress to stop Communism in Vietnam.
Richard M. Nixon
Richard Nixon began his presidency at the period at the end of the Vietnam War. Nixon was president when the Americans pulled out of Vietnam after the fall of the American Embassy in Saigon. There was another blemish on Nixon's presidency with the Pentagon Papers and the releasing of these in the NY Times. Under Nixon, there was an improvement in the state of the Cold War. The policy of Detente was adopted and the Arms Race between US and USSR slowed down tremendously. The Soviets later Invaded Afghanistan end the Detente policy.
James E. Carter
Jimmy Carter was the president after Gerald Ford. He was president during the Iran Hostage Crisis where Iranians took the American Embassy in Iran and held everyone in there hostage for over a year. This was also a cause of the 1973 Oil Crisis where Middle East countries refused to sell the US oil.
Ronald W. Reagan
When Reagan stepped in as president, the US was still in the Cold War and also still having a crisis in Iran. Soon after Reagan was elected the Iranians released the hostages. Then came the Reagan Doctrine that can be summed up by Reagan's quote of "We win and they lose." A scandal under Reagan took place in the Iran-Contra Affair. The US sold weapons and drugs to the enemies of Iran and used the money to fund Nicaraguan Rebels. Reagan claimed to have no relation to this It was later found out that he was involved but people forgave him. Regan also established the Strategic Defense Initiative and Star Wars. SDI was supposed to shoot down nukes before they made it to American soil. During Star Wars, Reagan made false reports to the Soviets about space weapons and cause them to spend all their money on space research and it lead to a decline in there government for a bit. Reagan was also president when Glasnost was adopted and the Berlin Wall was brought down ending the Cold War.