National Affairs: The Gauge of Recklessness

What will probably be remembered as the most memorable scene of the McCarthy-Army hearings occurred on the 30th day. Army Counsel Joseph Welch was winding up his dogged cross-examination of Roy Cohn when Joe McCarthy caressed the McCarthy cheek with the stem of his glasses and commandeered the microphone for what sounded like just another diversion. As McCarthy got rolling, Welch sat bolt upright and stared unbelievingly at the man just six feet away across the table. The packed room hushed; Roy Cohn grimaced toward McCarthy, shook his head, and his lips seemed to form the words "No! No!" Without...

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