Thirty years ago, one of the most sensational and frightening episodes in American history -- an episode that traumatized the nation -- reached its climax in the Army-McCarthy hearings. Until now, the full story of the intrigues and maneuverings of demagogues and ideologues, of crusaders and compromisers involved in the McCarthy affair has never been told. Crucial documents -- secret diary entries, personal letters, memoranda of meetings, and, above all, transcripts of monitored phone calls of pivotal figures (many of whom Ewald knew as a member of Eisenhower's White House staff) -- were impounded by the Executive Branch to preserve their secrecy and place them beyond the reach of a subpoena by the McCarthy committee. William Ewald's riveting behind-the-scenes chronicle of the administration's effort to thwart McCarthy -- and the roles of key men in Congress, the Pentagon, and the press corps -- draws on this wealth of previously untapped material and is filled with revelations never before published, such as exactly whose side J. Edgar Hoover was playing on and the answer to the accusation that McCarthy forged documents in response to alleged forgery by the Army. - Jacket flap.