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'''Harry S. Truman,''' (1884–1972) a [[liberal]] [[Democrat]] from [[Missouri]], was the president of the United States from 1945–1953, taking over when [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] died in April 1945.  He made the decision to drop atomic bombs on [[Hiroshima]] and [[Nagasaki]] in order to force [[Japan]]'s surrender. Angered at the Soviet Union's seizure of [[Eastern Europe]], he moved away from FDR's [[détente]] to a policy of [[containment]], reinforced by the [[Truman Doctrine]] (1947) to resist Communist subversion, the [[Marshall Plan]] (1948–51) to rebuild and modernize western Europe's economies, and the [[NATO]] military alliance of 1949.  Truman, advised by [[Dean Acheson]] and the State Department, set the policies to oppose the Soviet Union as the [[Cold War]] began.  Truman was the last president who was a college dropout.

 

'''Harry S. Truman''' (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972), a [[liberal]] [[Democrat]] from [[Missouri]], was the president of the United States from 1945–1953, taking over when [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] died in April 1945.  He made the decision to drop atomic bombs on [[Hiroshima]] and [[Nagasaki]] in order to force [[Japan]]'s surrender. Angered at the Soviet Union's seizure of [[Eastern Europe]], he moved away from FDR's [[détente]] to a policy of [[containment]], reinforced by the [[Truman Doctrine]] (1947) to resist Communist subversion, the [[Marshall Plan]] (1948–51) to rebuild and modernize western Europe's economies, and the [[NATO]] military alliance of 1949.  Truman, advised by [[Dean Acheson]] and the State Department, set the policies to oppose the Soviet Union as the [[Cold War]] began.  Truman was the last president who was a college dropout.

Ignoring Asia, he later saw America's close ally China fall to the anti-American Communists under [[Mao Zedong]] in 1949; the US and China fought each other to a draw during the undeclared [[Korean War]], 1950–53. Truman fired his top general, [[Douglas MacArthur]], during this conflict and saw his popularity plunge.  

Ignoring Asia, he later saw America's close ally China fall to the anti-American Communists under [[Mao Zedong]] in 1949; the US and China fought each other to a draw during the undeclared [[Korean War]], 1950–53. Truman fired his top general, [[Douglas MacArthur]], during this conflict and saw his popularity plunge.