J. Edgar Hoover
John Edgar Hoover (1895-1972) was a controversial director of the FBI. Hoover was a staunch opponent of Communism, liberalism, organized labor, and homosexuals. Hoover served as director for 48 years until his death. He founded the FBI's 'public enemies' program, under which such criminals as John Dillinger, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were successfully caught. He enforced prohibition when it was in effect. At the beginning of the Korean War, Hoover submitted a plan to President Harry Truman that would arrest thousands of Americans who he judged to be "potentially dangerous to the internal security of the country" due to ties to communism. They were to be detained in federal prisons or military facilities, and given hearings where they would be either detained, paroled, or released. The hearings were to be "not bound by the rules of evidence", although it is unclear what that meant. The Truman administration did not follow through on Hoover's plan.[1]
References
Works Cited
Wilson, Gahan, The Big Book of Weirdos, Paradox Press, New York, 1995
