"The American people are sick and tired of being afraid to speak their minds lest they be politically smeared as 'Communists' or 'Fascists' by their opponents. Freedom of speech is not what it used to be in America. . . . The American people are sick and tired of seeing innocent people smeared and guilty people whitewashed.""As an American, I am shocked at the way Republicans and Democrats alike are playing directly into the Communist design of 'confuse, divide, and conquer.' As an American, I do not want a Democratic administration 'whitewash' or 'coverup' any more than I want a Republican smear or witch hunt."-Source: Senator Margaret Chase Smith of Maine, in the "Declaration of Conscience," 1950The excerpt is best understood as a response to which historical development?

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