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vii This book began with a rather naive question I posed during my first semester in graduate school. After discovering the B. Carroll Reece Papers at the Archives of Appalachia as part of a project in my research methods class, I asked the instructor, who happened to be a colonialist, if he knew of “the” book on the turmoil in the postwar Republican Party. After a quick perusal of the library catalog, I decided that none existed. I set out to write it and, along the way, came to realize that very few scholars write “the” book on a given subject and that debate on a given topic rarely closes. This is probably not that book that I asked for back then, but I hope that it contributes to our understanding of this particular moment and its broader effects on postwar America. Though the project has long existed in an idealized form, it became a reality thanks in part to generous grant support from the University of Florida Graduate Student Council, the Richard J. Milbauer Endowment, the University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the Everett T. Dirksen Congressional Research Program. Along the way, numerous librarians and archivists have helped me piece this story together. The staff at the Dwight D. Eisenhower Library created a hospitable and productive environment on my trips there, and Valoise Armstong graciously answered questions via e-mail and sent photocopies of documents long after I left Abilene. The desk staff of the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress was incredibly helpful as I sorted through the massive Taft collection. I am also grateful to archivists at the Archives of Appalachia, the Bancroft Library at the University of California, the University of Rochester Miner Library, the Ohio Historical Society, the Minnesota Historical Society , Tulane University Law Library, and the Wright State University Library Department of Special Collections. This book began to take shape during my time at the University of Florida . There, Brian Ward’s guidance and friendship were invaluable and most appreciated. Although some may question his choice of football teams, he came at this project with an open mind and helped me sharpen my ideas and my narrative. Bob Zieger and Charlie Montgomery kept me focused at various points when the project looked as if it would go off track and helped me Acknowledgments viii : acknowledgments situate my story in the broader discourse. I am also thankful for the friendship and advice from my fellow graduate students, especially Steve Ortiz, Jay Langdale, Alan Bliss, Barclay Key, and Dan Simone. Steve Gallagher, Jace Stuckey, Maury Wiseman, Julian Chambliss, Ben Houston, and the other members of Brian Ward’s Claret and Blue Army also deserve special mention . I am sure our academic careers will be more successful than our efforts in intramural softball. Additionally, a number of historians have been generous in reading and commenting on parts or all of the manuscript in its various stages. This includes Tim Boyd, Donald Critchlow, Kevin Kruse, Bill Link, Robert Mason, Catherine Rymph, Gregory Schneider, David Stebenne, and Tim Thurber. Mary C. Brennan and Bruce Schulman critiqued key aspects of my research at annual meetings of the American Historical Association and the Southern Historical Association. Ellie Shermer and Joe Crespino answered last-minute questions and helped me meet an important deadline. Chuck Grench and the staff at UNC Press have been a pleasure to work with and have taken good care of this project from start to finish. Though their comments and suggestions have all been incorporated here, any errors in the text are mine alone. The faculty and administration at the University of Florida have been very supportive as I made the transition from student to colleague. Patricia TellesIrvin , Joe Glover, Paul D’Anieri, James Mueller, Tony Rosenbaum, and Senator Bob Graham all played a role, at one point or another, in keeping me at uf. I will be very hard-pressed to find a department chair anywhere that is as good as Joe Spillane. In the midst of drastic budget cuts and “five-year plans,” he ran a steady ship and improved our department tremendously. On numerous occasions he fought to continue my faculty appointment, and quite frankly, without him this book would have been a lot harder to finish. Other colleagues have provided moral support and professional advice along the way, including Steve Noll, Sean Adams, Nina Caputo, Hunt Davis, Jack Davis, Stuart Finkel, Matt Gallman, Mitch Hart, Robert Hatch, Matt Jacobs...

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