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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the "Wise Men" does Isaacson report to have served in active service during WWI?
(a) Chip Bohlen.
(b) Averell Harriman, George Kennan, and Dean Acheson.
(c) John McCloy and Robert Lovett.
(d) Robert Lovett.

2. With whom does Isaacson report Harriman shared responsibility that came to him after the meeting between Roosevelt and Churchill?
(a) Lord Beaverbrook, Churchill's Minister of Supply.
(b) Admiral William Standley.
(c) John McCloy.
(d) Robert Lovett.

3. What does Isaacson claim to be the purpose of the club that Bohlen joined?
(a) It was called a "waiting" club where members waited to be asked to join a more prestigious club.
(b) To serve as a place at which underclassmen could play rowdy poker games.
(c) To train underclassmen on their place on campus.
(d) It was a "final club" for members who would join no others after coming into it.

4. What does Isaacson claim the Secretary of War called Lovett and McCloy?
(a) "The Dynamic Duo."
(b) "The Heavenly Twins."
(c) "The Minnesota Twins."
(d) "Two of a kind."

5. What does Isaacson report to be the warning the Allied powers gave to the Japanese regarding the dropping of the atomic bomb?
(a) A vague clue in the Potsdam proclamation describing "immeasurably greater" powers and that, "The alternative for Japan is prompt and utter destruction."
(b) Communiques made to Japanese leaders through their various channels of communication.
(c) Ads placed in Japanese newspapers warning of coming destruction.
(d) Radio interruptions of Japanese airwaves that warned the Japanese of America's possession of, "a weapon of mass destruction."

6. What event early in WWII does Isaacson quote John McCloy as calling, "...regrettable in the clear light of perfect hindsight"?
(a) Becoming an ally with the Soviet Union.
(b) Roosevelt's decision to prioritize the war in Europe rather than the Pacific.
(c) The relocation of citizens of Japanese ancestry living on the West Coast.
(d) Naming Douglas MacArthur as Supreme Allied Commander in the Pacific.

7. Where did John McCloy attend College according to Isaacson?
(a) Harvard.
(b) Yale.
(c) Oxford.
(d) Amherst.

8. What does Isaacson claim to be Bohlen's view of Bolshevism?
(a) He was nonjudgemental and unreflective about Bolshevism.
(b) He was fascinated by the tenants of Soviet Communism.
(c) He reviled in the violent destruction Bolsheviks were willing to employ to hold onto power.
(d) He saw Bolshevism to be a threat to liberal progressivism in Western nations.

9. How does Isaacson report that Averell Harriman's support for the successful presidential candidacy of Franklin Roosevelt was rewarded in 1932?
(a) Roosevelt named him the Ambassador to Russia.
(b) Roosevelt named him the head of the Council on Foreign Relations.
(c) Roosevelt named him Secretary of State.
(d) Roosevelt named him the Chief Administrative officer of the National Recovery Administration.

10. What does Isaacson claim to be the reason that Harriman and Dean Acheson supported making post-war loans to the Soviets?
(a) Both considered loans to be a show of good faith that the U.S. was willing to work with the Soviets in spite of ideological differences.
(b) Both considered that the friendship of the Soviets could be bought.
(c) Both saw the loans as a means of gaining bargaining leverage with the Kremlin.
(d) Both realized that the Soviet economy was unproductive and felt that loans could nudge the Soviets to a market economy.

11. Which of the "Wise Men," according to Isaacson, attended The Hill School in Philadelphia?
(a) John McCloy.
(b) Chip Bohlen.
(c) Robert Lovett.
(d) George Kennan.

12. Who was the Supreme Court Justice for whom Dean Acheson clerked?
(a) Louis Brandeis.
(b) William Howard Taft.
(c) James Clark McReynolds.
(d) Mahlon Pitney.

13. How does Isaacson claim Bohlen distinguished himself in the service of his first assignment?
(a) He impressed his superiors with his diligent interest in Russia and its language.
(b) He impressed members of the Roosevelt Administration with his insights into economics and industry.
(c) He left a strong impression with his writing ability.
(d) He impressed the investors of W.A. Harriman with his knack for choosing growing companies in which to invest.

14. What was one of the first challenges facing the Truman Administration in dealing with the Soviet Union after WWII, according to Isaacson?
(a) Trying to prevent the Soviet Union from taking German industrial equipment and charging reparations against Germany.
(b) Dealing with Soviet front groups in the United States.
(c) Slowing the influence of Soviet communism over the Maoist movement in China.
(d) Blocking the Soviet Union from attempting to set terms of peace with Japan.

15. What does Isaacson report that John McCloy called, "Something that is worse than anything probably that ever happened in the world"?
(a) The devastation caused to Germany from WWII.
(b) The death of Franklin Roosevelt.
(c) The rift that was coming between the Soviet Union and the United States.
(d) The dropping of the atom bomb on Hiroshima.

Short Answer Questions

1. After Roosevelt and Churchill made their agreement, what became the responsibility of Averell Harriman?

2. What does Isaacson report to be the legacy of Harvard's President Charles Elliot after his 40 year tenure ended in 1909?

3. Which of the "Wise Men" does Isaacson report to be the son of a wealthy railway tycoon?

4. According to Isaacson, who was the President of the United States who thought Russia could be an ally after WWII?

5. What does Isaacson report Vice President Harry Truman was doing when news of President Roosevelt's death was first leaked?

(see the answer keys)

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