Charlie Kersten’s war: a Catholic crusader goes to Congress

Abstract

ABSTRACT Congressman Charles J. Kersten (R-WI) authored the Kersten Amendment to the Mutual Security Act of 1951, allocating $100 million annually to train refugees from Eastern European countries in national military units in support of NATO or for “some other purpose.” He advocated “positive” policies to promote liberation of captive Eastern European peoples, including waging an all-out psychological war and training the exiles; Kersten funds supported ongoing covert plans by the CIA and State Department. His career reveals the influence of religious faith on foreign relations and both cooperation and tensions between Congress and the Administration in the early Cold War.