During the Cold War, What Was One Main Concern of the United States? Civics Question 109

One main concern was communism. Nuclear war is the other accepted answer.

Question 109 asks for one main concern of the United States during the Cold War. Two answers count: communism and nuclear war. Say one word or the other. You do not need to explain what either one means, and you do not need to name a country.

The Two Concerns

Communism is a system in which the government owns the farms, factories, and businesses, and a single party runs the state. After World War II the Soviet Union backed communist governments in country after country, and American leaders worried the list would keep growing.

Nuclear war was the second fear. Both sides built nuclear weapons and kept them aimed at each other. Schoolchildren practiced drills, families dug shelters, and the two governments spent decades trying not to reach the point where the weapons were used.

Why the Officer Asks This

This question explains the two wars that follow it on the list. Questions 110 and 111 ask why the United States entered the Korean War and the Vietnam War, and the answer to both is stopping the spread of communism.

It also follows question 108, which names the rival. The rival was the Soviet Union, and communism was the system it spread.

How to Remember It

The answer is one word, and it is a word you will use again. Communism answers this question, question 110, and question 111.

Learn it once and three questions on the list are covered. If a second answer is easier for you to say under pressure, “nuclear war” is also accepted here, though it only works for this question.

Common Ways People Get This Wrong

Some applicants name the Soviet Union. That is the answer to question 108, which asks for the rival country. This question asks what the country was concerned about.

Others give a long description of communism instead of the word. The single word is what the officer is listening for.

What to Say on Test Day

Say “communism.” Then stop.

One word, no explanation, no country name. Wait for the next question.