Question

Which event caused the sharp rise in defense spending that began around 1950?

A graph titled U S Defense Spending, 1946 to 1969. The x axis shows the years 1946 to 1968. The y axis shows millions of dollars, from 0 to 100,000. The line starts at 42,000 in 1946, drops to 10,000 in 1948, rises to over 50,000 in 1953, drops to 42,000 in 1956, then steadily rises to over 50,000 in 1964, then rises to over 80,000 in 1968.

Answer 1

The outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950 — North Korea's invasion of South Korea — prompted a large U.S. military buildup and is the main cause of the sharp rise in defense spending beginning around 1950.