In an incident for which he would be widely criticized , McCarthy lobbied for the commutation of death sentences given to a group of Waffen-SS soldiers convicted of war crimes for carrying out the 1944 Malmedy massacre of American prisoners of war . McCarthy was critical of the convictions because of allegations of torture during the interrogations that led to the German soldiers ' confessions . He charged that the U.S. Army was engaged in a coverup of judicial misconduct , but never presented any evidence to support the accusation . Shortly after this , a poll of the Senate press corps voted McCarthy " the worst U.S. senator " currently in office
Malmedy massacre
Malmedy massacre
Joseph McCarthy