This article considers the role of US Ambassador James C. Dunn in Italy during the postwar era. It charts his background, experience and key contribution during the 1948 election. Moreover, it highlights the broader significance of Dunn's role for the Truman administration and Christian Democrats in their respective efforts to ensure stable, pro-Western, non-communist Italian leadership. This analysis of Dunn's function provides a lens through which the objectives of both governments and their relationship to one another amid a tense and uncertain Cold War atmosphere appear in sharper focus.