Help! My year-round project on McCarthy feels like it’s hitting to close home.

Hi, I'm a high school sophomore who is really into the Cold War, etc and I was doing a project for National History Day(a club fyi) on McCarthyism since our topic was rights and responsibilities.

Usually they ask us how can we connect it today, but HOLY CRAP, Trump Loyalty tests????(truman loyalty program), banning trans people(targeted minorities) in sports(not letting black people go to Floridian school during the age of McCarthy), sweet god.

I was pretty anti-McCarthy. I didn't like his way of monetizing on the public's fears and his ability to twist the truth to his favor. I am so nervous, how do I talk apolitically about Joseph McCarthy. I live in NJ and tbh we were half in half for the election. How do I escape the parallels of this demagogue. The same demagogue who basically mentored Roy Cohn, who mentored Trump???? I am altogether quite nervous because I've worked really hard on this research project and I don't want todays politics to limit me, and Dee incapable of doing good historical research. Can someone please give me advice. I'm asking here because I feel like as history teachers, also the people who are judging the competition, you guys know what I should and shouldn't say.