In the runup to World War II, opinion leaders who feared the dragging of the United States into another European conflict made energetic efforts to convince the public of the dangers. While aviation hero Charles Lindbergh was the most celebrated of the isolationist spokesmen, his most eloquent ally in Congress was probably Senator Arthur H. Vandenberg (R-Michigan).
Vandenberg and an Isolationist Congress
Members of Congress, reflecting the sentiments of much of the American public, became increasingly wary of political developments in Europe in the wake of the Depression. Typical of these was Vandenberg, a longtime journalist, editor, and publisher who had been elected to the Senate in 1928 and reelected in the face of a Democratic tide in 1934.
With his powers of expression, the Michigan Republican was an important part of a bipartisan coalition which had enacted a series of four Neutrality Acts to prevent U.S. involvement in supplying arms or other aid to belligerents. As World War II loomed and ultimately broke out, President Franklin D. Roosevelt maneuvered to gain flexibility to aid the powers opposing Germany and Italy. In the Senate and as a candidate for the Republican nomination for President in 1940, Vandenberg was a leading voice opposing FDR's efforts.
Vandenberg's New Role
For Vandenberg and most Americans, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 ended the debate on intervention in the war. His reconsideration of his position was apparently more thorough and agonizing than most. Speaking to the Senate on Jamuary 10, 1945, in an oration subsequently labeled "the speech heard 'round the world," Vandenberg proclaimed that the attempt to isolate America from the resistance to the Axis dictatorships had been wrong and that in the postwar world it would be necessary for us to participate in an international organization promoting world peace.
The Michigan Republican's new position may have influenced other former isolationists as the Senate, in dramatic contrast to its rejection of the League of Nations Covenant in 1920, overwhelmingly ratified the United Nations Charter. Even more significantly, with the Republican capture of the Senate in 1946, he became Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. In that key role, he worked closely with President Harry Truman and the State Department to explain and secure passage of an active interventionist program including aid to Greece and Turkey to oppose Communist threats, the Marshall Plan for economic recovery of Europe, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It was a remarkable exercise of effective bipartisan foreign policy.
The Senator was again a candidate for the GOP nomination in 1948 but lost to Governor Thomas E. dewey of New York. Diagnosed with lung cancer in 1949, he died in April 1951. His transformation to internationalism had a profound effect on America's stance in the postwar world.
Sources:
- United States Senate Art & History - Arthur Vandenberg Dies
- US Department of State Historical Milestones 1921-1936
David Hornestay - DavidH began a career as a freelancer after 34 years in government management. Keeping a hand in as a consultant in federal human ...
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