President Roosevelt and Aid to the Democracies

Abstract

PBESIDENT'S ROOSEVELT'S speech at the dinner of the White House correspondents in Washington on March 15 will rank in future ages among the most momentous events in world history. Thereby he laid down a pledge that the efforts of a great and united people should suffer no relaxation until the total victory of the democracies over the menace of the aggression and tyranny of the dictators has been won. In his review of the events of the preceding week, following on the passing into law of the Lease-and-Lend Bill, or as he now preferred to call it the Aid-for-Democracies Bill, he stressed with the utmost emphasis two elements. Of these the first was that of speed. “The urgency,” he said, “is now … the time element is of supreme importance,” and he went on to recall, what was by that time well known to his audience, how the Bill was signed by him within half an hour of being agreed upon in both Houses of Congress, and that five minutes later he had approved a mass of articles for immediate shipment, of which, he added, many were already on their way. The second element upon which he dwelt with if anything even stronger emphasis was the comprehensive nature of the help for which democracies-among whom he went on explicitly to include China-may look to the United States, whence will come munitions in any and every form, planes, guns, tanks, ammunition, food, and the ships to carry them.