Eleanor's Rant

My fellow Americans and global citizens, once again we are on the eve of historic events. As our "neighbor's houses" catch fire, we must be careful that the flames do not consume our own.

I have been away attending civil rights conferences.  They have struck many bells resonating with my opinions of this war in Europe.  To say that I am not worried about Germany's abilities would be a lie - Hitler's armies are frightening.  However, I believe that Hitler's resolve and motivation is fear, and fear only.  He is driven by it.  If the French under De Gaulle and the British troops can hold the Maginot Line for a time, I believe Hitler will become quickly discouraged. Adolf Hitler is a man with the attention span of a gnat.  He is easily distracted and a very insecure person.  The Maginot Line may be the very thing that reveals this.  

My friends, a great cloud is enveloping our planet, just as in WWI. There will be nowhere to hide. Americans must be ready to serve as the "Arsenal of Democracy." We must build weapons and arm ourselves and our allies, or else the dictators of the Axis powers will choke freedom

Uncle Teddy was famous for saying, "Walk softly and carry a big stick."

My fellow Americans, it is time for the stick. The Daily Mirror hints at "atrocities" in China. I have before me, intelligence reports that say between 20,000 to 80,000 women have been raped by Japanese soldiers in the city of Nanking. These same reports say that the Japanese army is systematically - SYSTEMATICALLY - executing Chinese citizens. Estimates run as high as 300,000 people.

America cannot ally itself with a country that commits atrocities on innocent civilians, and then calls it "war." My husband submitting a plan to Congress that will allow our country to arm our Chinese allies. We have contacted Premier Chiang Kai-Shek to open negotiations.
 

A Word to The Foolhardy AXIS Powers:  Do not make the same mistake our British brothers did in 1776. Do not think us weak. We are "sleeping" now. But if you awaken us, you will find the American people a powerful, terrible foe.

There is no need to remind you, my fellow Americans, that our country has enough problems of her own. As we work to rebuild our country from a devastating depression, we must be careful of "foreign entanglements" - good advice from President Washington. That said, we can only look at the world and see storm clouds gathering:

So what do we do? We become the "Arsenal of Democracy". We send weapons and assistance to China and any other of our friends who are brutally attacked. But at the same time, we must respect the spirit of The Neutrality Act. Americans WANT to remain neutral. Ambassador Bullitt, my husband's close friend, was 100% wrong to tell the French that we would fight with them if Hitler invaded. The U.S. will not join a “stop-Hitler bloc” under any circumstances, and in the event of German aggression against France, the U.S. will remain neutral.