Wendell Willkie Urges Unlimited Aid to Britain
July 23, 1941

After failing to defeat Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1940 presidential election, Republican Wendell Willkie became one of the president's most unlikely allies. Willkie, an outspoken critic of the New Deal, shared Roosevelt's unwavering opposition to America's neutrality in the global crisis. To the chagrin of many in his party, Willkie refused to criticize the president's foreign policy during his campaign and called for greater national support for controversial Roosevelt initiatives such as the Lend-Lease Act. Soon after his electoral defeat, Willkie embarked on a new campaign to awaken America from its isolationist slumber. In this speech from July 23, 1941, urges unlimited aid to Britain in its struggle against Nazi Germany.