Speech on Neutrality
By Charles Lindbergh
September 1, 1941, Des Moines, Iowa

It is now two years since this
That effort has been carried on by foreign interests, and
At this time, as the war is about to enter its third winter,
Who is responsible for changing our national policy from one
Personally, I believe there is no better argument against
Here, I would like to point out to you a fundamental difference
If you will look back over the record, you will find that
We ask you to read what we said last month, last year, and
We have not led you on by subterfuge and propaganda. We have
What we said before the elections, we say [illegible] and
The subterfuge and propaganda that exists in our country is
When this war started in Europe, it was clear that the American
National polls showed that when England and France declared
The three most important groups who have been pressing this
Behind these groups, but of lesser importance, are a number
I am speaking here only of war agitators, not of those sincere
As I have said, these war agitators comprise only a small
Let us consider these groups, one at a time.

First, the British: It is obvious and perfectly understandable
Her geographical position is such that she cannot win the
As you all know, we were left with the debts of the last European
England has devoted, and will continue to devote every effort
We know that England is spending great sums of money for propaganda
The second major group I mentioned is the Jewish (people).
It is not difficult to understand why Jewish people desire
No person with a sense of the dignity of mankind can condone
Tolerance is a virtue that depends upon peace and strength. Their greatest danger to this country lies in their large
I am not attacking either the Jewish or the British people.
We cannot blame them for looking out for what they believe latest European war began. From that day in September, 1939, until the present moment, there has been an over-increasing effort to force the United States into the conflict.
by a small minority of our own people; but it has been so successful that, today, our country stands on the verge of war.
it seems appropriate to review the circumstances that have led us to our present position. Why are we on the verge of war? Was it necessary for us to become so deeply involved?
of neutrality and independence to one of entanglement in European affairs?
our intervention than a study of the causes and developments of the present war. I have often said that if the true facts and issues were placed before the American people, there would be no danger of our involvement.
between the groups who advocate foreign war, and those who believe in an independent destiny for America.
those of us who oppose intervention have constantly tried to clarify facts and issues; while the interventionists have tried to hide facts and confuse issues.
even before the war began. Our record is open and clear, and we are proud of it.
not resorted to steps short of anything, in order to take the American people where they did not want to go.
again, and again today. And we will not tell you tomorrow that it was just campaign oratory. Have you ever heard an interventionist, or a British agent, or a member of the administration in Washington ask you to go back and study a record of what they have said since the war started? Are their self-styled defenders of democracy willing to put the issue of war to a vote of our people? Do you find these crusaders for foreign freedom of speech, or the removal of censorship here in our own country?
obvious on every side. Tonight, I shall try to pierce through a portion of it, to the naked facts which lie beneath.
people were solidly opposed to entering it. Why shouldn't we be? We had the best defensive position in the world; we had a tradition of independence from Europe; and the one time we did take part in a European war left European problems unsolved, and debts to America unpaid.
war on Germany, in 1939, less than 10 percent of our population favored a similar course for America. But there were various groups of people, here and abroad, whose interests and beliefs necessitated the involvement of the United States in the war. I shall point out some of these groups tonight, and outline their methods of procedure. In doing this, I must speak with the utmost frankness, for in order to counteract their efforts, we must know exactly who they are.
country toward war are the British, the Jewish and the Roosevelt administration.
of capitalists, Anglophiles, and intellectuals who believe that the future of mankind depends upon the domination of the British empire. Add to these the Communistic groups who were opposed to intervention until a few weeks ago, and I believe I have named the major war agitators in this country.
but misguided men and women who, confused by misinformation and frightened by propaganda, follow the lead of the war agitators.
minority of our people; but they control a tremendous influence. Against the determination of the American people to stay out of war, they have marshaled the power of their propaganda, their money, their patronage.
that Great Britain wants the United States in the war on her side. England is now in a desperate position. Her population is not large enough and her armies are not strong enough to invade the continent of Europe and win the war she declared against Germany.
war by the use of aviation alone, regardless of how many planes we send her. Even if America entered the war, it is improbable that the Allied armies could invade Europe and overwhelm the Axis powers. But one thing is certain. If England can draw this country into the war, she can shift to our shoulders a large portion of the responsibility for waging it and for paying its cost.
war; and unless we are more cautious in the future than we have been in the past, we will be left with the debts of the present case. If it were not for her hope that she can make us responsible for the war financially, as well as militarily, I believe England would have negotiated a peace in Europe many months ago, and be better off for doing so.
to get us into the war. We know that she spent huge sums of money in this country during the last war in order to involve us. Englishmen have written books about the cleverness of its use.
in America during the present war. If we were Englishmen, we would do the same. But our interest is first in America; and as Americans, it is essential for us to realize the effort that British interests are making to draw us into their war.

the overthrow of Nazi Germany. The persecution they suffered in Germany would be sufficient to make bitter enemies of any race.
the persecution of the Jewish race in Germany. But no person of honesty and vision can look on their pro-war policy here today without seeing the dangers involved in such a policy both for us and for them. Instead of agitating for war, the Jewish groups in this country should be opposing it in every possible way for they will be among the first to feel its consequences.
History shows that it cannot survive war and devastations. A few far-sighted Jewish people realize this and stand opposed to intervention. But the majority still do not.
ownership and influence in our motion pictures, our press, our radio and our government.
Both races, I admire. But I am saying that the leaders of both the British and the Jewish races, for reasons which are as understandable from their viewpoint as they are inadvisable from ours, for reasons which are not American, wish to involve us in the war.
to be their own interests, but we also must look out for ours.