By the late 1930s, the question was no longer whether a Second World War would break out, but when—and who would be drawn into it. Whatever was going to happen in Europe or Asia, the United States should stay out: This was the opinion of a large segment of the American public, led by “America First” celebrities like Charles Lindbergh. The United States was large and self-sufficient enough to keep minding its own business, the isolationists argued. Why spend blood and treasure on wars in faraway places that did not…
