US Presidency
1941

As the President of a united and determined people, I say solemnly: We reassert the ancient American doctrine of freedom of the seas. We reassert the solidarity of the twenty-one American Republics and the Dominion of Canada in the preservation of the independence of the hemisphere. We have pledged material support to the other democracies of the world and we will fulfill that pledge. We in the Americas will decide for ourselves whether, and when, and where, our American interests are attacked or our security is threatened. We are placing our armed forces in strategic military position. We will not hesitate to use our armed forces to repel attack. We reassert our abiding faith in the vitality of our constitutional Republic as a perpetual home of freedom, of tolerance, and of devotion to the word of God.