Evening star., 1942-12-23
Representative Rankin
Asks Full Story on
Atlantic Conference
Says Pearl Horbor Attack
Could Not Have Been
Surprise to President
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
Whitehall Jeannette Rankin
Republican. OF Montana, only mem.
Der OF Congress to vote against wa,
with Japan, called today for the
full story" on the historic Atlantic
Conference. In statement pre-
pared for the Congressional Record
she asked this question:
Astounding as the Pearl Harbor
attack was to the American public
as whole, if 1t was secretly antici-
pated and even played for, why did
the President permit our forces at
Pearl Harbor to be taken by sur
prise?"
She said that President Roosevelt
imposed self-acknowledged, war
provoking economic sanctions
against Japan Immediately after the
meeting at sea with Winston
Churchill.
Cites Commissions Report.
AT another point she cited the re-
port by the Presidents special COM
mission which investigated the Pearl
Harbor attack that warnings to be
alert had been sent to Army and
Navy commanders in the Pacific be-
lore the attack took place.
Then she observed:
Indeed, do not the frequency
urgency, the very wording of these
warnings indicate in themselves that
the Pearl Harbor attack came as no
surprise whatever to the President?''
Miss Rankin obtained consent of
the House before the Seventy
seventh Congress adjourned to insert
her statement in the Congressional
Record. She gave it to newsmen for
publication today.
In her own words a "belliperent
pacif1st,' she reviewed at length her
version OF events leading to what she
called Mr.. Roosevelts change of
policy after the Atlantic conference.
On the basis of quotations from
English authors. she said that three
years before Pearl Harbor. Britain S
lmperialists had figured out lust how
to bring the United States once more
to their aid" by getting this country
"embroiled' with Japan.
Defended British Empire.
She contended that this Nations
requirements" of September 3. 194l.
that Japan accept the principle OF
non disturbance of the status quo in
the Pacific was the equivalent to
asking Japan to guarantee the in
violateness of the white empire in
the Orient, OF which the British
Empire comprised approximately 80
per cent in both arms and popula-
ton"
Miss Rankin declared that "in less
than a week after the Atlantic Con-
ference the machinery of economic
sanctions was getting under way
and inquired:
Did President Roosevelt realize
that economic sanctions mean war
at the time he appears to have
adopted Mr.. Churchill's suggestion
to impose them as the punitive al
tentative for his ultimatum to ia
pan?"
Inserted in Record.
was it not strange" she asked at
another point, that Mr.. Roosevelt,
who, by refusing for years to enforce
the Neutrality Act of 1896 to prevent
shipments of war supplies to Japan
despite popular demand, had largely
contributed to supplying that nation
with the raw materials for the
armaments now being used against
our own troops, after the Atlantic
conference when an incident with
Japan seems to have been desired,
suddenly changed his policy and not
only cut of war supplies but virtually
everything required by the civilian
population of Japan as we'll
Miss Rankin, who first was elected
to the House in 1916 serving one
term, was elected again in 1910, but
did not seek reelection this year.