1940
Subtitle: FDR, Willkie, Lindbergh, Hitler--the election amid the storm
By: Susan Dunn
Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: 2013
Language: eng
Number of pages: 418
ISBN-13: 9780300190861
Subjects: Politics and government; POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Process / Elections; Presidents; Election; BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Presidents & Heads of State; Isolationism; History; HISTORY / United States / 20th Century
Description: "In 1940, against the explosive backdrop of the Nazi onslaught in Europe, two farsighted candidates for the U.S. presidency--Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt, running for an unprecedented third term, and talented Republican businessman Wendell Willkie--found themselves on the defensive against American isolationists and their charismatic spokesman Charles Lindbergh, who called for surrender to Hitler's demands. In this dramatic account of that turbulent and consequential election, historian Susan Dunn brings to life the debates, the high-powered players, and the dawning awareness of the Nazi threat as the presidential candidates engaged in their own battle for supremacy. 1940 not only explores the contest between FDR and Willkie but also examines the key preparations for war that went forward, even in the midst of that divisive election season. The book tells an inspiring story of the triumph of American democracy in a world reeling from fascist barbarism, and it offers a compelling alternative scenario to today's hyperpartisan political arena, where common ground seems unattainable"--
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Mystery in the White House; title: George Washington and Franklin Roosevelt: duty or ambition?; title: Walking on eggs; title: Lindbergh and the shrimps; title: Isolationists: the war within; title: Dark horse; title: Home run for the White House; title: The Republicans in Philadelphia; title: Roosevelt's game; title: The Democrats in Chicago; title: Willkie runs alone; title: An army of citizen soldiers; title: Campaigning 101; title: Enter Robert Sherwood; title: Franklin and Joe; title: The fifth column; title: Final days, final words; title: Safe at third; title: Roosevelt and Willkie: almost a team; title: Roosevelt and Willkie vs. Lindbergh; title: Epilogue: one nation indivisible