ABSTRACT
President Roosevelt during the campaign of 1940, were specific commitments to be fulfilled after their victory at the polls in November. President Roosevelt entered the year 1941 carrying moral responsibility for his covenants with the American people to keep this nation out of war—so to conduct foreign affairs as to avoid war. The first were the pledges of the Democratic party to which he publicly subscribed while he was bidding for the suffrages of the people. The second were his personal promises to the people, supplementing the obligations of his party's platform. In supplementing the pledges of the Democratic platform, President Roosevelt had also been unequivocal in his personal declarations. Repeatedly, between January 1, 1941, and the middle of December, 1941, Roosevelt represented his policy as a policy contrary to war, as a quest for the peace and security of the United States. Until war finally came with the Japanese attack on December 7, 1941, President Roosevelt maintained his appearance.
