By Thomas F. Schwartz In Freedom Betrayed: Herbert Hoover’s Secret History of the Second World War and Its Aftermath edited by George H. Nash, Hoover entitles a section “Brainwashing the American People.” He details President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s efforts to counter isolationist/non-interventionist sentiment by suggesting that Hitler was seeking world domination, not simply that of … Continue reading The Germans are Coming, the Germans are Coming
By Thomas F. Schwartz Diplomat and historian George F. Kennan (1904-2005)Library of Congress digital ID hec.12925 After relying on the detailed Siberian travelogue of George Kennan to determine the region’s mining potential, Hoover’s second Kennan encounter with was with George F. Kennan regarding Hoover’s work with President Woodrow Wilson during World War I. In 1957 Kennan … Continue reading Hoover and the Two George Kennans: Part 2
By Thomas F. Schwartz Journalist and explorer George Kennan (1845-1924) Library of Congress digital ID ppmsc.01361 George F. Kennan is known for writing the 1946 "long telegram" as the U.S. chargè d’affaires in Moscow. Kennan argued for the U.S. to oppose Soviet attempts to undermine democratic institutions and wait for positive internal changes within the Soviet … Continue reading Hoover and the Two George Kennans: Part 1
Stone Plate Engraving of the Declaration of Independence, National Archives and Records Administration By Thomas F. Schwartz “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness…” This aspirational statement … Continue reading The Declaration, Lincoln, and Hoover
By Thomas F. Schwartz Continued from part 1… As the title suggests, This Is Not Who We Are: America’s Struggle Between Vengeance and Virtue by Zachary Shore examines three episodes of American actions during the WWII period that were motivated by in part by vengeance but eventually turned into more virtuous behavior. The three episodes … Continue reading Germany and the Morgenthau Plan: Part Two
By Thomas F. Schwartz Fighting a war is costly both in human lives and military expenditures. More costly is securing a just peace with defeated enemies. As a previous blog explained, Herbert Hoover failed in his attempts to feed civilian populations in Poland and Finland at the outset of World War II, but not for … Continue reading Germany and the Morgenthau Plan: Part One
by Thomas F. Schwartz Hoover’s tenure as Secretary of Commerce witnessed some of the greatest advances in technology with the development or expansion of radio, talking movies, commercial aviation, automobiles, telephones, and television. The Commerce Building in Washington, D.C. is named after Herbert Hoover in recognition of his many achievements as Secretary of Commerce. He … Continue reading The Hooverofon
by Thomas F. Schwartz A common technique used by advertisers engages the services of celebrities to endorse and promote their product. Current ethics laws prevent elected official from product endorsements. Such prohibitions did not exist for earlier generations of elected or appointed officials. A previous blog post indicated that Herbert Hoover was frequently approached as … Continue reading A 1927 Celebrity Endorsement
By Thomas F. Schwartz Matthew Continetti’s The Right: The Hundred Year War for American Conservatism states that Herbert Hoover was a member of the America First Committee. This mistake has been repeated in other books citing Continetti as the source. The America First Committee was composed of prominent politicians, business, other national figures who opposed … Continue reading Hoover was never a member of the America First Committee
By Thomas F. Schwartz The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum opened a new exhibit, Hoover 150: A Birthday Celebration, that runs until the end of the year. The exhibit features highlights of birthdays of both Lou and Herbert Hoover throughout their lives. A humorous recollection by Ellanor Lawrence, wife of journalist David Lawrence, describes some birthdays … Continue reading What do you get Mr. Hoover for his birthday?
