A little known fact about JD Vance, his time as a US Marine and his 6 month deployment to Iraq (which he regularly reminds everyone about): he only did 4 years in the corps, and his specialist trade was as a military journalist writing articles, a non-combat role.
Ironically, the truth is that in 1940, Roosevelt - behind closed doors - behaved worse than Trump.
On the 20th May 1940, after multiple failed pleas for aid, Churchill wrote to Roosevelt that:
“If members of the present administration were finished and others came in to parley amid the ruins, you must not be blind to the fact that the sole remaining bargaining counter with Germany would be the fleet, and if this country was left by the United States to its fate no one would have the right to blame those then responsible if they made the best terms they could for the surviving inhabitants. Excuse me, Mr. President, putting this nightmare bluntly.”
Roosevelt’s refusal for aid was understandable given the political situation in America. As he told Churchill earlier that month, it wasn’t “wise for that suggestion to be made to the Congress at this moment.”
However, what he did after the 20th May telegram wasn’t.
Not bothering to even reply to Churchill’s warnings, Roosevelt instead sought to get Canada to give up on Britain.
As Roosevelt thought that Britain would likely collapse, and Churchill could not be trusted to maintain the struggle, he summoned a delegation for Canada.
The aim was to get Canada to pester Britain to have the Royal Navy sent across the Atlantic, before Britain’s seemingly-inevitable collapse.
Furthermore, to ensure this, the Americans wanted Canada to encourage the other British Dominions to get on board such a plan, and likewise gang up against Britain.
You can see Mackenzie King’s (PM of Canada) disbelief and horror in his diary,
“The United States was seeking to save itself at the expense of Britain. That it was an appeal to the selfishness of the Dominions at the expense of the British Isles. [...] I instinctively revolted against such a thought. My reaction was that I would rather die than do aught to save ourselves or any part of this continent at the expense of Britain.”
King telegrammed Churchill on the 30th May that this was the closed-door political situation across the Atlantic.
Bear in mind, Roosevelt was trying to instigate this during the Dunkirk evacuations.
How Churchill didn’t break knowing the one ally he needed in his darkest hour thought he’d fail, I have no idea.
On the 5th June 1940, Churchill wrote back to Mackenzie King,
"We must be careful not to let the Americans view too complacently prospect of a British collapse, out of which they would get the British Fleet and the guardianship of the British Empire, minus Great Britain. [...] Although President [Roosevelt] is our best friend, no practical help has been forthcoming from the United States as yet."
(The first key mover that swung Roosevelt into entrusting Churchill to continue the struggle - and as such aid would not be wasted on Britain - was when Churchill ordered the Royal Navy's Force H to open fire and destroy the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kébir - after Admiral Gensoul had refused the very reasonable offers from Britain, despite Germany and Italy demanding the transference of the French Fleet as part of the armistices.)
It seems relevant to mention that America didn’t enter WW2 in Europe until after Pearl Harbour and Germany declared war on America. Up to that point America expected a lot of up front payments for helping Britain - including gold, cash and access to military bases. That’s fair enough but America didn’t just leap in to save Europe out of love.
EPIC: Peter Hitchens tears Net Zero to shreds, to the dismay of BBC panellists and audience members.
"We didn't just close down our coal fired power stations, we blew them up, we were so certain we were right to do so. At the same time, China is building the equivalent of two new coal fired power stations a week. India has a vast expansion programme of coal fired power stations."
"The contribution which this country is making to these outcomes is not merely minimal, it's non-existent. Everything that we do is completely blotted out by what much larger countries are doing to maintain their own power."
"If you want to live in a country where nobody can afford to heat their house... if you want lots of people to lose their jobs because there's no energy, if you want to be cold all the time... then carry on believing that the demand to go for Net Zero is intelligent and thoughtful."
This is why WHERE EAGLES DARE is a Christmas film.
First off, if a Junkers Ju-52 carrying Richard Burton, Clint Eastwood and a bunch of hand-picked commandos over the icy blue Bavarian Alps doesn’t give you Santa’s sleigh vibes, then I can’t help you.
1/
If the £175 for a ticket to Lord’s is unappealing, I’d highly recommend going along to watch cricket at your local club instead.
The viewing experience will be better, the beer will be FAR cheaper, you will be warmly welcomed and you will be supporting local cricket.
Win win