THE POSSIBILITY

1941 LEND-LEASE

As well as not joining the war, it’s highly unlikely that had Lindbergh run for and won the presidency in 1940 that the Lend-lease programme or something similar would have been instigated. Following Roosevelt’s victory, in 1941 Winston Churchill appealed directly to the president requesting support, which initially led to the USA providing 50 navy destroyers in return for 99-year leases on British bases in the Caribbean and Newfoundland. However, soon more support was requested and so Roosevelt designed a programme that allowed the United States to lend or lease war supplies to any nation deemed to be “vital to the defence of the United States”. Certainly, this programme would not have developed under Lindbergh and it’s doubtful how long Britain would have been able to hold off Nazi Germany without this or other support.

1942 NO MORE FREE PRESS?

Lindbergh had a mixed relationship with the media. Initially, it was responsible for making him a worldwide sensation but following the death of his son at the hands of a kidnapper, the resulting media circus had a lasting impact. The perpetrator’s attorney was paid for by media baron William Randolph Hearst’s papers in return for exclusive story rights, and people even sold miniature souvenir ‘Lindbergh Ladders’, mimicking the one that was used during the kidnapping. This led to a deep loathing for the media within Lindbergh, and a more controlled media must have appealed to him.

1945 AMERICA FIRST

The America First Committee disbanded only three days after Pearl Harbor. In recent years, the phrase ‘America First’ has taken on a new meaning and has even been used by Donald Trump. Had the organisation continued it’s impossible to say how we would view that phrase today.