This is John Batchler, a conversation with Professor H.W. Brands, his new book, America

First of Roosevelt v. Lindberg in the shadow of war. Roosevelt was highly committed to Churchill

and coming in on the British side, but he couldn't do it openly for Lindberg, for the Congress,

for the resistance, for the anti-war movement in America.

Therefore, he brought in covert operators from Great Britain.

He coordinated with explicitly manipulative decision-making.

He also had a correspondence with Churchill that nobody knew about.

Here, Professor Brands explains, as Lindbergh is going venue to venue, state to state,

radio to radio talking openly about his opposition,

Roosevelt is managing the influence peddling operation

that prepares the American people for war with

the Hitlerites in Europe and the Imperial Japanese Navy and Army in the Pacific. More of this

later in the week. William Stevenson was the director of British propaganda in America.

And the whole point was to move American public opinion to the side of Britain.

And Stevenson and his crew, aided by William Donovan, who was his channel to Franklin Roosevelt,

would use the usual techniques of propaganda,

of planting unacknowledged stories,

of arranging for rumors to appear,

and then appear to be confirmed by other rumors,

and so to manipulate American opinion

with the covert blessing of the administration

of the United States, of the president.

...