After World War I, many in the United States favored isolationism. Woodrow Wilson's attempt to form a League of Nations was quickly derided by the Republican Party who sought to keep the world at arm's length. Even when Germany began to re-militarize under Hitler, there were many in the United States who wanted to maintain neutrality. President Franklin D. Roosevelt saw that Hitler would not be satisfied until he had conquered Europe- and by that time, it might be too late to keep him at bay.
Unfortunately, the Republicans were still claiming they wanted to stay out of the war, though whether they were doing so out of true conviction or to be contrary was up for debate. After the Nazi ally Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, however, the country could no longer hide its head in the sand.
