July 18, 1940
“NEW YORK, Wednesday—…This is a serious time in our history, not a time for blind partisanship but a time for careful consideration of what the two major political parties have to offer, not only for the service and safety of our own nation, but for the service that may lie ahead of us because of our position in the world.
There is no such thing as isolation. We desire peace for the protection of our people from the horrors of war, but we cannot cut ourselves off from the conditions which prevail in other nations. What they suffer, we must feel one way or the other.
In a newspaper, I saw that someone said, in effect, that we are a bankrupt nation. The allusion was entirely to our financial status. No nation is bankrupt which has natural resources and production potentialities, and undaunted and unified people. These things we have, and I count on our engaging in this campaign with a determination to use our best judgment to make this country a steadying force, and a beacon of light to all people who believe in freedom and the triumph of the theory of government which is based on spiritual values.”