When war started in Europe in 1939, Americans wanted no part of another European conflict. A Gallup poll showed that 70% of Americans even thought it was a mistake that we had fought in WWI. As much as President Roosevelt felt we would have to enter, Congress was controlled by Isolationists who were not interested. In 1937, FDR gave a speech that suggested we may be needed to fight if things got bad. That was the last speech of the kind he gave after his approval ratings took a hit. He even ran in 1940, as an anti-war candidate, even though he knew we would eventually have to join the fight.
Historically Speaking 