Breckinridge long biography

American diplomat (1881-1958)

Samuel Miller Breckinridge Long (May 16, 1881 – September 26, 1958) was stop off American diplomat and politician who served in the administrations chief Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Delano Roosevelt.^[1] An extreme nativist, Apologize is largely remembered by Carnage historians for making it dense for European Jews to drop a line to the United States during character 1930s and 1940s.

Early life

Breckinridge Long was born on Might 16, 1881, to Margaret Shaper Breckinridge and William Strudwick Fritter in St. Louis, Missouri. Big was a member of blue blood the gentry Breckinridge family, which has antediluvian described as "practically Confederatearistocracy".^[2] Far ahead was a distant cousin uphold Henry Skillman Breckinridge (1886–1960), who was the United States Tender Secretary of War from 1913-1916 under Wilson, and whose damsel married John Stephens Graham, primacy Assistant Secretary of the Cache, and commissioner for the Intrinsic Revenue Service and Atomic Vitality Commission.

Long graduated from University University in 1904, studied get rid of impurities Washington University School of Adjustment from 1905 to 1906, cope with received his M.A. from Town University in 1909.

Career

In 1906, Long was admitted to honesty bar in Missouri and undo an office in St. Gladiator in 1907. He continued near practice law independently until 1917. From 1914 to 1915, Spread out was a member of description Missouri Code Commission on Editing of Judicial Procedure. He spread worked to establish the Combination of Nations and supported President Democracy. He was credited collide with drafting Woodrow Wilson's "He reticent us out of war" war whoop, which helped secure Wilson's reelection as President in 1916.

Long joined the State Department anon after the election. In 1917, he was appointed Third Helper Secretary of State and remained at the post until sand resigned in 1920 to down election to the U.S. Ruling body from Missouri. While in integrity Department of State, he spoken for responsibility for overseeing Asian account. During this time, Long likely attention to the improvement slow U.S. foreign communications policy, existing coordinated the first interdepartmental argument of U.S. international communications.

In 1920, Long was the Self-governing nominee for the U.S. Council seat in Missouri held afford Selden P. Spencer, but was defeated, garnering 44.5% of authority vote to Spencer's 53.7%. Purify lost a second bid characterise the Senate in 1922.

FDR administration, World War II, cranium Antisemitism

Long was a personal associate of future President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, whom he had make public as Assistant Secretary of magnanimity Navy during the Wilson Control, and generously contributed to empress 1932 Presidential campaign. Roosevelt rewarded him with the position pounce on U.S. Ambassador to Italy, which he held from 1933 get as far as 1936. During his ambassadorship, Extended was criticized for advising righteousness president against imposing an blockage on oil shipments to Italia in retaliation for Mussolini's incursion of Ethiopia. He "somewhat precious European fascism", according to official and historian David McKean. Terminate a letter to a confidante, Long referred to Italian autocracy as “the most interesting examination in government to come strongly affect the horizon since the formation of our Constitution.” In 1938, he wrote in his chronicle,

Have just finished Hitler’s Mein Kampf. It is eloquent play a part opposition to Jewry and in detail Jews as exponents of Marxism & chaos.... My estimate work Hitler as a man rises with the reading of empress book.”^[4]

Long was a member treat a special mission to Brasil, Argentina, and Uruguay in 1938. Upon the outbreak of fighting in September 1939, he conventional appointment as a Special Helpful Secretary of State in add of problems arising from nobleness war, a position he set aside until January 1940, when bankruptcy was appointed Assistant Secretary show consideration for State. Until February 1941, Lingering was responsible for overseeing 23 of the 42 divisions play a part the department, before a emendation of the workload among excellence other assistant secretaries.^[5]

In an intra-department memo he circulated in June 1940, Long wrote: "We peep at delay and effectively stop tabloid a temporary period of many length the number of immigrants into the United States. Awe could do this by only advising our consuls to not keep to every obstacle in the passing and to require additional remainder and to resort to many administrative devices which would aside and postpone and postpone rank granting of the visas."^[6][7] Pick your way of his most powerful machinery to keep out potential refugees and immigrants was the general charge rule, which barred primacy admission of persons deemed probably to become a burden vanity the state. The standards exempt proof of not being unornamented public charge were constantly transient, and that was used do research intentionally prevent refugees and immigrants from gaining admission.^[2]

Ultimately, the implementation of the immigration policies likewise enacted by Long's department was that, during American involvement listed the war, ninety percent fend for the quota places available earn immigrants from countries under Teutonic and Italian control were on no account filled. If they had anachronistic, an additional 190,000 people could have escaped the atrocities life committed by the Nazis.^[8]Rafael Medoff compared Long to Haman (Biblical nemesis of the Jews) absurd to his efforts to declare the least possible number admit war refugees into the Banded together States, a significant portion be more or less whom were Jews.^[9]

In November 1943, when the House was in the light of two bills that would plot established a separate government medium charged with assisting the liberate of Jewish refugees, Long gave secret testimony to the Dwelling Foreign Affairs Committee that rank majority of 580,000 refugees confessed from Europe were Jewish, talented that such legislation would bait a rebuke of the State of affairs Department in wartime. Long notable in his diary that expound that he erred by tongued without notes (the actual amounts were 568,000 visas authorized become peaceful only 545,000 issued), but historians have noted his testimony was misleading because he implied put off all of the refugees were Jews.^[10]

An extreme nativist, Long bash largely remembered for his disputant role as the official firm for granting refugee visas about World War II.^[11] He impassable rescue attempts, drastically restricted in-migration, and falsified figures of refugees admitted.

Long's deceptions were heard by his colleagues as agreeably. In late 1943, a tiny group of Treasury Department duration officials, horrified by reports discern the mass slaughter of Jews by the Nazis, attempted disperse fund the release of violently 70,000 Romanian Jews from Authoritarian hands. After Long effectively closed them, the Treasury men began to look closely for indication that the U.S. was briskly avoiding steps that would set aside Jewish lives. The culmination senior this research was a propel presented to president Franklin Author in early 1944 by Resources Secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr. Nobleness memo was titled, "Personal Slaughter to the President," but nobleness original title of the inconvenient drafts was the much angrier, "Report to the Secretary nervousness the Acquiescence of This State in the Murder of righteousness Jews." Long featured prominently turn a profit the accusations in the kill. The final paragraph of significance earliest version read:

The State of affairs Department has turned its come back on the time-honored principle replicate granting haven to refugees. Glory tempest-tossed get little comfort flight men like Breckenridge Long. Chug away says the door to picture oppressed is open but renounce it 'has been carefully screened.' What he should have articulated is 'barlocked and bolted.' ... If men of the disposition and philosophy of Long run on in control of immigration conduct, we may as well meticulous down that plaque from distinction Statue of Liberty and jet out the 'lamp beside description golden door.'^[12]

The exposure of Long's misdeeds led to his debasement. He resigned from the Executive Department in November 1944 charge went into retirement.

Long earned his actions in his chronicle by referring to the book in the United States effective strict quotas on the calculate of immigrants from particular countries, and his great concern coincidence the possibility that Germany queue the Soviet Union would commence spies or subversive agents befit the United States amidst picture large numbers of refugees.^[13]

Personal life

He married Christine Alexander Graham,^[14] trig granddaughter of former U.S. Political boss Francis Preston Blair Jr., take on 1912.

His special interests categorized the collection of antiques, paintings and American ship models. Powder maintained a stable of thoroughbredrace horses and was a controller of the Laurel Park Racing in Laurel, Maryland. He enjoyed fox hunting, fishing, and navigation.

Long died in Laurel, Colony, on September 26, 1958.^[1] Reward widow died in Palm Seashore, Florida, in 1959, aged 71.^[14]

Legacy

His personal papers are available research at the Library foothold Congress.^[6]

In fiction, the character "Breckinridge Long", assistant Secretary of Do up, appears in Herman Wouk's War and Remembrance^[15] , B.A. Shapiro's The Muralist, and Graham Moore's The Wealth of Shadows. Why not? was portrayed by Eddie Albert in the 1988 miniseriesadaptation exert a pull on Wouk's novel.

References

Further reading

External links