Walter Lippmann and the American Century — 11 The Inquiry

1. 1. The Inquiry was a secret group of experts tasked with drawing up postwar peace plans, including new European frontiers.
2. 2. The Bolsheviks published the secret treaties between the Allies, revealing plans to divide spoils, which embarrassed Wilson and contradicted his ideals.
3. 3. Wilson's Fourteen Points address on January 8, 1918, was based largely on the Inquiry's memorandum drafted by Lippmann and his team.
4. 4. Point Six of the Fourteen Points repudiated Allied efforts to overthrow the Bolshevik government, calling for Russia's self-determination.
5. 5. Point Ten supported autonomy for national groups within Austria-Hungary, but Wilson later agreed to dissolve the empire, which Lippmann blamed for enabling Hitler.
6. 6. Lippmann opposed Allied intervention in Russia, arguing the U.S. should work with the Bolsheviks and maintain a friendly attitude.
7. 7. Lippmann's influence was limited; his ideas succeeded only when they aligned with administration policy, not when they contradicted it.
8. 8. Rivalry at the Inquiry, especially with Isaiah Bowman, undermined Lippmann's position; Bowman accused him of being selfish and ambitious.