Walter Lippmann and the American Century — 20 Men of Destiny

1. 1. Lippmann believed Al Smith was the foremost master of popular government in his time.
2. 2. Lippmann argued that opposition to Smith was rooted in his image as a symbol of urban immigrant America, not his politics.
3. 3. Lippmann tried to rehabilitate Tammany Hall's reputation by inventing a 'new Tammany' that was honest and efficient.
4. 4. Lippmann drafted a telegram for Smith urging repeal of the Volstead Act, which was suppressed until after Smith's nomination.
5. 5. Lippmann privately criticized Smith's lack of preparation on national issues, saying his equipment was deplorable.
6. 6. Lippmann supported the 1924 immigration quotas because he believed northern European immigrants were more easily assimilated.
7. 7. Lippmann considered the absence of consistent national principle in American parties fundamental to domestic peace.
8. 8. Lippmann was an early American opponent of Mussolini, writing that fascism was a dictatorship that had become more dictatorial.
9. 9. Lippmann feared centralization was incompatible with effective self-government, a concern reinforced by his visit to Italy.
10. 10. Lippmann argued that the Kellogg-Briand Pact was an 'international kiss' because it lacked enforcement mechanisms.
11. 11. Lippmann believed the only realistic hope for peace was a 'political equivalent of war' through world government.
12. 12. Lippmann later apologized for supporting naval disarmament in the 1920s, calling it 'exorbitant folly'.