William E. Borah Quotes
It imperils what I conceive to be the underlying, the very first principles of this Republic. It is in conflict with the right of our people to govern themselves free from all restraint, legal or moral, of foreign powers....
Borah in this quotation reflects a deeply held view of a minority of Americans who are opposed to any foreign force—“legal or moral”—influencing affairs in America. The concern is rarely stated with such eloquence. By Borah’s standards our participation in the United Nations is wrong and unwise.
William E. Borah, 1865-1940, U. S. Senator (Republican, ID), Reason given for voting against the League of Nations Treaty, Speech, November 19, 1919
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
Leading the Senate opposition to the League of Nations proposed by Woodrow Wilson:
The Japanese diplomats of the day maintained that in addition to the special needs of Japan {616181} and {616183}, the “white” powers had colonies and if they left Korea, white nations would simply come in and annex it as a colony. The Japanese saw this as a double standard—white nations could have colonies but Asian nations, no. In reality, Colonialism was fading even in the white nations but Japan was coming to it anew. Their timing was on the wrong cusp of history. The example of Ireland transformed to an independent republic shortly thereafter. For colonialism, the handwriting was on the wall but the Japanese preferred not to look at the trend but the then status quo.
He attempted to broker an agreement between India’s Muslims and Hindus as to the form of the successor government.
The great irony was that under the British, government of India, including the Pakistan area was quite good. However, after independence, India developed democratic government and is improving its governance to where it is almost good government. Pakistan, in marked contrast, had a democracy when Independence was attained and quickly fell into one dictatorship after another. And none of the governments came close to being good Government. Pakistan has a very corrupt and incompetent government—both military and civilian. However, at the time this quotation was made, the leaders of Pakistan were hopeful about and committed to good and democratic government. But neither ever happened.
William Edgar Borah was an outspoken Republican United States Senator, one of the best-known figures in Idaho's history. A progressive who served from 1907 until his death in 1940, Borah is often considered an isolationist, because he led the Irreconcilables, senators who would not accept the Treaty of Versailles, Senate ratification of which would have made the U.S. part of the League of Nations.
