Cordell Hull Quotes
You cannot give an ultimatum to a powerful and proud people and not expect them to react violently.
Cordell Hull, 1871-1955, U. S. Congressman & U.S. Senator (Democrat, TN), U. S. Secretary of State, Nobel Laureate in Peace, Chairman, Democratic National Committee, 1941
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
This appears to be the first American utterance of a longstanding doctrine of foreign policy.
He grossly underestimated the intensity of the American patriotic feeling and the fighting ability of the Colonists. He Commanded the Royal Marines at the Battle of Bunker Hill where he was killed by a shot fired by ex-slave and Black Patriot, Peter Salem. Note the recommendation to destroy towns. At the time, that was considered improper in warfare between nations, yet it was not so clear in fighting a rebellion. However, this was against British policy and it was not a tactic employed in trying to suppress the American Revolution.
He had a lifelong hatred toward the Internal Revenue Service. Finally he crashed his single engine airplane into the IRS offices, killing an IRS agent and committing suicide in a different version of suicide bombing.
Shortly after, he backed off the notion of having a bloodbath removing protesting students.
A variant of this quotation was used by Admiral of the German Navy. See {609658}.
Cordell Hull was an American politician from Tennessee and the longest-serving U.S. Secretary of State, holding the position for 11 years (1933–1944) in the administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt during most of World War II. Before that appointment he represented Tennessee for two years in the United States Senate and twenty-four years in the House of Representatives.
