# American Isolationism and the European Origins of War

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/a-journey-into-human-history-6372765/american-isolationism-and-the-european-origins-of-war
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/a-journey-into-human-history-6372765/american-isolationism-and-the-european-origins-of-war.md
Podcast: [A Journey into Human History](https://stenobird.com/podcast/a-journey-into-human-history-6372765)
Published: 2026-09-21T11:10:02+00:00
Episode link: https://openstax.org/books/us-history/pages/23-1-american-isolationism-and-the-european-origins-of-war
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/74659523/1787598057987_voicemaker_in_speech.mp3
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Duration seconds: 1192

## Resource

President Wilson had no desire to embroil the United States in the bloody and lengthy war that was devastating Europe. His foreign policy, through his first term and his campaign for reelection, focused on keeping the United States out of the war and involving the country in international affairs only when there was a moral imperative to do so. After his 1916 reelection, however, the free trade associated with neutrality proved impossible to secure against the total war strategies of the belligerents, particularly Germany’s submarine warfare. Ethnic ties to Europe meant that much of the general public was more than happy to remain neutral. Wilson’s reluctance to go to war was mirrored in Congress, where fifty-six voted against the war resolution. The measure still passed, however, and the United States went to war against the wishes of many of its citizens. All images referenced in this podcast can be found at https://openstax.org/books/us-history/pages/23-1-american-isolationism-and-the-european-origins-of-war Welcome to A Journey into Human History. This podcast will attempt to tell the whole human story. The content contained in this podcast was produced by OpenStax and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. Access for free at https://openstax.org/details/books/us-history Podcast produced by Miranda Casturo as a Creative Common Sense production. No part of this podcast is made with generative AI Voice narration provided by computerized text-to-speech through voicemaker.in For those who prefer ad free listening other options of support are available. https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/a-journey-into-human-history--5860966/support

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