Which quote summarizes President Woodrow Wilson’s approach to the Paris Peace Conference? “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.” “The world must be made safe for democracy.” “Government is not the solution to our problem.”
The third is the only thing Wilson actually said, so that's likely to be your answer. It's also true that Wilson had this idee fixe about the League of Nations being some kind of super world cop that would restrain autocracies from making wars on democracies. He was wrong about that, of course, and about much else, but it isn't that unlikely that by Paris Wilson had already had a small stroke or two, and was no longer fully mentally capable. Wilson's incompetence and ideological rigidity are perhaps the major reason the Paris Peace Conference was, ultimately, a disaster for Europe, and set the stage for the Second World War.
“The world must be made safe for democracy.”
Join our real-time social learning platform and learn together with your friends!