The Irish and the American Presidency by Nicole Anderson Yanoso

Author:Nicole Anderson Yanoso [Yanoso, Nicole Anderson]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Americas (North; Central; South; West Indies)
ISBN: 9781351480635
Google: mxwuDwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2017-07-05T01:29:32+00:00

In the Wilson camp, Tumulty recognized, as he always did, that the opposition forces were gaining momentum in their drive to defeat the treaty. Tumulty urged the president to embark on a nationwide speaking tour to take his case for the treaty directly to the people. Despite suffering from declining health, Wilson ignored his doctors’ warnings and agreed to Tumulty’s suggestions. He began a twenty-seven-day tour of the country in September 1919. Tumulty had planned the president’s speaking schedule meticulously, avoiding the Democratic South and Republican East where opposition to the treaty seemed strongest, and instead focusing on the Midwest and Far West, where it was believed Wilson would encounter friendlier audiences more susceptible to persuasion.

In fact, the president met with opposition wherever he spoke. The Friends of Irish Freedom and the Irreconcilables made sure of this, and thanks to their efforts, Wilson had to contend with hecklers at every stop he made. The Friends of Irish Freedom made certain that the hyphenates came out in full force wherever Wilson appeared in the Midwest.258 Those hyphenates of Irish extraction remained angry that Wilson had lied to Ireland in refusing to fight for Irish independence during the Peace Talks.

Wilson never adequately answered these critics. Indeed, only once did he even try to do so. In mid-September, the San Francisco Labor Council petitioned him about Ireland, the league, and the failed promises of self-determination.259 Responding to this inquiry, Wilson explained that Ireland had been left out of the Peace Talks because the only territories discussed had been those belonging to the defeated Central Powers. Also, Wilson denied that any article of the Covenant would force the United States to fight against the Irish. But De Valera balked at this claim and turned the argument back to where Wilson stood on weaker ground. “The point,” De Valera insisted, “is that the right of national self-determination is in no way recognized in the proposed foundation for the league.”260

Matters worsened for Wilson. On September 25, he abruptly had to cut his speaking tour short and return to Washington upon falling seriously ill in Pueblo, Colorado. Meanwhile from his standpoint, attitudes in the Senate had scarcely improved. Then, on October 2 Wilson suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed. He would survive, but from that day forward Wilson was a very sick man, both mentally and physically. No longer was he in any condition to wage a vigorous fight for ratification of the Treaty of Versailles.

The Senate debate over the treaty lasted for five months after Wilson’s stroke. During that time, Senator Lodge attempted to pass the treaty with reservations twice: once in November and then again on March 19. Both times, Wilson sent word to Senate Democrats demanding they vote down the treaty with its “obnoxious reservations.”261 When the treaty did not get the necessary two-thirds majority in March thanks to a combination of Wilson-compliant Democrats and the Irreconcilables, the battle for ratification ceased.

Cohalan and other Irish-American leaders exulted in victory. In a March press

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.