Ludlow amendment
The Ludlow amendment was a proposed constitutional amendment in the United States during the 1930s, named after Congressman Louis Ludlow, who introduced it. The amendment aimed to require a public referendum before the country could enter into war, reflecting the antiwar and isolationist sentiments prevalent in American society at the time. Supporters believed that this measure could potentially lead to a reduction in global conflicts, echoing the aspirations associated with the Kellogg-Briand Pact of the 1920s, which sought to outlaw war altogether. Despite its popularity among certain groups, it faced significant opposition from figures like President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who criticized it as weak and impractical. The amendment came closest to being debated in Congress, but ultimately, a vote fell short by about twenty votes in the House. The proposal underscored a significant public desire for peace and demonstrated Congress's responsiveness to the prevailing antiwar sentiment. While the political landscape shifted leading up to World War II, the Ludlow amendment represents a moment in U.S. history where the collective voice of the populace sought to influence national policy on war.
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Ludlow amendment
The Law Failed constitutional amendment that would have required a public vote on going to war
Date Introduced in Congress multiple times between 1935 and 1940
This proposed amendment, which almost made it to the floor of the House of Representatives, signified the deep public opposition to war and to U.S. involvement with the world. While the amendment did not pass, the level of support exhibited for it indicated that the United States, as of 1938, was generally not ready to be involved with foreign affairs.
During the 1910’s and 1920’s, the amendment was introduced in a number of different forms, but it got its greatest support during the 1930’s because of antiwar and isolationist sentiment. Congressman Louis Ludlow introduced the 1930’s version; thus, it was named for him. The amendment would have required a public vote on whether or not to go to war; some thought that this amendment might lead to an end to war around the world, similar to how people felt about the Kellogg-Briand Pact of the 1920’s. The Ludlow amendment was widely opposed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and others who considered it to be either weak or impractical, but many people favored it. The closest that it got to passage was a vote that, if approved, would have allowed congressional debate on the measure; that vote failed by about twenty votes in the House of Representatives.
Impact
The proposed Ludlow amendment reinforced popular sentiment that the United States should not go to war and showed that Congress was listening to the American populace. It was similar to the Oxford Pledge in England and demonstrated that much of the world was not ready to fight, regardless of the reason. Those opinions changed in Great Britain by 1939 and in the United States by 1941, but a strong antiwar sentiment persisted during the 1930’s.
Bibliography
Doenecke, Justus D., and Mark A. Stoler. Debating Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Foreign Policies, 1933-1945. Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield, 2005.
Dubofsky, Melvyn, and Stephen Burwood, eds. American Foreign Policy in the 1930’s: Selected Articles on the Depression, the New Deal, and Foreign Relations. New York: Garland, 1990.
Herring, George C. From Colony to Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations Since 1776. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.