FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT (fdr) was in Chicago in October 1937 to open a new bridge. It was a typical example of the infrastructure projects that were integral to the president’s New Deal, which had alleviated the Great Depression and given Americans a sense of economic security. Perhaps 1m people turned up to hear him speak and enjoy a parade. Roosevelt used the occasion to deliver what would become one of the most consequential foreign-policy speeches in history.
