Government, industry, and labor would need to cooperate. Meeting these challenges would require massive government spending, conversion of existing industries to wartime production, construction of huge new factories, changes in consumption, and restrictions on many aspects of American life. At the same time, it had to find a way to provide material aid to its hard-pressed allies in Great Britain and the Soviet Union. It had to prepare to fight on two distant and very different fronts, Europe and the Pacific.Īmerica needed to quickly raise, train, and outfit a vast military force. Ill-equipped and wounded, the nation was at war with three formidable adversaries. The United States faced a mammoth job in December 1941. But the job the nation faced in December 1941 was formidable. It had allies in this fight-most importantly Great Britain and the Soviet Union. Three days later, Germany and Italy, allied with Japan, declared war on the United States. The declaration passed with just one dissenting vote. On December 8, President Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war against Japan. Though stunned by the events of December 7, Americans were also resolute. "No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory." Over 2,400 servicemen and civilians lost their lives. In a two-hour attack, Japanese warplanes sank or damaged 18 warships and destroyed 164 aircraft. The most devastating strike came at Pearl Harbor, the Hawaiian naval base where much of the US Pacific Fleet was moored. December 7, 1941: A Day That Will Live in InfamyĪmerica's isolation from war ended on December 7, 1941, when Japan staged a surprise attack on American military installations in the Pacific.
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