Did President Roosevelt know that Japan was planning an attack on Pearl Harbor?

Topic:
U.S. Political Debates

19 Contributors
in this discussion.

Yes
47% of users

  • Army intelligence showed the potential, but options were limited.

    Army intelligence showed Roosevelt that their was the potential for a Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Past history had already created bad relations between the USA and Japan, making a war rather likely. But, options were limited for what Roosevelt could do, either way. He could preemptively attack Japan or its fleet, and simply moving the American fleet would have simply delayed action. The USA and Japan were inching closer and closer to a war, and there wasn't much to prevent it, especially with the view of the average American, at the time, towards isolation and World War 2.

    Yes KnownEvan

  • he knew

    Not only did FDR Know he did everything possible to provoke it. For those that say he would have protected America and its citizens I say that Hawaii was not a US state at that time and not until 1959. The damage was not as bad as believed. The US Pacific fleet was NOT destroyed. Most of the sunk vessels were re-floated and used in the war. The main vessels used to win the war, which Japan must have known since they used them attacking Pearl Harbor, the four aircraft carriers, were not even at Pearl that day. So the fleet was not hindered much. 2000 lost lives or so, while not good, was nothing comparing to the tens of millions lost in WWII. Churchill supposedly allowed the English city of Coventry, be bombed (so not to tip off the Germans that their code had been broken).

    Yes Anonymous

  • I do believe that FDR had knowledge of some plans being made against the U.S., because there are too many question marks and various documents stating he had prior knowledge.

    I do believe that FDR had prior knowledge to Japan planning some sort of attack on the U.S. I don't believe that he really knew how bad or catastrophic the attack itself would be. Recently, I have read numerous reports stating that the Freedom of Information Act files may have proved that FDR did have knowledge that Japan was up to something. Most prefer to believe that a President wouldn't let something like that happen, but he is human like the rest of us. And I have been swayed more and more towards him knowing, ever since reading the documents and reports online.

    Yes MachoFletcher61

  • Of course he knew

    All one has to do is see the catalysts for war in our history to conclude this too was a false flag. The "Sinking of the Maine" and "Gulf of Tonkin Incidence" were known staged events among others. Why is one to assume any differently here too? There are too many "coincidences" that pile up including the McCollum memo, various intelligence gathering, lack of early detection or alerts, consolidation of forces in one location and the debunked Japanese radio silence myth to name a few. The evidence is there. Warning: once this lie is revealed, it will open up a floodgates more.

    Yes Anonymous

  • I believe that Roosevelt didn't know that Japan was planning an attack on Pearl Harbor because no reasonable leader would allow innocent people to be killed in order to end economic problems.

    The attack on Pearl Harbor, and our subsequent entry into WWII, did ultimately help the U.S. economy, but at a very, very high cost. The U.S. President has a unique responsibility in that one of his primary duties is to protect the citizenry. If Roosevelt had any credible reports -- not just rumors or vague threats -- that Japan was going to attack us, he would have been honor bound, duty bound, and I believe, Constitutionally bound to do whatever was in his power to thwart the attack.

    Yes SpoiledKelly

  • I agree that President Roosevelt knew of the Pearl Harbor attack; his intelligence information was conclusive and forewarned.

    Foremost, President Roosevelt wanted the United States to join the Allies in World War II, but his designs were not supported by the American people. To contend with that disagreement, he knew that coercing a war-front with the Japanese nation would provide a backdoor entrance. This was done by violations of the Lend-Lease Act, wherein we sold munitions to the Allies in Europe, and the Oil Embargo of Japan, which forced their hand. Furthermore, we had extensive knowledge of an attack on Pearl Harbor beforehand; out of the many warnings, one example would be the infamous Bellinger and Martin report that specifically stated Pearl Harbor as the primary target of the Japanese Fleet.

    Yes Asher Cummings

  • Although it sounds hard to believe, nothing happens in a vacuum and I would think that intelligence would have had some idea that this was being planned.

    There were many people in the United States who didn't want this country to enter WWII. The bombing of Pearl Harbor gave the US the perfect excuse to no longer remain neutral and enter the war. I think that intelligence at the time had information about the upcoming attack and it was more than likely an event that could have been prevented but was there was a decision made not to stop it, thus allowing the US to enter the war with the full backing of the population of the US.

    Yes 54IInferno

  • No, he did not.

    Roosevelt may have suspected that Japan was going to attack, but he did not know. The evidence indicates that Japan was up to something and an attack was imminent, but there is no evidence that Roosevelt was aware that they intended on attacking Pearl Harbor. The attack was an extremely bold move and very few people could envision it. The Japanese were excellent in covering their tracks, leaving little trace that the attack would be coming there.

    Yes R43Shep

  • I believe Roosevelt knew that Japan was planning an attack on Pearl Harbor.

    Roosevelt wanted to help the allies in World War II. They only way for the United States to get involved in the war was if the United States was directly attacked by a nation in the axis of evil. The attack on Pearl Harbor was necessary for the United States to help the allies. There is evidence that shows Roosevelt knew of the attack and was able to prepare troops for a counter attack at an astonishing speed.

    Yes N Thomas
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No
53% of users

  • President Roosevelt suspected an attack was coming, but was told it would probably be somewhere else in the Pacific.

    From what I have read about the events leading up to Pearl Harbor, American intelligence suspected the Japanese were planning an attack, but considered the Philippines a more likely target. The Americans had broken the Japanese diplomatic codes and were reading their dispatches sent to the Japanese embassy in Washington. And, they had strong suspicions of an attack, but did not know where.

    No ddeathnote

  • Roosevelt did not know about the specific attack on Pearl Harbor because, otherwise, he would have done more to protect the Pacific fleet.

    It is no secret that Roosevelt desperately wanted the U.S. to enter World War II, despite the wishes of most Americans not to. Some theorize that Roosevelt knew of the planned attack on Pearl Harbor, but did nothing, as he knew the attack would bring the U.S. into the war. This is unlikely, as he would have at least greatly increased defense prior to the attack to protect the Pacific fleet. Furthermore, while Japan was hostile towards the U.S., the assumption was that it would attack the U.S.-held Philippines, not Pearl Harbor.

    No EminentBennett93

  • I do not believe Roosevelt would have done nothing to prevent the loss of life and military assets caused by the attack, if he had prior knowledge of it.

    Many sailors were fast asleep on some of the docked ships when the Japanese began their attack. Since the ships were the primary target of the attack, many more sailors were killed than would have been, if they had been awake and off the ships. If Roosevelt had been aware of an impending attack, I believe efforts would have been made to minimize the loss of life, by having the sailors up early and off the ships.

    No Kri5Java

  • President Roosevelt did not know Japan was going to attack Pearl Harbor, because it was thought that Japan was too far away to ever attack.

    I do not remember much from history class, but I do remember my teacher telling us that the attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise. From my understanding, the U.S. assumed that, since Japan was such a great distance away from Hawaii, they would not attack. Japan, on the other hand, used this strategy and did attack Pearl Harbor.

    No StripperMor

  • No Roosevelt did not know that Japan was going to strike Pearl Harbor.

    While it was true that the US knew Japan was attempting something, they did not predict Pearl Harbor. There is no way, reason, or logical explenation that would allow a United States President to allow the deaths of thousands of American troops, and the loss of valuable military assets. Anyone who thinks otherwise probably runs around with a tin foil hat to stop the goverment bran control.

    No Anonymous

  • No, he would have evacuated it had he known.

    There is no way a president, having prior knowledge of an attack on Pearl Harbor, would not alert the military and begin preparations for evacuation and defense. The base was so totally unprepared, it was a decisive victory for Japan. No American president would ever sacrifice the naval fleet and American lives by not warning the base ahead of time.

    No NettN355

  • President Roosevelt did not know there was to be an attack on Pearl Harbor because he would not have allowed such a vicious attack on the United States itself.

    While he may have supposed that some kind of attack would happen at some time and somewhere (maybe the Philippines, Guam, or Midway), to imagine that he would have allowed the attack that took place would be to imagine that he was somehow traitorous. Far too much damage was done and far too many lives lost in the Pearl Harbor attack to believe that the President of this country could have known about it and allowed it to happen. President Roosevelt loved the Navy, having once been Assistant Secretary of the Navy. Surely he could not have willingly let something so bad happen to the very organization he had once helped to lead.

    No OnfBIeak

  • He knew an attack was likely, not the place and time.

    Intelligence has always been a game of partial information and best guesses. The US government clearly knew that Japan intended to attack them at some point, but knowing the date and time of the operation is usually impossible. Even within the Japanese government and military very few people knew the date and time of the attack or the place. Think about 9/11, it was common knowledge that Al Quaeda wanted to attack the United States, and had completed prior attacks, but the place and time weren't known until it happened.

    No MaraW

  • President Roosevelt would have taken adequate measures to protect the country in the face of such an attack, hence I oppose.

    Japan would have planned their attack in a most secretive manner. Details of such an attack does not normally leak out to common public, and in extreme cases, to the country in question. President Roosevelt would have taken appropriate preventive measures to safeguard the interest of his nation and its people.

    No WormanNiv

  • President Roosevelt knew nothing about the Japanese planning to attack Pearl Harbor.

    Roosevelt did not know about the possible attacks. The situation was tense and he was afraid regarding possible actions from the Japanese, but he never imagined they would attack Pearl Harbor. The Japanese were very silent and the attacks were a complete surprise for everybody, including Roosevelt. Roosevelt at that time was analyzing the possibility of declaring war on Japan. The attacks made him make the decision very quickly.

    No l0olllooi
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Did President Roosevelt know that Japan was planning an attack on Pearl Harbor?
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