Only One Member of Congress Voted Against Declaring War On Japan
An unpopular vote
It only took one day for the United States to declare war on Japan after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. As soon as reports of the stunning blow started flowing into Washington the mood was tense. People were angry. There was a sense of shock that stretched from Hawaii to Massachusetts. War had come to America against her will.
The hasty declaration of war reflected the mood in the nation. It did not take any debate or lengthy discussions. America was at war. Congress heeded the call and made their declaration on December 8th, 1941 directly following the attacks.
The declaration would have been unanimous save for one single vote. Despite being attacked and having multiple battleships smashed and thousands killed, one representative still did not want to vote for a declaration of war.
There was only one dissenting vote in all of Congress that day and it belonged to Jeannette Rankin of Montana.
A true pacifist
Rankin was the first woman to ever hold federal office in the United States. She served two terms…
