When America Worked

He Saved the World: Edward R. Stettinius, Jr.

November 30, 2020 Bill Season 1 Episode 1
When America Worked
He Saved the World: Edward R. Stettinius, Jr.
Show Notes Chapter Markers

The almost-completely forgotten Secretary of State for FDR and Truman, Edward R.  Stettinius, Jr. did more than anyone to create the United Nations. He was derided in his time as an intellectual lightweight who lacked diplomatic experience. But he navigated a thicket of international disputes to maintain consensus between FDR, Churchill, Stalin and a litany of smaller nations to forge the final U.N. Charter. If not for an incredible series of events that thrusted Stettinius into the Secretary of State post, the United Nations may not exist today.

Introduction to "When America Worked"
The Sumner Welles Sex Scandal
Cordell Hull, Sumner Welles and the Ultimate Turf Battle
Stettinius Joins the State Department
Dumbarton Oaks and "One of the Saddest Sights"
"The Father of the United Nations" Quits
The New Secretary of State Has "Modest Equipment"
Stettinius Wins Over Churchill and Stalin at Yalta
The Secret Role of (What Would Become) the NSA
Mexico City and the Argentina Problem
Truman's First Decision
The World Comes to San Francisco. (And So Do the Spies)
The Argentina Tango
The Demise of Colonization
Pushed to the Brink
Stettinius' "Reward"
Final Days
Liner Notes