Why did the Republican Henry Cabot Lodge refuse to ratify the League of Nations?
Answer (2)
Henry Cabot Lodge was one of the best informed statesmen of his time, he was an excellent parliamentarian, and he brought to bear on foreign questions a mind that was at once razor sharp and devoid of much of the moral cant that was so typical of the age....[Yet] Lodge never made the contributions he should have made, largely because of Lodge the person. He was opportunistic, selfish, jealous, condescending, supercilious, and could never resist calling his opponent's spade a dirty shovel. Small wonder that except for Roosevelt and Root, most of his colleagues of both parties disliked him, and many distrusted him
Henry Cabot Lodge refused to ratify the League of Nations due to concerns over American sovereignty, partisan politics against President Wilson, his desire for amendments to the League covenant, and the prevailing isolationist sentiment in the U.S. Ultimately, his objections prevented the U.S. from joining the League, which weakened the organization's impact. Lodge's actions were influenced by both his political motivations and the historical context of the time.
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