Breckinridge Long, American Eichmann???

Students of mid-twentieth-century American political and diplomatic history remember Breckinridge Long as a well-connected and influential force, particularly during the Roosevelt years. Those with a particular concern for the tragically inadequate American efforts to rescue victims of the Holocaust point to Long as a central figure in resisting and obstructing those efforts. He has been characterized as an anti-Semite, a xenophobe, and alternatively as an anti-communist who opposed immigration out of fear of communist infiltration. Interesting historical figures are, regretfully, often reduced to single dimensions, and the complexity of their lives and motivations are lost. In this erudite, thoughtful and well-written biography, Neil Rolde has fleshed out a multidimensional portrait of this gifted, influential and flawed public figure, traced his extraordinary career, and explored a range of theories as to Long’s motivations. In so doing, Rolde has provided a wealth of information not only about Long but also about this critical and troubled chapter in modern American political and diplomatic history. -David M. Gordis, PhD, President Emeritus, Hebrew College