President Barack Obama incorrectly asserted that assisting the British when London was bombed by Nazi Germany was deeply unpopular with the United States public.
Obama attempted to draw parallels between the Battle of Britain and the current crisis in Syria Friday at his G20 press conference.
"I'm not drawing an analogy to World War II, other than to say when London was getting bombed, it was profoundly unpopular both in Congress and around the country to help the British," he said. "It doesn't mean it wasn't the right thing to do. Just means people, you know, are struggling with jobs and bills to pay and they don't want their sons or daughters put in harm's way. These entanglements far away are dangerous and different."
Public polling form the time period contradicts Obama's statement.
A Gallup poll in 1940, when the German bombing campaign in Britain took place, showed 60 percent of Americans felt it was more important to help England win, even at risk of going to war, than to stay out.
Additionally, 68 percent of Americans believed the future safety of the United States depended on England winning the war, and 85 percent felt England would lose if Americans stopped sending war materials to help.
In March 1941, Congress passed the Lend-Lease Act, which empowered the president to lend, lease or exchange war materials with countries whose entanglements were considered crucial to national security.
In contrast, a recent Washington Post-ABC poll shows 59 percent of Americans oppose launching missile strikes against the Syrian government.