Victor Davis Hanson: World War II Was a Brilliant Work of American ‘Strategy, Productivity, Courage, and Sacrifice’

Sep 4, 2025

Victor Davis Hanson discusses the brilliance of American strategy during World War II, highlighting how the U.S. managed to defeat the Axis powers with minimal losses. He explains the controversial alliance with the Soviet Union, arguing it was a practical military decision that ultimately led to the defeat of Germany. With a focus on the economic efficiency of the American approach, he showcases the significant sacrifices made and examines the broader implications of these strategies for global power dynamics in the post-war era.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

ANECDOTE

Clarifying A Controversy Over Revisionism

Hanson recounts his disagreement with David Cullum's suggestion of allying with Hitler and his critique of WWII revisionism.
He clarifies he singled out Cullum as the one who suggested fighting with Hitler, not other critics like Diana West.

ANECDOTE

Defense Against Misattributed Headline

Hanson reads Diana West's demand for an apology and disputes claims he circulated a photo or created the headline.
He says he has no control over the Daily Signal title or third-party images that appeared online.

INSIGHT

Strategic Use Of Soviet Manpower

Victor Davis Hanson argues the U.S. wisely used material aid to let the Soviet Union bear the brunt of defeating Germany.
That strategy minimized American combat losses while destroying the greatest threat to mankind, he contends.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

“World War II was a brilliant work of American strategy, productivity, and courage and sacrifice. And the result was we destroyed the greatest threat to mankind, and we did it as economically as we could in American cost and lives,” Victor Davis Hanson says.

He also addresses why the U.S. allied with the Soviet Union during the war:

"We fought World War II and won the war, and we came away with losing very few soldiers.

At the end of the war, the Soviet Union had no intention … of honoring their commitments made both at Yalta and then before the Japanese theater had ended at Potsdam.

“But nevertheless, when the war was over, the United States was the preeminent power in the world—except for Britain—had lost fewer combatants than any of the major three allies, Britain, the United States, Russia, and China as well, and had lost fewer than Japan and Germany.

“So, we fought that war very economically by giving material aid to the Soviet Union, who used their manpower and lost 20 million people to kill three out of every four German soldiers.

“That's not an argument that you like the Soviet Union. I detest the Soviet Union. But it's an argument that in the ability of the United States to defeat Germany in 1941, it was a wise military strategy to use a third party to kill the German army, kill it off, and that's what happened, it was a success."

👉Don’t miss out on Victor’s latest videos by subscribing to The Daily Signal today. You’ll be notified every time a new piece of content drops: https://www.youtube.com/dailysignal?sub_confirmation=1

👉If you can’t get enough of Victor Davis Hanson from The Daily Signal, subscribe to his official YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@victordavishanson7273

👉He’s also the host of “The Victor Davis Hanson Show,” available wherever you prefer to watch or listen. Links to the show and exclusive content are available on his website: https://victorhanson.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices