"A Date That Will Forever Live In Infamy," Franklin D. Roosevelt
Just before 8 a.m. on December 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese planes attacked the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, Hawaii. This two hour attack was devastating. The Japanese managed to destroy nearly 20 American naval vessels, including eight enormous battleships, and almost 200 airplanes. More than 2,000 Americans soldiers and sailors died in the attack, and another 1,000 were wounded. The day after the assault, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan. Congress approved it with just one non-agreeing vote. Three days later, Japanese allies Germany and Italy also declared war on the United States, and again Congress declared war. Two years had passed since the beginning of the war, and the U.S. had finally joined World War 2.