Operation Dynamo Is Underway; Clinton Renews China's Trade Benefits: Today In History

May 26, 2017, is the 146th day of the year, with 219 days remaining. The moon is in a waxing crescent phase, with illumination at 1 percent.

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Operation Dynamo: Roosevelt appeals for Red Cross

The year is 1940.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt has made known to the American people the dire straits of Belgian and French civilians who were suffering the fallout of the British-German battle to reach the northern coast of France. The president consequently appealed for support for the Red Cross.

The following day, the British Expeditionary Force was evacuated from Dunkirk in France, and ships arrived at Calais to remove the Force before German troops could occupy the idea. It was hoped that 45,000 British soldiers could be delivered back to Britain within two days.

The German air force, however, had other plans.

China's trade benefits vs. China's human rights abuses

In 1994, the New York Times reported on President Bill Clinton’s decision to renew China’s trade benefits in what was the culmination of a clash between America’s global economic interests and Washington, DC’s image as the leading advocate of human rights.

“To those who argue that, in view of China’s human rights abuses, we should revoke MFN status, let me ask you the same question that I have asked myself: Will we do more to advance the cause of human rights if China is isolated or if our nations are engaged in a growing web of political and economic cooperation and contacts?”

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