What did the Lend-Lease Act authorize?

• A. To declare war against Axis powers
• B. To sell or lend equipment to countries to defend themselves against the Axis powers
• C. To create the United Nations
• D. To impose domestic controls on manufacturing

Answer: (B)

The main idea being tested is how the United States shifted from neutrality to active support for its allies during World War II. The Lend-Lease Act gave the President authority to loan or lease military equipment and other defense articles to foreign governments whose defense was considered vital to the United States. This was a way to bolster Allied forces against the Axis without the United States immediately declaring war, enabling Britain, the Soviet Union, and others to continue fighting while the U.S. remained formally out of combat.

This program helped sustain Allied effort by providing planes, ships, weapons, and other supplies, illustrating a deliberate move toward active involvement in the war beyond mere financial or moral support.

The other options don’t fit because the act was not about declaring war, which is a congressional/presidential decision that marks entry into active conflict; it did not create the United Nations, an international organization established after the war; and it wasn’t about imposing domestic manufacturing controls—that kind of policy belongs to U.S. production and regulatory measures rather than lending war material to foreign nations.