Walter Henry Judd or I-te Chou, was an American politician and physician, best known for his battle in Congress to define the conservative position on China as all-out support for the Nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek and opposition to the Communists under Mao Zedong. After the Nationalists fled to Formosa in 1949, Judd redoubled his support.
Upon his return the United States, he did not urge Americans to be isolationists. Instead, Judd encouraged support of China against Japanese aggression. Elected to the U.S. Congress from Minnesota in 1942, where he became a powerful voice in support of China. He served for 20 years from 1943 until 1963 in the 78th, 79th, 80th, 81st, 82nd, 83rd, 84th, 85th, 86th, and 87th congresses. Judd voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1960, as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Judd was known for his eloquent oratory and expertise in U.S. foreign policy. He spoke at civic and political gatherings around the nation. He was a good friend of Senator Harry S Truman, and together they spent two weeks in 1943 making speeches in support of the United Nations, doubling up in hotel rooms at night. In Congress, Judd supported liberal international program such as the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and NATO. He called for removal of ethnic and racial restrictions in the immigration laws. He was an outspoken anti-communist and critic of U.S. rapprochement with China at the expense of the Republic of China on Taiwan. In the early 1950s, Judd helped organize the Committee of One Million, a citizens' group dedicated to keeping the People's Republic of China out of the United Nations. Judd was a strong advocate of the foreign aid program, a position which brought him into sharp contrast with colleague Otto Passman, a Democrat from Monroe, Louisiana who chaired the House Foreign Operations Subcommittee, which maintains jurisdiction over such programs. Passman explained his longstanding criticism of the program: "First, we cannot spend ourselves rich. Second, we cannot make ourselves secure by giving ourselves away. Third, we cannot buy friends. We were once told that foreign aid would stop communism. Now we are told it is our duty to buy our way of life for countries all over the world. But we cannot in fact improve their living standards by as much as 1 percent even if we should give away everything we own." Judd gave the keynote address at the 1960 Republican National Convention, which met in Chicago to nominate the Nixon-Lodge ticket. In 1962, Judd was defeated for reelection by liberal Democrat Donald M. Fraser. The District had been redrawn after the 1960 census, making it heavily Democratic. Judd's defeat worked to increase Passman's power on the foreign aid subcommittee. He was the last person to attempt to run for president on a major party ticket to have been born in the 19th century, though he did not make it past the primaries. In 1964, Judd's name was placed in nomination at the Republican National Convention for President and he received a smattering of votes. According to biographer Yanli Gao:
In 1981, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he was actively involved in the Council Against Communist Aggression in Washington D.C.
