FDR discusses his Dog "Fala" - 1944

MacArthur and FDR meet and Inspect the 7th US Army Division

FDR and MacArthur meet in Person - Pearl Harbor July 26 1944

At 14:25 FDR’s ship The USS Baltimore stopped momentarily while off the entrance to Pearl Harbor and took on board an official party consisting of Adm. Chester W. Nimitz, Vice Adm. R. L. Ghormley, Lt. Gen. W. R. and Richardson.

At 15:00 The USS Baltimore moored at Pier 22-B.  A space had been cleared on the dock, and behind it stood a tremendous crowd anticipating FDR’s not-so-secret appearance.  Lesser Admirals and Generals were cheered as they went aboard to greet the President. Only MacArthur was missing, having just landed, so Roosevelt sent word for the General to join him.

At 15:45, since MacArthur had still not shown, it was decided that the President would go ashore.  However, while preparations were made to leave, a terrific automobile siren was heard, and there raced onto the Dock and screeched to a halt, a motorcycle escort and one the longest open car in Honolulu.  In the front, there was a chauffeur in Khaki; in back there was one lone figure – MacArthur.  When the applause died down from the crowd and sailors on deck, the General strode up the Gangplank, stopped halfway up to acknowledge another ovation, and was soon on the deck talking to FDR.

“Hello Doug” said Roosevelt, “What are you doing with that leather jacket on - it’s damn hot today.”  MacArthur was later ribbed mercilessly by Admiral Leahy for wearing a ‘non-regulation’ jacket.

‘Well, I just landed from Australia,” he replied “It’s pretty cold up there.”

Nimitz, Richardson, MacArthur, and FDR then went to the Presidents cabin for more discussion. At 16:15, a group picture was taken and at 16:30 FDR went ashore to his quarters in Honolulu.

MacArthur Meets FDR - Air Flight Timeline- July 1944

July 26 1944 08:15 - MacArthur leaves Brisbane on C-54 for Honolulu.

Flight 1: Brisbane to New Caledonia.  Distance: 1,000 miles  Total flight time - 4/12 hours
Flight 2: New Caledonia  to Canton Island - Distance 2,000 miles. Total flight Time  -10 hours.
Flight 3:  Canton Island to Honolulu - Distance 2,000 miles,  Total flight Time - 10 hours.

MacArthur arrives Honolulu July 26, 1944 at 14:45 Hawaiian Time.  Time of trip - 26 hours with stops for refueling.

At Canton, MacArthur receives a message from Nimitz requesting he delay his arrival till 17:00.  Reason: FDR is scheduled to arrive the same time as MacArthur. Nimitz cannot meet both at the same time.  MacArthur replies no delay is required since it is unnecessary for Nimitz to greet him personally on arrival.  Note: FDR's ship  arrived late at Pearl Harbor, allowing Nimitz to greet MacArthur when he landed.

Nimitz meets MacArthur when he arrives.  MacArthur is dropped off at Fort Shafter,  so he can bath and shave before meeting the President.

FDR - Part time president

From the time of his heart attack in March 1944 to his death in April 1945, FDR was really a part time President. Most of the time, he was ill, on vacation, or on a "working vacation". The number of days spent at the White House, conducting Business and seeing visitors was amazingly small. Based on the FDR's appointments log, he spent following number of days working at the White House:

• March 19, 1944 - April 7th, 1944 3 Days (ill with CHF)
• April 8, 1944 - May 6, 1944 - Zero (On Vacation in SC till May 6th)
• May 7, 1944 - May 31, 1944 - 14 Days 
• June 1944 - 17 Days 
• July 1944 - 7 Days (Tour of west Coast, Hawaii and Alaska  starting July 14th)
• August 1944 - 10 Days (Back from Pacific Tour August 17th)
• September 1944 - 13 Days (At Quebec Conference for 6 days)
• October 1944 - 20 Days 
• November 1944 - 15 Days 
• December 1944 - 7 Days (At Warm Spring for 18 Days) 
• January 1945 - 17 Days (Left Jan 22nd for Yalta)
• February 1945 - Zero (At Yalta Conf Feb 2-12, the rest of time relaxing)
• March 1945 - 19 Days 
• April 1 1945 - April 12, 1945 - Zero (At Warm Springs)

FDR Terminates MacArthur's Position in the Philippines - Aug 1937

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF WAR:

The President requests me to advise that General Douglas MacArthur be informed that his services in the Philippines shall terminate upon the conclusion of a two year tour of duty there; that the General is needed for service in the United States; that the General be acquainted with post commands ^to which he may be assigned at the time of his return to active duty in the United States; and that he be given his preference of such posts as may be available at that time. As a furthur consideration, in the event the General prefers some Corps Area or other command which may not be open, at that time, the President is willing that the War Department work out much transfer of officers as may be necessary to permit General MacArthur to take over the post he most desires.


The President has noted the contents of the confidential letter addressed by Brigadier General Conley to General Douglas MacArthur, under date of September 18, 1935. He directs that such portions of this letter or of existing War Department orders as conflict with the above request shall be nullified, i.e. "x x x limit of time of foreign service is waived in your case" etc.


STEPHEN EARLY
Secretary to the President

Later Memo from Craig on this in Miss LeHands Confidential Files.

FDR Knox and the Navy

Per the Official Navy History - Administration of the Navy Department In WW II:

FDR Ignores Knox except in PR and Dealing with Congress

"During the short-of-war period before Pearl Harbor the President usually consulted the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Harold R. Stark, directly on such matters as the building program, the employment and disposition of the fleet, naval personnel, and similar matters. However, in things involving the reaction of Congress and the public to new measures he dealt directly with Secretary Edison and later Secretary Knox. Knox was, for example, very helpful in getting Congress to pass the Lend-Lease Act in March 1941."

"Often the President used Knox to ascertain public reaction to proposed measures by having him make trial-balloon speeches on the subjects. Knox, a forceful and persuasive speaker, was well suited to bringing out press comment on matters that were new to the public."

FDR Supports Motorboats over DE's against Navy Objections

"Franklin Roosevelt was more given than his cousin to making technical decisions himself, particularly when it came to questions of the characteristics of naval ships. For one thing, he had a strong predilection for waging antisubmarine warfare with small craft. This partiality went back to World War I when, as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, he advocated building large numbers of 50-foot motorboats to meet the U-boat menace of that war. It took all the arguments of the technical Bureaus and the General Board, supported by the Secretary of the Navy, Josephus Daniels,to build the 110-foot subchasers instead. The professional Navy took the position that for antisubmarine work vessels must be at least large enough to go to sea and to stay at sea in bad weather, and that one element of sea keeping was sufficient size to provide accommodations for a crew large enough to permit watch-standing. Such accommodations could not be provided in 50-foot motorboats. In World War II Franklin Roosevelt again favored small craft of the motorboat type for coastal protection against U-boats. It was only gradually that programs for the construction of more seaworthy vessels such as the PCs, SCs, and DEs received his unqualified support."

FDR Responsible for the Alaska Battlecruisers

"Again, the Alaska class of ships, consisting of three 27,000-ton cruisers mounting 12" guns, was built largely because of the President's insistence on such a design, although there was no enthusiasm in the professional Navy for the type. The ships never had an opportunity to demonstrate their usefulness, for they were completed too late to get into action during the war. Franklin Roosevelt's interest in technical naval matters extended beyond ships. For example, he took an active part in planning the overall features of the new naval hospital to be built at Bethesda, Maryland, later known as the National Naval Medical Center."

FDR Selects Naval Officers

"President Roosevelt himself took an active part in selecting naval officers for key positions. He felt himself qualified to do this because of his wide acquaintance with naval officers, stemming from his eight years of service as Assistant Secretary of the Navy in the Woodrow Wilson administration. He know personally a good many officers in his own age group. These officers reached flag rank during the 30's and became eligible for filling the more important positions in the Navy at the outbreak of World War II."

FDR's Vacations and Travels April 1944-April 1945

April 8th to May 7th 1944 - Barnard Baruch Plantation
Leaves Washington DC for rest in South Carolina. In late March FDR had what is now thought to be either a mild heart attack or stroke. After 2 weeks of medical tests his doctors ordered hm to take 4 weeks rest at Bernard Baruch's Plantation in South Carolina.

July 13, 1944 to August 17, 1944
FDR leaves DC by train for San Diego and then by Cruiser to Honolulu and Alaska.

July 13 Left Washington.
14 Day at Hyde Park.
15 Thirty-minute stop in Chicago.
19 Arrived Marine Base, San Diego.
20 Acceptance speech by Radio from San Diego.
21 By cruiser for Pearl Harbor.
26 Arrived Pearl Harbor.
29 Left Pearl Harbor by Cruiser for Aleutians.
August 3-4 Visited Adak and Kodiak.
12 Arrived Bremerton Washington Gives nationwide radio address
13 Leaves Seattle for Washington DC
17 Reached White House

September 1 1944 to September 5th Hyde Park
Labor Day Holiday

September 11-17th 1944 Quebec Conference
Meets with Churchill and the JCS

September 17th-September 2oth Hyde Park
Rest after Conference

November 27, 1944 to December 19th at Warm Springs GA.
FDR goes to relax after winning the election.

December 23, 1944 to December 30, 1944 at Hyde Park
Christmas Vacation

January 22, 1946 to February 28th 1945 - Yalta Conference
January 23 Leaves Norfolk Va on USS Quincy
Feb 2 Arrives Malta - Meets with JCS and Churchill
Feb 3 Leaves by Plane for Yalta
Feb 12 Arrives USS Quincy at Bitter Lake in Suez Canal
Feb 13 Meets Haile Selassie aboard USS Quincy
Feb 14 Meets Ibn Saud, Leaves by Cruiser for Alexandria
Feb 15 Meets Churchill in Alexandria Harbor
Feb 18 Meets Ambassadors aboard USS Quincy in Algeria Harbor
Feb 28 Arrives Newport News aboard USS Quincy

March 26,1945 to March 28th 1945 Hyde Park
FDR rests after 25 days at the White House

March 30, 1945 to April 12, 1945 Warm Springs GA
After spending most of March 29th at the White House FDR leaves for Warm Springs
Dies April 12th.

FDR - I can Run WW II on 4 Hours of Work a Day

From Steve Early's "Off the Record with FDR 1942-1945:"

"May 8, 1944, Monday. The three secretaries reached the President's bedroom just before 10 o'clock this morning the President in good humor, looking, I thought, much better than when I saw him yesterday. Told Pa Watson to keep his appointments down to a minimum. Said he would receive the congressional leaders in the bedroom before he got up. Ed Stettinius was to come in at 11:30 to give a report on his mission to London, just concluded, and Secretary Hull was to come in a half -hour later. The President said that while he was at Hobcaw he worked four hours a day and the nation got along at that; he thought he owed it to the country to continue that schedule. So he said he would devote two hours daily 11 to 1 to his appointments and two hours after lunch to his paper work. He plans also to take lunch alone abandoning those business lunches and to rest an hour and a half before resuming post luncheon work. This is too good to be true. We shall see. "

US Army and AIr Force Strength 1938-1941

Total US Army Air Force (Air Corps) Personnel

July 1, 1938 - 21,000
July 1, 1939 - 22,000
July 1, 1940 - 51,000
July 1, 1941 - 151, 000
Dec 7, 1941 - 300,000

Total US Army (excludes Air Corps) Personnel

July 1, 1938 - 161,000 + National Guard (Not inducted) : 200,000
July 1, 1939 - 161,000 + National Guard (Not inducted) : 200,000
July 1, 1940 - 240,000 + National Guard (Not inducted) : 200,000
July 1, 1941 - 1,310, 000
Dec 7, 1941 - 1,344,000

US War Department Expenditures Fiscal Year Ending:
June 30, 1936 - $340 million
June 30, 1937 - $381 million ($41 million increase)
June 30, 1938 - $432 million ($52 million increase)
June 30 1939 - $496 million ($64 million increase)
June 30 1940 - $669 million ($173 million increase)
June 30 1941 - $3,770 million ($3,017 million increase)
June 30, 1942 - $14,835 million ($11,065 million increase)

US Air Force (Air Corps) Modern Planes Available:

Sept 1939:
Heavy Bombers - 22
Light/Med Bombers - 0 (700 total all obsolete)
Modern Fighters - 0 (500 total - all obsolete)

December 1941
Heavy Bombers - 288
Light/Med Bombers - 1,100 (plus 400 obsolete)
Fighters - 1,600 (plus 500 obsolete)

July 1944
Heavy Bombers - 12,000
Light/Med Bombers - 8,500
Fighters - 15,800


Comparison:

September 1, 1939

RAF - 175,000 men and Luftwaffe 2,500 Combat planes and 300,000 men.

British Defense Expenditure Fiscal Year Ending 31 March

1938 $198 million pound sterling (20% total government spending)
1939 $254 million pound sterling (25% total government spending)
1940 $626 million pound sterling (45% total government spending)
1941 $3,220 million pound sterling (80% total government spending)

A list of FDR's failures in WW II

Let's List FDR's failure:

1) Failure to unite the country in a time of war (see Thomas Fleming "New Dealers War")
2) Appointment of Communists to high positions
3) Appeasement of Stalin.
4) Refusal to plan for the postwar world
5) Hostility to the British Empire
6) Failure to build up the US Air Corps and Navy prior to June 1940.
7) Failure to plan for the German U-boat attack in 1942. Refused Navy advise to build DE's prior to Pearl Harbor.
8) Failure to adequately provide for the defense of Pearl Harbor.
9) Policy of Unconditional Surrender
10) Endorsement of the Morganthau plan.
11) Failure to build Aircraft Carriers instead of Battleships prior to 12-7-1941.
12) Endorses Marshall's absurd "Sledgehammer" plan.
13) Refuses to negotiate with Mussolini or Italian Military prior to July 1943.
14) Refuses to delay start of Pacific War by compromising with the Japanese. We could have delayed the start of the war by 3-6 months which would have given us time to prepare for the attack.

Myth: FDR Decided to invade the Philippines - Honolulu 19944

This myth was started by Robert Sherwood in his book "Roosevelt and Hopkins". Per Sherwood, FDR traveled to Hawaii in July 1944 and met with MacArthur and Nimitz. After talking to both men, he was swayed by MacArthur's oratory and decided to invade the Philippines in October 1944.

This is false. FDR came to Hawaii on July 26, 1944 and left three days later. He spent the night of the 27th and the morning of the 28th talking with Mac and Nimitz about the future of the war in the Pacific. The rest of the time was spent inspecting the troops, making speeches, touring Hawaii and various entertainments. MacArthur had no staff with him and spoke off the cuff.

The decision to invade the Philippines in October 1944 was made by the JCS in September 1944. The final decision to invade Luzon and liberate Manila was made by the JCS on October 3, 1944.

So, FDR did NOT decide the strategy of Pacific war in July 1944. The decision to invade the Philippines was NOT a political decision. It was military one made by the JCS, Marshall, Arnold, King, and Leahy.

BTW, there were two reasons for FDR's trip. One was to shore up his popularity by showing him as a war leader. The second, was to provide FDR, a very sick man, with a 4 week vacation from DC.