The Most Dangerous Man in America: The Making of Douglas MacArthur by Mark Perry Page B
Authors: Mark Perry
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he had quarreled with Billy Mitchell in France during World War One and was replaced by him. Even so, Foulois was an outspoken advocate of air power and rose to head the air corps during MacArthur’s tenure as chief of staff. Foulois and MacArthur had become friendly in 1911, when a plane Foulois was piloting at Fort Sam Houston in Texas lost power and just missed plowing through a row of tents, including MacArthur’s. Foulois’s plane just grazed MacArthur’s quarters, hitting a military buggy whose horses then galloped away in terror. Standing unharmed near the wreckage of his plane, Foulois turned to see MacArthur headed toward him. “Benny, what’s going on over there?” MacArthur asked. Dusting himself off, Foulois explained that he had the choice of crashing into the buggy or into MacArthur’s tent. MacArthur surveyed the scene: “Benny, speaking as a disinterested bystander, I’d sayyou made the right decision.” Over the next twenty-five years, Foulois retailed this story as “the day I saved Doug MacArthur’s life.”
So it was no surprise that when the Senate committee investigating the crashes blamed both MacArthur and Foulois, the air corps head came to MacArthur’s defense. Foulois pointed out that Roosevelt hadn’t even bothered to inform MacArthur of the plan to use the air corps to handle the airmail. MacArthur then mounted a deft defense of Foulois and the air corps, confirming that he, MacArthur, had learned about Roosevelt’s decision from the newspapers. “The Executive Order of the President was made before you knew of it?” a senator asked. “Yes sir,” MacArthur answered. The response embarrassed Roosevelt, but it was the truth. While MacArthur didn’t criticize Roosevelt for issuing the order, the army chief was chagrined at having to admit that the White House hadn’t bothered to consult with him. Although Foulois was dismissed as a result of the February accidents, MacArthur’s defense of him and his fliers transformed Foulois from a MacArthur friend into a MacArthur admirer. “MacArthur was the kind of man you either deeply respected or hated with a passion,” Foulois said later. “I not only respected him. I believed him to be possessed of almost godlike qualities.”
No one in the White House quite believed this appraisal, but MacArthur’s defense of Foulois did reinforce the chief’s following among a dedicated cadre of senior officers at the War Department. Among these was his military assistant, Dwight Eisenhower. Eisenhower remained enraged by MacArthur’s actions at Anacostia Flats, found the scandal over Isabella Cooper distasteful, was offended by his chief’s eccentricities (MacArthur sometimes wore a Japanese kimono over his uniform, preening before a full-length mirror), and despised MacArthur’s casual discourtesies. But Eisenhower was drawn to MacArthur, admiring both his defense of the army budget and his support of Foulois. Years later, when he was America’s most celebrated soldier, Eisenhower would swap MacArthur stories with a bemused group of reporters before bringing them up short. “If he were to walk through that door right now and say ‘Eisenhower, follow me,’ I’d stand up and do it,” he said. Eisenhower provides us with a powerful portrait of MacArthur during the Roosevelt years in the pages of his diary: “Fifty-two years old. Essentially a romantic figure. I have done considerable personal workfor him, but have seen far less of him than of other seniors now in the dept. Very appreciative of good work, positive in his convictions—a genius at giving concise and clear instructions. Consideration of the principle incidents of his career leads to the conclusion that his interests [are] almost exclusively military. He is impulsive—able, even brilliant—quick—tenacious of his views and extremely self-confident.”
If Eisenhower grudgingly admired his superior, MacArthur had good reason to appreciate Eisenhower. Texas born and
So it was no surprise that when the Senate committee investigating the crashes blamed both MacArthur and Foulois, the air corps head came to MacArthur’s defense. Foulois pointed out that Roosevelt hadn’t even bothered to inform MacArthur of the plan to use the air corps to handle the airmail. MacArthur then mounted a deft defense of Foulois and the air corps, confirming that he, MacArthur, had learned about Roosevelt’s decision from the newspapers. “The Executive Order of the President was made before you knew of it?” a senator asked. “Yes sir,” MacArthur answered. The response embarrassed Roosevelt, but it was the truth. While MacArthur didn’t criticize Roosevelt for issuing the order, the army chief was chagrined at having to admit that the White House hadn’t bothered to consult with him. Although Foulois was dismissed as a result of the February accidents, MacArthur’s defense of him and his fliers transformed Foulois from a MacArthur friend into a MacArthur admirer. “MacArthur was the kind of man you either deeply respected or hated with a passion,” Foulois said later. “I not only respected him. I believed him to be possessed of almost godlike qualities.”
No one in the White House quite believed this appraisal, but MacArthur’s defense of Foulois did reinforce the chief’s following among a dedicated cadre of senior officers at the War Department. Among these was his military assistant, Dwight Eisenhower. Eisenhower remained enraged by MacArthur’s actions at Anacostia Flats, found the scandal over Isabella Cooper distasteful, was offended by his chief’s eccentricities (MacArthur sometimes wore a Japanese kimono over his uniform, preening before a full-length mirror), and despised MacArthur’s casual discourtesies. But Eisenhower was drawn to MacArthur, admiring both his defense of the army budget and his support of Foulois. Years later, when he was America’s most celebrated soldier, Eisenhower would swap MacArthur stories with a bemused group of reporters before bringing them up short. “If he were to walk through that door right now and say ‘Eisenhower, follow me,’ I’d stand up and do it,” he said. Eisenhower provides us with a powerful portrait of MacArthur during the Roosevelt years in the pages of his diary: “Fifty-two years old. Essentially a romantic figure. I have done considerable personal workfor him, but have seen far less of him than of other seniors now in the dept. Very appreciative of good work, positive in his convictions—a genius at giving concise and clear instructions. Consideration of the principle incidents of his career leads to the conclusion that his interests [are] almost exclusively military. He is impulsive—able, even brilliant—quick—tenacious of his views and extremely self-confident.”
If Eisenhower grudgingly admired his superior, MacArthur had good reason to appreciate Eisenhower. Texas born and
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