Most of what I know about the firing of General Douglass MacArthur happened because I watched an episode of M*A*S*H, wherein General MacArthur visits the 4077 and hilarity ensues. In that episode, called “Big Mac,” Hawkeye meets the General and says that the MacArthur had “Truman’s footprints all over his backside.” I remember asking my Dad, who was over there at the time, what Hawkeye was talking about, and learned from him about the extraordinary tension between the President and the General in 1951, that ultimately led to MacArthur’s dismissal.
In short, MacArthur – the most beloved General in modern times, and a genuine hero of the second world war, had assured President Truman that the Korean War would be short-lived and that the American troops would be home by Christmas. MacArthur was initially successful in driving back the North Korean forces over the 38th parallel but got sideways with Truman when he pushed the North Koreans further north, and then then argued, publicly, that America should start bombing cities in China that were aiding the North Korean troops.
President Truman’s main concern was saving as many lives as possible, even if that meant signing a ceasefire along the 38th parallel. General MacArthur did not think a ceasefire was an appropriate solution. The two men clashed. For Truman, the war represented an opportunity to stop the spread of communism into South Korea. For MacArthur, the war was an opportunity to liberate the North from communist control. On April 11, 1951, President Truman had enough.
“With deep regret,” he wrote, “I have concluded that General of the Army Douglas MacArthur is unable to give his wholehearted support to the policies of the United States Government. Military commanders must be governed by the policies and directives issued to them in the manner provided by our laws and Constitution.”
The reaction to MacArthur’s dismissal was unlike anything the country had seen in a very long time. The public was outraged. Overwhelming disapproval led to many protests, with polls showing 69% of Americans supported MacArthur, and favored a war with China. Within 48 hours, 44,358 telegrams sent to Congress by concerned citizens. Only 337 supported the firing. That’s less that a 1% approval! Republicans and Democrats fiercely criticized the decision, with some calling for impeachment. The backlash was so severe that Truman’s approval rating sank lower than Richard Nixon’s at the height of the Watergate scandal.
Today, of course, Truman’s decision is remembered differently. In spite of the fallout, it’s considered by many historians to be an act of extraordinary courage that might well have avoided another world war. On the other hand, regarding fallout, Truman’s decision to end the second world war with atomic weapons six years earlier, appears to be aging in a different direction. At the time, 85% of Americans said the decision to drop the atom bombs was justified.
Today, it’s just 35%.
“Public opinion is a mysterious and invisible power… There is nothing more fickle, more vague, or more powerful.”
— Napoleon Bonaparte
“Presidentin’ is hard!”
– Will Farrell, (as George Bush)
“The buck stops with me.”
– Harry Truman
“Happy Presidents Day!”
– Mike Rowe