Der ratlose Roosevelt
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Roosevelt wirft Agitationsbomben –
Der Sinn der Luftangriffe auf die Kurilen
Eigener Bericht des „Völkischen Beobachters“
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U.S. Navy Department (January 27, 1944)
CINCPAC Press Release No. 240
For Immediate Release
January 27, 1944
Seventh Army Air Force aircraft attacked Kwajalein, Maloelap and Mille Atolls in the Marshall Island on January 25 (West Longitude Date). Heavy bombers dropped more than 35 tons of bombs on Kwajalein in a late afternoon raid starting fires among ground installations. No enemy fighters were encountered and we lost no planes.
Medium bombers attacking Taroa in the Maloelap Atoll in mid-afternoon struck airdrome facilities and wrecked one enemy bomber on the ground. Approximately 30 fighters attacked our planes. One of these was shot down, three were possibly shot down and several more damaged. Damage to our planes was moderate and all returned. Mille was attacked by dive bombers and fighters in a mid-morning raid which caused several fires among ground facilities. There was no fighter opposition and none of our planes was lost.
Navy search planes attacked an oiler escorted by two small ships southeast of Eniwetok Atoll. The oiler was severely damaged and may have been sunk. One of the escorting ships was sunk.
The Pittsburgh Press (January 27, 1944)
5TH ARMY SMASHES ATTACK
Tank thrust at beachhead hurled back
Yanks gain near Cassino, French seize heights on flank
By C. R. Cunningham, United Press staff writer
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Gen. MacArthur: Soldier-President can shorten war
But private advices from the South Pacific picture general as very willing to let events take course
By Lyle C. Wilson, United Press staff writer
Gen. MacArthur
Washington –
A recent visitor to Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s headquarters in the Southwest Pacific has sent me a report on political sentiment in that outpost which will be of unusual interest to Americans who have been wondering whether the general will be a candidate for President.
The summary is by an experienced observer, and those who are interested in the MacArthur boom undoubtedly will be impressed by the fact that it was passed through the general’s own military censorship.
**Probably the most striking part of this report is the suggestion that Gen. MacArthur believes an experienced soldier in the White House would bring an earlier victory in the war.
The report says at one point:
It would not be surprising if Gen. MacArthur felt – as do a good many here – that the shortest way to victory would be to place an experienced military man in the White House.
The report reflects the impression at his headquarters that Gen. MacArthur will neither declare his availability for the Republican nomination nor withdraw his name from consideration, preferring to “let events take their course.” It is emphasized that he is not taking any time out from war for politics, but that no one should assume this to mean that he would not be receptive to the presidential nomination.
The report continues:
Even if he were nominated, sources here believe it entirely possible that Gen. MacArthur would not leave his post to campaign. Talking to MacArthur supporters of whom there are many here, I get the impression they foresee the possibilities about this way:
MacArthur will maintain complete silence on political matters pending the Republican National Convention, but his supporters will go into the convention with a fair bloc of votes from the Midwest. One figure mentioned is 125 delegates. This presumably would place his third behind Governor Thomas E. Dewey and Wendell L. Willkie. They believe Dewey and Willkie are likely to deadlock whereupon MacArthur might emerge as a compromise candidate since he likely to have considerable second choice strength among both Dewey and Willkie supporters.
If nominated, it is believed MacArthur might accept by cable, explaining that his job of beating the Japs was too important to permit him to campaign. The campaign would be the responsibility of party leaders at home with the general-tossing in an occasional radio speech or public statement.
The report continues that in “some quarters here” there is a suggestion that Gen. MacArthur might be nominated for vice president on a ticket headed by Mr. Dewey.
According to this report:
But it is felt that the general probably would not be receptive to such suggestions and would scorn any pre-convention deal with Dewey, Willkie or any other candidate.
But whether he actually would refuse the vice presidency should the convention offer it is entirely unknown. Such a ticket might be as attractive as anything the Republicans could offer, especially if the presidential nominee announced that he planned to let MacArthur handle the job of winning the war.
MacArthur backer charges favoritism
Milwaukee, Wisconsin (UP) –
Lansing Hoyt, state chairman of the MacArthur-for-President club, today accused the national administration of discriminating against Republicans because of a ruling that Lt. Col. Philip F. La Follette could not run as a GOP convention delegate candidate pledged to Gen. MacArthur.
Maj. Gen. J. A. Ulio, Adjutant General of the Army, informed Hoyt of Col. La Follette’s standing. He had asked whether servicemen could run as delegate candidates for the national party conventions.
Gen. Ulio said:
The War Department cannot permit a member of the Army on active duty to participate in the convention of a political party.
Col. La Follette is serving on Gen. MacArthur’s staff in the Southwest Pacific.
Mr. Hoyt said he could see no difference between running for delegate or for President and pointed out that the War Department had consented to the naming of an Army man as a presidential candidate.
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WLB cuts retroactive pay in first fine on strikers
Rank-and-file at shipyard punished in hesitant step taken under wartime labor law
By Fred W. Perkins, Pittsburgh Press staff writer
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OPA on white-collar side –
Office worker carries burden
All others gain economically, Bowles testifies
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Wife to accept medals given missing hero
Lt. Col. Watt, Pearl Harbor veteran, last seen in Attu’s fog
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Flier Jimmy Stewart promoted to major
A Liberator base in England (UP) –
Capt. Jimmy Stewart, the motion picture actor who became an Army private three years ago, was promoted to major today.
The former actor some time ago turned down a USAAF commission – U.S. Army Air Forces commission – as a major proffered before his normal six months as captain had elapsed. Such a commission us held only as long as a man remains in the Air Forces.
The major’s commission Stewart received today is a Regular Army commission recognized in any branch of the service.
Germans preparing to try Americans
Stockholm, Sweden (UP) –
Dispatches from Berlin said today that German authorities were preparing to try American and British war prisoners on “war guilt” charges.
The Stockholm Tidningen’s Berlin correspondent quoted authoritative German sources that the trials will be in reprisal for the recent atrocity trials held by the Russians at Kharkov.
In Washington –
House to study impeachment of two judges
Johnson, Watson of middle district of state are targets
By Robert Taylor, Press Washington correspondent
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Roosevelt’s blunt demand for soldier vote irks GOP
President spoke to people over head of Congress; majority support for bill probable
By Thomas L. Stokes, Scripps-Howard staff writer
Washington –
President Roosevelt’s blunt message to Congress demanding passage of the Green-Lucas-Worley soldier-vote bill was a shock that reacted in many questions.
The first-blush reaction in some quarters was that it might hurt rather than help the bill for a federal ballot because of the President’s plain language, particularly the brand of “fraud” which he stamped on the Eastland-Rankin “states’-rights” bill supported by a coalition of Republicans and Southern Democrats.
But the second thought was that the President’s intercession probably would help in the long run, since he was talking over the heads of Congress to the people, and the public reaction might be potent.
The message made Republicans so mad that they exploded in a direction which some of them, on cooling off, thought might have been poor strategy.
Senators Taft (R-OH) and Bridges (R-NH) broke out immediately with charges that the President was using the federal-ballot bill to help win a fourth term.
Hitherto Republicans have been trying to keep the argument on the high ground of constitutionality. Some of them have confessed privately a fear that the Democrats would get more of the soldier vote than the Democrats.
Southern Democrats, privately resentful, kept their mouths closed, for the President, by bearing down on the Republicans, had made the bill a party issue.
He exposed the plan of Republicans to avoid a record vote in the House on the Worley Bill – a plan which a group of Democrats headed by Rep. Anderson (D-NM) are trying to circumvent. Some Southern Democrats have joined in this attempt to put everybody in the House on record.
Democratic leaders, seeking to reap the full benefit of the President’s message, postponed House consideration of the Rankin Bill until Tuesday.
Senate Democratic Leader Alben W. Barkley (D-KY) said he was ready to put the issue to a test in the Senate at any time and hoped to get a vote before the weekend. “It looks pretty good,” he said.
A partial poll of those who voted against the administration last time indicated that the new Lucas-Green Bill has won over enough Southern Democrats to reverse the outcome.
Most of them are basing their shift in a section of the new Lucas-Green bill which stipulates that validity of absentee ballots shall be determined by state and local officials. Thus, the responsibility for throwing out a soldier’s ballot because he had not registered, paid a poll tax or voted on the regular form of state ballot would not rest with the federal government.
Nelson sops up last fond hope of new liquor
All alcohol to be needed for war purposes, WPB chief says
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Press is urged to avoid ‘slip’ in censorship
Read, reread war news code, advisory committee cautions all
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Marine rescued after a close call at Tarawa
Pittsburgher, wounded, finds himself aboard a burning boat
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Eaker heads Air Force in Mediterranean area
Allied HQ, Algiers, Algeria (UP) –
Gen. Sir Henry Maitland Wilson today announced the creation of an Allied Mediterranean Air Force under Lt. Gen. Ira C. Eaker, former commander of the U.S. 8th Air Force in England.
The new air command replaces the Northwest African Air Forces in which the Allied aerial fleets were grouped during the North African and Sicilian campaigns and at the beginning of the Italian campaign.
New Allied raids on Europe hinted
New York (UP) –
U.S. government monitors reported today that Nazi radio stations in Holland, Denmark and northwestern Germany went off the air at 9:00 a.m. CET (4:00 a.m. ET) today, suggesting new Allied daylight raids on the continent.