"During the Korean War, MacArthur was a law unto himself, in matters both big and small. He quarreled defiantly in public with President Truman, agitating for nuclear war. In their eventual confrontation on Wake Island, MacArthur went so far as to arrive first and then order the president's approaching plane into a holding pattern. MacArthur's commander in chief would thus arrive on the landing strip appearing to be MacArthur's supplicant. In explaining why he subsequently relieved MacArthur of his command, Truman said, "I fired him because he wouldn't respect the authority of the president. I didn't fire him because he was a dumb son of a bitch, although he was, but that's not against the law for generals." Truman was arguably pulling his punches. He could have easily called MacArthur an asshole."
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United States presidential candidates, 1952United States presidential candidates, 1948Engineers from the United StatesMilitary leaders from the United StatesPeople from Little Rock
Original Language: English
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Sources
Aaron James, in his book Assholes: A Theory (2012), p. 1-2
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Douglas_MacArthur
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Douglas MacArthur
1880 – 1964
US-amerikanischer Feldmarschall
139 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Douglas MacArthur →
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