Evening star., 1942-07-26
Realism in i. S. War Planning
Seen in Leahy Appointment
Designation of Chief of Staff Believed End of Civilian
Counsel to President on Purely
Military Affairs
Ry Constantine Brown

where we are most likely to succeed. And
the almost unanimous opinion of these
men is that our best bet is still the
Southwestern Pacific.
The appointment of Admiral Leahy
as chief of staff to the commander in
chief of the United States forces is not
just another appointment. Those close
to the President regard 1t as a DEFINITE
indication that Mr.. Roosevelt believes
the time has come to revamp our
strategy-and that Of the United Ma
tions-and henceforth follow a policy
dictated oy military necessities rather
than one which is dominated by po-
ltical exigencies.
It is widely known that Admiral Leahy
favors the Pacific front for our aggressive
operations and regards the Atlantic and
Europe as a secondary theater OF war
to be developed later, after Japanese
have been knocked out of the war. The
appointment OF the former chief Of naval
operations to the important job as Chief
of Staff to the President was held in
allowance for almost 20 days, during
which time Mr. Roosevelt weighed every
angle of the contest between his political
and military advisers.
End Of Unwarranted Optimism.
Rightly or wrongly. those close to the
White House consider the appointment
Of Admiral Lea.hy as q clear indication
that the time for gestures, optimistic
speeches and bombastic statements Is
over and that Uncle Sam will now roll
UP his sleeves and begin to fight in
earnest.
The wounds Of Pearl Harbor are al
most completely healed. After major
tests at Coral Sea and Midway, the men
are asking for another fight. The Navy
and air force are In good trim and
anxious for action. The idea of going
after the Japs and repaying them with
usurious interest for Pearl Harbor, Wake
Island, the Philippines and the Indies
appeals to the personnel Of the feet and
the air force
Newspapermen do not hide in the
closets of the council rooms where
Americas grand strategy is being de-
those rooms. Our war plans are held
too closely secret for that. But 1t is
safe to say, knowing the common sense
of the men who are conducting the war,
that our future operations against Hitler
will be conducted from east to west, not
west to east.
No group is more aware than the
end without the utter defeat of Adolf
Hitler. But in order to achieve this
defeat It is.necessary to adopt strategy
based on the lines of least resistance.
At the present time the Axis offers us
two vulnerable points: The Southwest
Pacific, where the Japanese are over
extended and do not have the means
against territories they have conquered
since last winter, and Italy where the
population is fed up with II Duce and
with war which has brought them
under Nazi servitude
Egypt Still \ Question.
1t Is too early to foresee what will hap
pen in Egypt. For the time being the
situation seems fairly we'll in hand be-
cause Field Marshal Erwin Rommel can
not obtain the necessary reinforcements
to continue his drive against the Suez
Canal. On the other hand, the United
Nations forces which are defending that
zone are receiving fresh men, tanks and
planes more quickly than the enemy,
who appears bent on disposing of the
U. S. S. r. before rushing assistance to
the Afrika Korps.
Most American military men believe
Egypt can be held. All contend that
it must be held at any price because
the region between the Nile and Ben
gasi must serve as our stepping stone
for an invasion Of Italy It would take
relatively little effort to add 100, 900 men
and large number Of tanks and planes
to the existing forces under Gen. Sir
Claude j. E. Auchinleck
Routes for the transportation Of men
and heavy war material are long, but
relatively safe. Barring serious blunders
on that front. there is no reason, say
our military men, why we should not
hold our present positions and improve
them gradually.