David M . Shoup David Monroe Shoup ( 30 December 1904 – 13 January 1983 ) was a decorated general of the United States Marine Corps who was awarded the Medal of Honor in World War II , became the 22nd Commandant of the Marine Corps , and , after retiring , became one of the most prominent critics of the Vietnam War . Born in Indiana to an impoverished family , Shoup joined the military for financial reasons . Rising through the ranks in the interwar era , he was twice deployed to China during the Chinese Civil War . He served in Iceland at the beginning of U . S . involvement in World War II , and as a staff officer during the Pacific War . He was unexpectedly given command of the 2nd Marines , and led the initial invasion of Tarawa , for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor and the Distinguished Service Order . He served in the Marianas campaign , and later became a high - level military logistics officer . Solidifying his reputation as a hard - driving and assertive leader , Shoup rose through the senior leadership of the Marine Corps , overhauling fiscal affairs , logistics , and recruit training . He was selected as commandant by President Dwight D . Eisenhower , and later served in the administration of John F . Kennedy . He reformed the Corps , emphasizing combat readiness and fiscal efficiency , against what was perceived as politicking among its officers . Shoup opposed the military escalation of events such as Cuban missile crisis and the Bay of Pigs invasion , but his strongest opposition was to U . S . involvement in South Vietnam . This escalated after he retired from the military in 1963 , and his opposition related not only to the strategy of the conflict , but to the excessive influence of corporations and military officials in foreign policy . His high - profile criticism later spread to include the military industrial complex and what he saw as a pervasive militarism in American culture . Historians consider Shoup ' s statements opposing the war to be among the most pointed and high - profile leveled by a veteran against the Vietnam War . Early years . David Monroe Shoup was born on 30 December 1904 in Battle Ground , Indiana . His family lived on a farm in Ash Grove , but moved to Covington to live on a new farm in 1916 . At age 12 he was enrolled in Covington High School , a competitive high school with an advanced curriculum . Shoup was an excellent student , maintaining high marks in French , English , physics , and history . Additionally , he was involved in several extracurricular activities , including basketball , and was class president in his senior year . He graduated in 1921 . He later affectionately referred to his impoverished upbringing as that of an " Indiana plowboy . " Regarded by friends as very sociable , he met Zola De Haven in his freshman year and later said he had been instantly attracted to her . Though they were both very competitive in academics and athletics , the two dated throughout high school and were married in 1931 . After high school , Shoup attended DePauw University where he was one of 100 awarded the Edward Rector Scholarship , giving him full tuition . Majoring in mathematics , he joined the Delta Upsilon fraternity and maintained high marks , narrowly failing the selection criteria for Phi Beta Kappa Society . He was on the track and field and rifle teams , and also competed in the wrestling and football teams . He won the Indiana and Kentucky Amateur Athletic Union marathon in 1925 . He waited tables , washed dishes and worked in a cement factory to help pay his expenses . He had to take a year off after his junior year to teach school , and his expenses were further strained when he contracted a severe case of pneumonia and incurred hospital bills . He opted to enroll in the Reserve Officers Training Corps ( ROTC ) to offset his living expenses , and later recalled that this was the only reason he joined the military . He graduated from DePauw in 1926 . From an early age , Shoup was molded by the progressive ideas of Indiana politicians , sympathizing with rural progressives fighting against the interests of big businesses . He developed an anti - imperialist attitude , and his skepticism about American foreign policy , influenced by his small - town background , made him an outspoken opponent of the unnecessary use of military force . He felt the use of troops for economic or imperialist consideration was wrong , a viewpoint he would carry for his entire career . Junior officer . While at a Scabbard and Blade honors society conference in New Orleans , Louisiana , Shoup heard a speech by Major General John A . Lejeune , the Commandant of the Marine Corps , offering commissions in the U . S . Marine Corps to interested officer candidates . Shortly after being commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U . S . Army Reserve in May 1926 , Shoup applied , and was offered a commission in the Marine Corps . In August 1926 he resigned his commission in the Army and traveled from Camp Knox , Kentucky , to Chicago , Illinois , for physical exams . On 25 August 1926 , he arrived at the Marine Corps barracks at the Philadelphia Navy Yard , where he was commissioned as a second lieutenant , and commenced Marine Officers Basic School . Shoup maintained that he had never previously considered a military career and had only chosen to become a military officer for the pay . Throughout his service , he excelled in athletics and marksmanship , and during his early career he would coach recreational athletic teams in addition to his regular assignments . He quickly established himself as an assertive and demanding leader , impressing both his commanders and his subordinates . Despite his no - nonsense demeanor , those he commanded later recalled his ability to keep morale with his sense of humor . He often sported a clenched cigar , which became something of a trademark during his front - line service . On 1 April 1927 , Shoup and nine other officers were pulled from training to accompany a detachment of Marines sent to China to protect American interests during the instability of the Chinese Civil War . Embarking from San Diego with the 2nd Battalion , 10th Marines , Shoup ' s contingent was to play a primarily defensive role , and not engage in military action . Still , he was personally opposed to the mission , feeling that Americans in China were exploiting its people . The contingent landed in Shanghai on 10 June aboard USS " Chaumont " . Initially , they conducted shore patrol around American sections of the city . On 5 July the battalion was moved to Tientsin to protect American interests there should Chinese Nationalist troops threaten them . Shoup became seriously ill there , and remained hospitalized until it was announced U . S . troops would leave . He briefly returned to Shanghai to oversee foreign troop departures with the 4th Marines , before he departed from China on 7 December 1928 . Following this assignment , Shoup returned to the United States and completed his training . He then spent short stints at Marine bases in Quantico , Virginia , Pensacola , Florida , and San Francisco , California . From June 1929 to September 1931 he served with the Marine detachment aboard , where he coached the boxing and wrestling squads . Following this duty he was assigned to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego . In May 1932 he was ordered to Puget Sound Navy Yard in Bremerton , Washington , where he was promoted to first lieutenant one month later . He served on temporary duty with the Civilian Conservation Corps in Idaho and New Jersey from June 1933 to May 1934 , after which he returned to Bremerton . Shoup went back to China in November 1934 , again serving briefly with the 4th Marines in Shanghai . He was soon reassigned as a legation guard in Peiping , where he taught the post ' s pistol and rifle teams to shoot competitively . They won at least one major competition . He also had time to observe the troops of the Empire of Japan , gaining great respect for their discipline . In 1936 , he came down with a serious case of pneumonia and had to be evacuated from China . His next duty was at Puget Sound Navy Yard . In October 1936 , he was promoted to captain . In July 1937 he entered Junior Course , Marine Corps Schools in Quantico , which he completed in May 1938 . He then served as an instructor at Quantico for two years . In June 1940 he joined the 6th Marines in San Diego , and was promoted to major in April 1941 . World War II . Staff officer . Shoup was assigned to the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade , which was moved to Iceland in May 1941 , supporting an occupation there to prevent Nazi German forces from threatening it . Replacing the outgoing British 49th ( West Riding ) Infantry Division , the brigade continued to garrison the country for several months , and he was there with the Headquarters Company at the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 . For his service in Iceland , he was awarded the Letter of Commendation with Commendation Ribbon . In February 1942 he was given command of the 2nd Battalion , 6th Marines . With the United States at war , 1st Provisional Marine Brigade moved to New York City , New York , in March , and was disbanded . Shoup moved with his battalion to Camp Elliott in San Diego . In July 1942 , Shoup was named as operations and training officer ( G3 ) of the 2nd Marine Division , and he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in August 1942 . The following month accompanied the division to Wellington , New Zealand , aboard and oversaw much of its training there . He was also briefly attached to the 1st Marine Division in October 1942 as an observer during the Guadalcanal campaign , then to the 43rd Infantry Division on Rendova Island during New Georgia Campaign in June 1943 . During the latter assignment , Shoup was wounded in action and evacuated . Still , from these experiences he observed amphibious warfare techniques which would be useful later in the war . Tarawa . In mid - 1943 , Shoup was transferred to the staff of Major General Julian C . Smith , commander of the 2nd Marine Division , and tasked to help plan the invasion of Betio on Tarawa Atoll . Shoup ' s aggressive leadership style would complement the offensive strategy his superiors were seeking in taking the atoll . He was tasked with drawing up initial plans , designating the landing beaches on Betio for the 2nd Marines , and overseeing some rehearsals at Efate . However , after Colonel William W . Marshall , commander of the 2nd Marines , suffered a nervous breakdown before invasion , Smith promoted Shoup to Colonel and gave him command of the regiment in spite of Shoup ' s lack of combat experience . The invasion commenced on 20 November 1943 , with Shoup disembarking from " Maryland " , the flagship for the invasion . His force met heavy resistance on the beaches . His LVT was destroyed by shore fire , and he had to proceed without transportation . As he was wading ashore at around 11 : 00 , he was struck by shrapnel in the legs and received a grazing wound from a bullet in the neck . In spite of these wounds , he rallied the Marines and led them ashore . He was able to coordinate the troops on the beaches and organize them as they began to push inland against an anticipated Japanese counterattack . He continuously organized aggressive attacks on the defenders , and was noted for his bravery and intensity during the conflict . On the second day of the attack , he organized an advance inland , despite heavy casualties among the American troops . By the afternoon , they were winning the battle , and reinforcements began to arrive in force . That night , Shoup was relieved by Colonel Merritt A . Edson , the division ' s Chief of Staff , who commanded the 2nd Marines for the remainder of the campaign . Shoup was highly regarded for his preparation and leadership in the Tarawa attack . For his planning , he was awarded the Legion of Merit with " V " device . For his leadership during the initial assault , he was awarded the Medal of Honor , the British Distinguished Service Order , and the Purple Heart . Ten years after the assault , Shoup remarked of the operation , " there was never a doubt in the minds of those ashore what the final outcome of the battle for Tarawa would be . There was for some seventy - six hours , however , considerable haggling with the enemy over the exact price we would have to pay . " In 1968 , he returned to Tarawa to dedicate a memorial to the battle and to the American and Japanese troops who had died there . Subsequent wartime service . In December 1943 , Shoup became Chief of Staff of the 2nd Marine Division , which was then assigned to the upcoming invasion of the Marianas as part of an island - hopping strategy . Shoup ' s role in these attacks was not as central as his leadership at Tarawa , but he continued to perform well in planning and strategic thinking during the battles for Saipan and Tinian . In one instance , he was trapped in a forward observer post in Saipan with fellow officer Wallace M . Greene , who later recalled that in the midst of the Japanese attack , Shoup remained impressively calm . Shoup was awarded a second Legion of Merit with " V " device for his work in this campaign . After the end of operations on the Mariana Islands , Shoup returned to the United States in October 1944 and served as a logistics officer in the Division of Plans and Policies at the Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington , D . C . , for the remainder of the war . Cold War era . In August 1947 , Shoup became Commanding Officer , Service Command , Fleet Marine Force , Pacific . In June 1949 , he was assigned to the 1st Marine Division at Camp Pendleton as its chief of staff . In July 1950 , he was then transferred to Quantico where he served as Commanding Officer of the Basic School . In April 1952 , Shoup became Assistant Fiscal Director in the Office of the Fiscal Director , Headquarters Marine Corps . In this capacity , Shoup served under Major General William P . T . Hill , the Quartermaster General . Shoup was ordered by the Marine Corps Commandant General Lemuel C . Shepherd to establish a new fiscal office independent of Hill ' s authority . Shoup and Hill clashed frequently , but Shoup was nonetheless able to establish a new , independent Fiscal Division . He was promoted to brigadier general in April 1953 , and in July he became Fiscal Director of the Marine Corps . He was involved in fiscal strategy hearings before the U . S . Congress , and established a programming system where officers researched and thought out programs before bringing them to Congress . This idea met with resistance from Marine leaders who favored going to the Hill to figure out the details of programs . While serving in this capacity , he was promoted to major general in September 1955 . Shoup began a brief assignment as Inspector General for Recruit Training in May 1956 after being ordered to do so by Commandant Randolph M . Pate following the Ribbon Creek incident , which involved the accidental drowning of six recruits during a training march . As Marine leaders were investigating , they favored Shoup ' s recommendation of not covering up the incident . He supported an overhaul of recruit training for the Marine Corps in response . Following this , he served as Inspector General of the Marine Corps from September 1956 until May 1957 . He returned to Camp Pendleton in June to become commanding general of the 1st Marine Division . He became Commanding General of the 3rd Marine Division on Okinawa in March 1958 . Following his return to the United States in May 1959 , he served as Commanding General of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot , Parris Island , until October 1959 . During this time , he also served as president of the 2nd Marine Division Association . Commandant of the Marine Corps . While still a major general , Shoup was unexpectedly nominated to become Commandant of the Marine Corps by President Dwight D . Eisenhower at the behest of Secretary of Defense Thomas S . Gates , Jr . . To prepare for this duty he was promoted to lieutenant general on 2 November 1959 , and briefly assigned duties as Chief of Staff , Headquarters Marine Corps . He was elevated to general on 1 January 1960 , upon assuming the post as the 22nd Commandant of the Marine Corps . He would later serve under the of John F . Kennedy from 1961 to 1963 , and the administration of Lyndon B . Johnson in 1963 . Leadership overhaul . By 1959 , Gates and other officials viewed Corps as fraught with internal squabbling and alienated from the other services . Because of this condition , combined with the reputation gained from the Ribbon Creek incident , it was decided that Pate needed to be replaced . Gates believed Shoup was a strong leader who could steer the Corps in the right direction . Shoup was selected over five lieutenant generals and four major generals senior to him in rank . Lieutenant General Merrill B . Twining was considered the likely appointee to the position ; Lieutenant Generals Edward Pollock and Vernon E . Megee also aspired to the position of Commandant . Twining openly vied for the position and retired immediately after Shoup was selected , reportedly in protest , as did several other officers . Shoup emphasized military readiness , training , and inter - service cooperation , which differed from the political climate of the time . He rapidly gained a reputation as being extremely demanding and critical of poor performance , especially by Marine generals and leaders . He was sometimes blunt in his criticism of what he saw as poorly performing officers , to the extent that some considered him a bully . Eisenhower favored Shoup because he feared other officers spent too much time in political affairs , and felt Shoup would reduce the influence of the military industrial complex . Immediately after his appointment , Shoup sought to place new officers in key positions , in an attempt to overhaul the leadership of the Marine Corps . He and Pate disagreed over some of the new appointments , as Shoup transferred many senior officers and encouraged others to retire . Shoup later wrote he felt the Joint Chiefs of Staff had an undue weight in the direction of military strategy . He also sought to curtail politicking by lower - level Marine officers seeking career advancement . Budget strategy . During the first year of Shoup ' s service as Commandant , he served under the Eisenhower administration , in which military budget policy was dominated by the " New Look " policy , under which a strong nuclear deterrent was favored over conventional warfare forces . Eisenhower focused on containment without entangling the United States in proxy wars such as the Korean War . The end result of this was spending cuts and force reductions within the Marine Corps . The 1960 election of Kennedy ushered in a major change in military strategy with the adoption of the " Flexible Response " strategy , which saw a return to conventional military forces as a deterrent to nuclear war . Under the Kennedy administration there was increased civilian participation in defense policy - building , and the new Secretary of Defense , Robert McNamara , sought more inter - service cooperation . Shoup favored a more frugal approach to the military budget , feeling the military was too prone to influence from large corporations arguing for expensive and unnecessary programs . As the Kennedy administration brought more emphasis on conventional warfare , Shoup sought to use increased funds to improve military logistics . He is credited with formulating an entirely new system of financial management , supply , and inventory management . He also created a new Data Processing Division to centralize the data processing functions of several combat service support branches . Cold War conflicts . Shoup ' s outlook on Cold War conflicts was greatly influenced by his upbringing , and he was frequently an opponent of military action against the Soviet Union . He refused to fall into what he referred to as the " hate the Communists movement " , indicating he would fight them if required by circumstances , but avoided undue prejudice . When U . S . Senator Strom Thurmond criticized the military for not training its troops about communism , Shoup regarded the criticism as interference . He appealed to Secretary of the Navy Fred Korth , and the matter was dropped . At the behest of the Kennedy administration , Shoup integrated counterinsurgency warfare into combat doctrine . Though he was not in favor of the idea , he appointed Major General Victor H . Krulak as an adviser on counterinsurgency . Shoup opposed military action against Cuba , warning against any attempt to intervene militarily against Fidel Castro . He was initially not involved or aware of the plans for the Bay of Pigs invasion . He was asked by the Central Intelligence Agency ( CIA ) to furnish an officer , but became furious when he learned the CIA was requisitioning Marine supplies without his permission . He finally learned the intent of the CIA when the officer , Colonel Jack Hawkins , contacted him on the night of the invasion , pleading with him to appeal to Kennedy for air support . Following the failure of the operation , the Joint Chiefs of Staff were blamed , which Shoup thought was unfair , as they had not been aware of the early planning . Shoup later warned against an armed response during the Cuban missile crisis , noting how difficult it would be to invade the country . Still , he prepared a team of Marines to invade Cuba should it be necessary . Kennedy subsequently sought Shoup ' s advice in evaluating the implications of the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty . While his position in the Joint Chiefs of Staff was intended to be limited , he had gained Kennedy ' s confidence and was often called on for private consultations . Shoup supported the test ban , seeing it as a deterrent to nuclear war . Shoup was strongly opposed to military intervention in Indochina from the beginning . In 1961 , when the Pathet Lao threatened the American - backed government of Laos , he rejected calls for armed intervention . He deployed Task Unit Shufly to Saigon in 1962 only because he was ordered to , and cautioned against further involvement in South Vietnam , which he toured in October 1962 . He opposed the Strategic Hamlet program , as well as efforts to train the Army of the Republic of Vietnam . He opposed any plans for combat in Vietnam , and later said " every responsible military man to my knowledge " was against the war as well . Shoup ' s staunch opposition to involvement there had a great impact on Kennedy , who , before his assassination on 22 November 1963 , indicated that he wanted to end U . S . involvement in South Vietnam , seeing it as an internal struggle . While Eisenhower appreciated Shoup ' s financial experience and apolitical outlook , Shoup was called upon most often by Kennedy . With Kennedy ' s relations with the Joint Chiefs of Staff strained , particularly following the Cuban Missile Crisis , he called upon Shoup privately for many consultations . Shoup ' s biographer Howard Jablon wrote that Shoup was Kennedy ' s favorite general . In turn , Shoup was the most supportive of Kennedy of all of the Joint Chiefs of Staff . Kennedy had asked Shoup to remain as Commandant for a second term in 1963 , but Shoup declined in order to allow the advancement of other Marine generals . Later life and opposition to the Vietnam War . Retiring from the military in December 1963 , Shoup took a job at a life insurance company , but remained influential in the administration . Johnson considered taking Shoup as an adviser on a February 1964 trip to Vietnam , but did not , either because he never made the invitation or because Shoup declined . Johnson appointed Shoup to the National Advisory Commission on Selective Service in early 1966 . It disbanded on 1 January 1967 after submitting a report . Shoup was unable to directly influence the Johnson administration , which expanded U . S . involvement in the Vietnam War . He became increasingly wary of what he felt was undue influence by the CIA and big businesses on foreign policy . In 1964 during the debate over the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution , Senator Wayne Morse wanted to call Shoup to testify against the measure , but was blocked by Senator J . William Fulbright . On 14 May 1966 , Shoup began publicly attacking the policy in a speech delivered to community college students at Pierce College in Woodland Hills , California , for their World Affairs Day . The forum was relatively small and initially received little publicity , but in February 1967 Shoup submitted the speech to Senator Rupert Vance Hartke , who entered it into the Congressional Record . The speech grew in popularity , and Shoup did an interview for ABC News where he elaborated that , while he was not a pacifist , he felt the war was " not worth the life or limb of a single American . " He remained firmly opposed to the involvement in Vietnam for the rest of his life . Although other retired high - ranking officers , including generals James Gavin and Matthew Ridgway , joined Shoup in this , it was Shoup ' s pointed criticisms that regularly made the front pages of newspapers , because they went beyond the war to American government , business , and military leadership . He feared the conflict had endangered the nation ' s historical identity , and argued increasing the troop levels in Vietnam would only aggravate the strategic problems there . Historian Robert Buzzanco noted that Shoup may have been the most vocal former military member to oppose the war . Shoup argued that among the Vietnamese forces involved in the civil war there were nationalists opposed to foreign military intervention . He opposed many of the strategies associated with troop escalation , notably the air campaign over North Vietnam , which he saw as an aggressive measure causing civilian casualties that could draw the People ' s Republic of China or the Soviet Union into the conflict . He also feared that other American interests , including the economy , were suffering through U . S . involvement in the war , and that the U . S . was losing prestige internationally . Shoup ' s opposition to the war only increased over time ; he initially pushed for a negotiated settlement but later supported a unilateral pullout from the country . As the Vietnamization strategy took effect and the U . S . increased its air operations , he remained opposed to any strategy that risked a nuclear war with China or the Soviet Union . His criticism attracted more press as the war became a stalemate . It also became highly publicized through discourse among the anti - war movement . In 1968 , in testimony before Congress , Shoup made many of the same points as he had in his 1966 speech , saying he felt opposition to the war had likely increased since then . In April 1969 , along with retired Colonel James Donovan , he broadened his criticism to national security policy . In an article published in " Atlantic Monthly " , he accused America of becoming militaristic and aggressive , and was a country ready to " execute military contingency plans and to seek military solutions to problems of political disorder and potential Communist threats in areas of our interest . " He said that anticommunism had given way to a new , aggressive defense establishment in the United States . In a book titled " Militarism U . S . A . " ( 1970 ) , Shoup and Donovan elaborated their criticisms . Shoup said the country was seeking military solutions to issues that could be resolved politically . He accused military leaders of propagating the war for their own career advancement , and accused the veterans group Veterans of Foreign Wars of propagandizing for the armed forces establishment . Shoup blamed the American education system for what he saw as discouraging independent thought and stressing obedience . Shoup joined the Business Executives Move for Vietnam Peace . By 1971 , Shoup publicly endorsed the anti - war veteran group Vietnam Veterans Against the War . As Vietnamization had reduced the visibility of the anti - war movement , and Shoup ' s criticism was not as prominent in the public arena . Fulbright and other senators urged the White House to listen to his criticisms , but Shoup ' s broader critique of American society and militarism was seen as more extreme than other officers who had simply criticized the strategy of the war . Shoup ' s opposition to the war garnered resentment from many of the other officers in the Marine Corps , and was met with criticism that he was becoming mentally unfit or was treasonous in his actions . He was sharply criticized by journalist and former Marine Robert Heinl in several articles of the " Detroit News " where Heinl said Shoup was " going sour . " General Rathvon M . C . Thompkins , one of Shoup ' s close friends , stopped speaking to him for several years . By December 1967 , he had lost favor with the Johnson administration , his activities were monitored by the Federal Bureau of Investigation , and his patriotism was called into question in the media . After 1971 , Shoup ' s speaking and writing diminished , and he faded from the public eye after the U . S . military withdrawal from Vietnam in 1973 . After the war , he stayed out of the public spotlight . He suffered from illness late in life , and he died on 13 January 1983 in Alexandria , Virginia . He was buried in section 7 - A of Arlington National Cemetery . Honors and decorations . The Arleigh Burke - class destroyer was named for Shoup in 1999 . Additionally , he received the following decorations :