Chapter 711 Atlantic Strangulation War (20)
The others immediately withdrew, and the doctors helped everyone close the door and signaled the guards to watch over them.
Although the windows and doors were closed, even though the ward where Roosevelt was located was on a separate floor of the hospital and equipped with the highest level of sound insulation, and even though everyone had retreated to the corridor, the uncontrollable and angry roar was still faintly heard. came from the ward.
"I originally thought that the American Army would be a little worse than the Germans, but I didn't expect that the Navy would disappoint me even more!"
"Pearl Harbor was attacked, the Horn of Africa was attacked, and Cape Verde was attacked. When and to what extent will we be attacked by the enemy? When will our losses stop expanding? When will the strategic situation be restored as soon as possible? Twist?”
Roosevelt forced himself to sit in a wheelchair and said angrily: "You want more ships, fine, I'll get you workers from Britain and money from Congress to build them for you! You want more advanced weapons, fine, I'll invest in them." We have spent several times as much research and development funding as our enemies, we have tried every means to obtain the latest technology from our allies, we have personally participated in the development and production of major technical weapons, and I have cut off all red tape that is not conducive to the development of new weapons; you I said you need to adapt to war and learn war. I gave you enough time and resources to adapt. Even if you suffered defeats one after another, I still chose to believe you and understand you. I always believed that this was a necessary experience in the process of war. …I will do whatever it takes to protect your image.”
Everyone knows the weight of this sentence: the so-called "Loyalty Act", spy retrieval, and intelligence investigation are largely too serious and alarmist, but they are not without benefits. The biggest benefit is to establish the first place in war. atmosphere, and at the same time helped the soldiers to absolve themselves of the responsibility for repeated defeats.
"But what about you? How are you fighting? The most powerful battleship force and the most powerful aircraft carrier formation were actually defeated by a few torpedo boats or submarines! No one dares to believe this is the truth outside this door! If the American people knew that you were fighting like this, they would be so angry that they would send you all to the gallows. Hitler killed dozens of generals and marshals, but the Germans became stronger and stronger. Do you also want to experience this? "Natural elimination?" Roosevelt's voice suddenly raised an octave, "I tell you, I am not being alarmist, let alone deliberately intimidating. Gentlemen, please use your brains and think about it. If the United States pays a heavy price for this war, In the end, we found nothing, what will happen to everyone?”
"I know my illness well, and I will probably go to see God in the next few years. What will you do after I die? You all hold high positions, have a lot of disciples and former officials, and a group of close followers. Do you think the new president will let go?" You think the all-pervasive public opinion and reporters will let you go? Don’t even think about it! If the United States loses the war, you will be the scapegoat - because others are not qualified!"
These words scolded everyone bloody, and everyone looked ugly, but no one dared to speak out in defense. The situation was clearly written on the telegram: First, Germany did not dispatch its main fleet, or even large warships. ; Second, the losses of 4 battleships are already there. This was even uglier than the failure in the Horn of Africa. At that time, after all, there was still an excuse to be ambushed by the main force of the Combined Fleet. The enemy not only had world-class aviation but also the most powerful super battleship in the world. What did the Germans have? Aren't they just a few submarines and torpedo boats?
"The main responsibility for this matter lies with me, and I have to take full responsibility...I..." Admiral Jin choked up and was speechless.
"You still don't understand, am I keeping you here to vent my anger or to hold you accountable?" Roosevelt glanced at everyone sternly, "Can this situation be reversed by holding one or more generals accountable or even removing them? Yes. Will it help us fundamentally solve the problem?”
Everyone was silent for a while.
"The biggest problem now is, first, the generals commanding operations on the front line have no confidence. They sank a few warships and killed thousands of people, then retreated and said they were going to retreat. Is this the rhythm that can win the war? The second is that the soldiers have no Confidence, they do not dare to fight an enemy with the same number or even slightly less than us. According to your statement, the enemy's strength in Cape Verde is only 5-6 thousand. The airport was bombed, the aviation force was destroyed, and the position was heavily attacked by our army's artillery fire. Did the enemy waver? Did they surrender? Did they escape? They tried every means to restrain and deal with us. If they couldn't do it during the day, they would use small troops. In short, the enemy thought that we were just useless. It is difficult to deal with; thirdly, middle and lower-level officers have no choice. The enemy has endless tricks and strategies, and very practical battlefield methods. Our method of fighting is clumsy and embarrassing, and we will only rely one-sidedly on air cover, firepower superiority, and logistical supplies—— It seems that the war cannot be fought without these. According to this method of fighting, the Russians should have collapsed long ago. During the Revolutionary War, our guns were inferior to the people, the artillery was inferior to the people, the navy was inferior to the people, and the supplies were inferior to the people. Did Washington give up? ?...To put it bluntly, we are bloodless from top to bottom, we are still fighting step by step, and we still think that we are fighting a colonial war with Mexico, and we do not regard this war as a life-and-death struggle for the United States at all. "
Although Roosevelt spoke very harshly, he hit the nail on the head and everyone nodded hesitantly.
"Why I promote and commend Matthew Ridgway so strongly is not because of how well he fought, but because he showed rare courage and bloodshed in difficult situations. He led his men to fight against the enemy with infantry anti-tank weapons. Armored vehicles dare to engage in close combat, night combat, and melee combat with the enemy. How many such troops are there? We must clearly understand our situation. The United States is at a disadvantage in terms of strategic situation and is weaker than its opponents in the construction of its military system and the capabilities of its officers and soldiers. , if you are no longer as good as your opponent in fighting will and fighting spirit, there will never be any hope of victory in this war, so..." Roosevelt protracted his tone, "I hope you can establish a correct consciousness and be based on fighting with blood and courage. Opponents, we have to put ourselves on the weak side. We have nothing to be proud of. I hope you will go back and sort it out carefully, and clean up all those officers who are doing nothing, officers who are afraid of the enemy, and officers who are in low spirits. , I don’t care about seniority during war, whoever can lead the troops to victory is the hero.”
"As for Cape Verde, I have only one sentence: We must win it. No matter how heavy the casualties are, we must win it! Only in this way can the sacrifices and efforts ahead be valuable, and we can be accountable to the American people!"