Iron Cross

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When a politician becomes a "quasi-president", Dewey certainly has no shortage of wisdom and means. Truman's sudden announcement to withdraw from the election and appoint himself as the ambassador for the peace talks clearly points in one direction - the Democrats are trying to make Dewey act as the scapegoat and shoulder the responsibility for the peace talks. consequences, and in turn triggered public sentiment against the Republican Party.

He is well aware of this idea. No matter how slow and naive he is, after experiencing the Wallace incident, would he not be aware of the scapegoating method of Truman and the Democrats? It's not like no one suggested to him that he should throw the blame back - if you, Truman, hadn't led the war into such a mess when you were president, would there be any need for Dewey to come forward to sue for peace?

But Dewey was not a simple-minded impulsive person. After careful consideration, he refused this seemingly direct and fatal counterattack and chose to endure it temporarily:

First, he must pay attention to political demeanor. After all, Truman took the initiative to announce his withdrawal from the election and took over all responsibilities. If he arbitrarily attacks his opponents before he takes office, then there will be no need to look at the politics of the two parties in the future, and it will definitely deteriorate sharply;

Secondly, attacking Truman has no real meaning. Truman had only been president for a few months, and it was obviously Roosevelt who chose to take the blame in the end. Anyone with a little bit of intelligence would understand that Truman had little to do with the defeat of the war. Even Truman himself did not shirk the blame. Fang Fang takes full responsibility. What's the use of attacking your opponent? Could it be further blamed on the dead man Roosevelt?

Thirdly, if the war is defeated, the soldiers must be responsible. Truman took all the responsibility, which invisibly relieved the responsibility of the generals. If Dewey clings to the past, it is easy to think that his coming to power will immediately mean a reckoning. Naturally It will arouse the same hatred among the military.

Dewey only gradually figured out the third reason in the past two days. At first, he thought it was just Turner's problem.

He had already learned about Turner during the Wallace incident, and had inquired about the relationship between him and General Kim in detail, but he still felt that it was all in the fog and could not understand why General Kim wanted to reuse Turner. However, if Dewey wanted to be a good president and win the morale of the military, he had to punish the generals. Turner was obviously a big target - whether he wanted to or not.

But judging from Spruance's attitude and the performance of others, it seems that the time is not yet ripe.

Seeing that Dewey was expected to become president, a group of people who were originally on the fence quickly came over. After Turner publicly attacked Dewey and caused an uproar in public opinion, the advice of insiders made Dewey quickly understand the navy's approach:

It is precisely because Admiral King originally included Stark, Honey, Richard Edwards (Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Fleet), Arthur Hepburn (Chairman of the Navy General Affairs Committee), etc., who were basically at the same level and with the same qualifications as him Only by pushing aside all the admirals could he monopolize power in the Navy. Not only did Admiral Jin follow his lead in the Navy, but he was also very vocal in the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and his weight was much greater than that of Marshall and Lehi. As for Arnold, he ranked even higher later.

Of course, Admiral Kim also has skills. Because he can guarantee the interests of the navy, and at the same time only revolve around Roosevelt, without caring about the opinions of other politicians. This kind of domineering skills and style make all the new generation middle-level leaders of the Navy surround him, like Kimmel. This kind of weak general (who was demoted from admiral to rear admiral after the Battle of Pearl Harbor) is not liked by many in the Navy. Halsey, Spruance, Mitchell, Turner, Hewitt, Kincaid (Killed in action), Lee (Killed in action), and even a group of more senior generals such as Ingersoll, Ingram, and Nimitz can be considered his faction. Even General Kim himself has always disliked and considered it unacceptable. The auspicious Fletcher did everything possible to get closer to General Jin and was proud of General Jin's recognition.

Similar to the hijacking of the Cape Verde Army, the 70-year-old General Kim not only slammed the table at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but also directly picked up a chair to fight with Marshall. If it were replaced by other generals (such as Stark and others), the best After muttering and protesting but not daring to do anything, even if the battle ahead is defeated, Admiral Jin, who protects the shortcomings, will find a way to excuse others. This is the fundamental reason why the entire navy unanimously supports Admiral Jin. Even Roosevelt's most trusted confidant, General Li Hai, had to shy away in front of Admiral Jin. However, Li Hai was very smart and never had a direct conflict with him. Admiral Jin also understood Li Hai's weight. In addition to holding the power of naval command and personnel, Except for this, all other administrative, external relations, and ceremonial powers were left to Li Hai.

After Roosevelt's death, this allegiance was transferred to Truman. Letting Nimitz take over was itself a step in Admiral King's plan. Spruance and Halsey were Admiral King's scheduled commanders of the Two Ocean Fleet! As for Turner, Admiral King knew better than anyone that the other party was good at formulating combat plans. At most, he could command amphibious landing operations (so Cape Verde asked him to assist Ingersoll). He could not actually engage the fleet in actual combat, so Verde After the battle, Turner would never be released from the fleet again, even if Mitchell was replaced.

Nominating Spruance to succeed Turner was a slingshot from Dewey, who wanted to see if this group of Navy Mesozoics were as monolithic as outside rumors suggested. The other party's reaction obviously disappointed him - the difference between Spruance's strategy and Turner's strategy was only in the form of expression, not in the connotation. Even the first thing he did after taking over Turner's position was to speak for Turner. , which made Dewey feel chilly.

Originally, Dewey wanted to add Honey, the deputy chief of naval operations, to the core circle of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but now he felt from personal experience that his deputy was right - Honey had no authority at all over these fleet generals, and he had to control them. The only one who can live with them is Nimitz!

Truman saw that his face was not very good, and knew what he was thinking, and comforted him calmly: "Don't take Turner's matter to heart. He is now a civilian and does not have much influence. Admiral King himself He was severely criticized—Turner is a rough guy!”

"I was a little too hasty."

On the evening of October 3, before the expected bombs fell, Truman delivered a national address to the anxious and confused people, saying that this was a false threat from the Japanese and hoped that the people would not be too afraid. Of course, he did not dare to say anything. He only said that the government had taken all necessary measures. "If the Japanese army dares to come, they will learn an unforgettable lesson."

As soon as Truman finished his national address, Dewey came to him with a very gloomy look on his face. Truman was surprised that the Turner incident had calmed down after two days, so why was Dewey still looking like this?

The latter suddenly said: "I have contacted European informants and the German side, and the situation is not ideal."

Truman did not want to ask who the informant was. The Republican Party must have people who could speak in Europe. He only asked: "How come you are not ideal and have met the other party's big shot?"

"I met Ribbentrop himself, but I haven't met Hitler yet. It is said that he has not been in Berlin recently. I don't know where he went. Some people speculate that he is in Africa, but no one can guarantee it."

Truman was not interested in where Hoffman was and asked, "What are the conditions for the Germans?"

"The specific conditions were not mentioned. Ribbentrop only said two sentences. First, the issues of South America and South Africa are not within the scope of negotiations; second, on the Japanese issue, don't expect Germany to betray its allies. Even Japan can. "How can Germany be the world leader in the future?" Dewey said, "Without Hitler's nod, Ribbentrop would certainly not dare to say the specific conditions, but I don't think these two are just nonsense on his part. I'm afraid they are the consensus of the German top brass."

Truman was angry: "Does this mean there's nothing to talk about?"

Dewey smiled bitterly: "It seems that our price is not enough, the Japanese have proposed to attack the west coast, and the Germans plan to take advantage of it."

"It's better to calm down and talk about it again."

"Führer, I have conveyed the opinions you asked me to convey truthfully." Ribbentrop said strangely, "But don't you advocate giving the Americans a chance? If you release the specific conditions earlier, we can start talking about it earlier. Now you If we avoid the middleman, the other party may think that we are not sincere enough.”

Hoffmann smiled: "Comrade Ribbentrop, what are you in a hurry? The Japanese have just issued a statement that they are going to take action. Why don't we see the effect of their action before making an offer? The effect of the Japanese army's action will come first. Comparing our prices, it doesn’t seem so out of the ordinary. I don’t have the patience to bargain with the middlemen bit by bit, so I’m counting on the Japanese to negotiate for us.”

"I'm worried... I'm worried whether the United States will make peace with Japan and then fight us to the end."

"It's better this way. Let them fight. We have a big appetite, so does the Japanese have a small appetite? The Japanese want Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand. Will the Americans give it or not?"

"This..." Ribbentrop was at a loss for words and didn't know how to answer.

"In two days, when the exact results of the Japanese combined fleet operation are received, you might as well put some conditions out there and say that you have communicated with me via telegram..."

"What if the Japanese are defeated?"

"Whether Japan succeeds or fails, it will promote us." Hoffman raised two fingers and pointed at the champagne seller, "First, if the Japanese army wins, it means that the situation in the United States has reached its peak. If it does not compromise with one party quickly, it will be punished. Joint strangulation; second, Japan's defeat shows that if Germany's interference is eliminated, the United States is sure to defeat Japan. If it were you, wouldn't you find a way to stabilize us first? "

"I understand, but...this middleman."

"No, tell them I'm not here." Hoffman smiled, "I'm really not here! I'm leaving for Madagascar tomorrow! Before the South African campaign starts, we will organize a special exercise to practice all the new tactics and new equipment. What? It’s called Blitzkrieg 2.0? It’s called 2.0 when it’s full of mercury, full of momentum, and majestic in one go. It’s not called 2.0 when it’s full of loopholes, messy, and intermittently!”

"I really want to see it too."

"Next time. This time we are going to have 8 marshals, 14 generals, and a group of foreign military observers. After all, it is just a rehearsal. There are enough people. You should save some energy to watch the main show."