:47:00
will follow de facto, without
any need for force of arms.
:47:03
We therefore propose
to invade Formosa...
:47:06
at the earliest
opportunity.
:47:09
And my planners
are convinced...
:47:11
that a target date
of March 1, '45,
:47:14
is not unreasonable.
:47:18
Well, Douglas,
how does it sound to you?
:47:29
I'm a soldier, and I'll
hold the horse if so ordered.
:47:34
To bypass isolated islands
is one thing,
:47:38
but to leave
in your rear...
:47:40
250,000
Japanese troops...
:47:44
drawing their sustenance
from the Philippines,
:47:47
involves serious
and unnecessary risks.
:47:50
From Luzon,
I can clamp a blockade...
:47:53
on all supplies
from the south to Japan,
:47:56
thus forcing her
to an early capitulation.
:47:59
Therefore, I propose...
:48:01
that we land
at Leyte Beach on Luzon,
:48:04
and then carry
the fight to Manila.
:48:07
Given a successful landing, aren't you
afraid of a long and bloody campaign?
:48:11
With the kind of
performance and support...
:48:14
provided thus far
by the navy,
:48:17
I can be in Manila
in five weeks...
:48:19
from the day my troops
step ashore on the beaches,
:48:22
and well before
next March.
:48:24
General, how can
you say that?
:48:26
Because for two years, Filipino
guerrillas have been working...
:48:29
behind the Japanese lines to
set the stage for our landings.
:48:33
It's your position to know, but I can't
conscientiously agree with this estimate.
:48:37
To take Luzon would demand
heavier losses than we can stand.
:48:40
It seems to me
we should bypass it.
:48:42
In my two years of fighting
in the southwest Pacific area,
:48:45
and they have been
long, hard years,
:48:47
fewer Americans have been killed
than in the single battle of Anzio.
:48:51
The days of the frontal
attack are over.
:48:54
Only your mediocre
commanders use it.
:48:57
Your good commanders
do not turn in heavy losses.