In November 1940, FDR won a third term in the election over Wilke who was advocating a more measured response to Germany.Keitel wrote:[
If we ignore the virulent anti-war movement in the US. Till Hitler declares war, FDR doesn't have the backing to jump in and the US public isn't enraged enough to fight Hitler. A majority were still of the opinion to let them kill each other.
The occupation of French and Dutch territories in the Western Hemisphere was overwhelmingly approved by Congress on 6/17/40 by 76 to 20 in the Senate and 380 to 8 in the House, as but one example.
Regardless of public sentiment, the US was headed to war. FDR's third term pretty much guaranteed it.
The US would have definitely gone to war with Japan if they attacked the DEI or Malaysia. The US was already making active military plans with what was called the "ABCD" (America, Britain, China, Dutch) powers in Asia for a coordinated defense. The majority of Americans were also willing to go to war with Japan, far more willing, than with Germany.Actually it made all the difference by starting the war. US public is not enraged enough to go to war for Britain's Colonies. If the Japanese just ignore the PI and go straight in for the DEI and not waste time with the Pearl Harbor strike, there isn't much FDR can do.
Japan's joining the Axis on 9/27/40 was met largely with derision in the US. Japan thought that having a treaty of support with Germany would temper a US response making them think twice about starting a two ocean war. Instead, Secretary of State Hull called the treaty "A bluff." Two weeks later the State Department warned all US citizens to get out of Japan and areas they occupied.
The day after Japan signed that treaty, FDR promised China $100 million in new military aid on top of the $500 million already extended.
On November 26 1941, the US passed to Japan a comprehensive note on foreign policy. It included demands... note that demands that Japan withdraw all forces from China, sign a treaty supporting the Nationalist Chinese government, enter a mulit-nation nonaggression pact, and guarantee the borders and territory of nations in Asia. In exchange the US would ease up their embargo on Japan and unfreeze their assets in the US.
Japan basically said, no way and that was that.
The US and Japan were going to war.
The US Army sent exactly 7 infantry divisions into the Pacific in 1942, and stood one up out of local units (the Americal Division on New Caledonia). After that, no more were sent. The USMC went from 0 to 6 divisions over the course of the war. The rest of the US Army divisions raised all went to the ETO or MTO.Half the US Military was deployed in the Pacific Theater for 1942-43, many of the units landing at Normandy cut their teeth here. The bulk of the USMC was deployed to the Pacific. Hell the bloodiest battles the US fought were in the Pacific and substantial forces needed in the ETO were tied down.
So yes Japan did draw off substantial forces. No German Declaration of War and no Japanese sneak attack means FDR can't jump in.
Japan was beaten on land by a tiny fraction of US military strength. At sea, the bulk of the USN was deployed to the Pacific. The Atlantic really only required ASW assets. Most of the US ships deployed elsewhere (like South America and the Caribbean) were units unsuited to front line naval combat like the old Omaha class cruisers or Erie class gunboats, along with old "four piper" destroyers.
The US also, right after taking Vichy French colonies in North Africa began rebuilding the French army, eventually supplying equipment for 12 divisions. The British Commonwealth received like masses of material, as did the Russians and Chinese.
Then humor me. How many asphalt plants? How many bulldozers? How many dump trucks? How many gravel plants? How much mechanization did they have?"Yawn" Same old tired nonsense and I gave you the source too.
What a joke! One US construction engineer battalion (TO 5-75) with 946 men has:Just in the Pioneer Companies assigned to Infantry Regiments, they had 9 large compressors, 20 power saws, and 6 welding sets for construction work and were noted for how quickly they could lay corduroy roads.
10 bulldozers
27 2 1/2 ton trucks
13 2 1/2 ton dump trucks
1 4 ton wrecker
8 2 1/2 ton trucks with air compressors
4 road graders
4 2 1/2 ton trucks forming a mobile machine shop (with generator trailers)
2 crawler tractor crane / shovel / excavator
6 earth movers / scrapers
3 truck mounted cranes
2 10 cf trailer mounted cement mixers
12 20 ton lowboy trailers
1 skid mounted earth auger
2 10 ton road roller
3 8 ton road rollers
2 3 tooth rotary trenching machines.
That doesn't include their air driven jack hammers, chain saws, portable saw mill, and a plethora of other equipment in addition to hand tools.
Corduroy roads? Like this you mean?
How about airfield construction?
Two companies of US engineers (about 300 men) bridged the Rhine... Most likely in a matter of a day or so too...
I doubt that 3000 German construction troops with their gear could do it in under a week.
So, basically they had next to nothing. A few concrete mixers, some ancient steam rollers, and an asphalt spreader. Pathetic...The separate road construction battalions had a minimum of 4 concrete mixers on 5 ton trailers pulled by four heavy trucks, 4 oil or steam powered rollers, and 2 five-ton with asphalt surfacing equipment pulled by a tractor. In just three months, they doubled the amount of supplies reaching the deployed divisions. That is what really matters more than what equipment they have.
Nope. You forget its not a linear function, but an inverse square one. Adding a little... Which is really all Rommel had, buys the Germans very little additional in Russia.Finally the Germans had an SDE value that was 4 times larger than the Soviets who really struggled to keep its forces supplied. The Germans also brought twice as many trucks as the Soviets did and their 495,800 trucks had 24 times the total lift capacity of all the Wehrmacht's horses. The Soviets were heavily dependent on horses and suffered more from the bad roads than the Germans did. As the Germans get closer to Moscow the more the roads improve.
So if the proposed Rommel Corps is committed and pushes off from Yelniya, the Soviets are fucked.