5. General Douglas MacArthur,
Supreme Commander Allied Forces in the Pacific, W.W.II
Eisenhower served as MacArthur's assistant in Washington and his advisor in the Philippines in the 1930s. He disliked MacArthur for his vanity, his penchant for theatrics, and for what Eisenhower perceived as "irrational" behavior. "Probably no one has had tougher fights with a senior than I had with MacArthur," Eisenhower once said. While Eisenhower served as Chief of Staff after World War II, MacArthur undermined his efforts to slow down mobilization and later to unify the armed services. He willingly admitted though that MacArthur was smart, decisive, and a brilliant military mind. Working under him was frustrating, but also an invaluable learning experience.
I just can't understand how such a damn fool could have gotten to be a general.
Ann Whitman Diary, Dec.4,1954
MacArthur could never see another sun, or even a moon for that matter, in the heavens, as long as HE was the sun.
Eisenhower: Portrait of the Hero, Peter Lyon, pg. 69
