Truman And Macarthur: Policy, Politics, And The Hunger For Honor And Renown

Pearlman’s book, Truman and MacArthur: Policy, Politics, and the Hunger for Honor and Renown, is about the conflict of personalities between President Harry Truman and General Douglas MacArthur. Pearlman argues that neither Truman nor MacArthur were at fault when Truman was forced to dismiss MacArthur from his command. Rather when faced with a hostile domestic political environment and complex foreign geopolitical situation, a weak administration enabled MacArthur’s insubordinate conduct, eventually leading to the necessity for his dismissal.
Dr. Pearlman was an accomplished historian, author, and professor at several universities. His career culminated as a professor of history at U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, where he worked for twenty years until his retirement in 2006. His focus of study was in American military policy and strategy.
It appears as though he set out to write a book that finds both protagonists equally culpable yet victimized by the circumstances they found themselves in. In his intro, Pearlman states his intent to provide an objective and comprehensive account

He provides numerous examples of MacArthur controverting Truman’s guidance, and an administration failing to provide an effective bridge between Truman and MacArthur. He illuminates the significant impact that domestic partisan activities within his administration had on his abilities to form and direct a unified foreign policy and military strategy. He demonstrates Truman’s deference to military authority and his weak executive leadership while he also struggled to balance the need to support his political party with his efforts to lead the U.S. on the world stage. He feared negative domestic perception of any conflict he had with a widely popular MacArthur, especially among his rival political party. Every decision he made was weighed against these political