Although the top leaders of the Army and Navy all swore confidence in victory, for Roosevelt, who could no longer afford to lose, he could not but consider the problem more carefully and comprehensively, and he asked: "When will the Army be ready?" Have you been in contact with de Gaulle's centaurs? ”

"Starting tomorrow, the 6th Air Force can be dispatched at any time and arrive at the station; As for the rest of the ground forces, if all the ships are ready, three divisions of our vanguard can board and depart on October 5, two of them to Guyana and one to Brazil. I think the second group of troops can leave before October 15th, www.biquge.info. They will go directly to Brazil, but I would like to have close protection from the Navy. Marshall thought for a moment, "As for the Free France, they have only one company in total, and they don't expect them to fight, just let them show their faces when Guyana holds the entrance ceremony." ”

Roosevelt then asked, "Can the M26 tanks in the Panzer Division be ready?" ”

The lesson and impression of the Tiger tank on the Americans was so profound that now Roosevelt, in his honor, directly inquired about the equipment and establishment of the divisional level -- this scene always felt a little familiar.

"Priority can be given to ensuring that each armored division is equipped with a battalion of heavy tanks, with an average of about 58-64 vehicles." Marshall was a little embarrassed, but patiently explained, "We hope to test the combat performance of the M26 in practice." ”

Roosevelt nodded: "It's better to be cautious, and it's better to consider the situation a little more complicated and arduous, and it's not a big mistake to be careful." I hope that by the end of October all 12 divisions should be deployed, and then that a general offensive against Argentina will be launched on Christmas Eve, that the problem will be resolved in one month, and that in early May I hope to go back and continue the Azores campaign - is that possible? ”

Marshall and Admiral King looked at each other, and then nodded in agreement, the president was still very considerate, and it was only late September, and he gave seven months in one breath -- that was enough time for the Germans to sweep away Western Europe. Moreover, I just mentioned that the total strength of the army used is 12 divisions, even if the German army is reinforced by 1-2 divisions as described by Admiral King, this is completely overwhelming. If the 6:1 advantage in South America is not enough for the Germans, then there is no need to fight this war at all -- after all, the population of the United States is only 80% larger than that of Germany, and the industrial and economic power is at most more than twice that of Germany.

After many high-ranking people left, Lehi was left behind by Roosevelt, although many times the presidential chief of staff could not control the army, but after all, he was Roosevelt's henchman, and he was still a first-class figure in terms of vision and means.

"Several parliamentarians have written to me in the hope that I can consider peace talks as a way out." Lehi thought that the president had left him alone to talk about the prospects of the war in South America, but he did not expect that it would be such a topic, and he was suddenly a little surprised, and his face was full of shock.

He asked tentatively, "Is this their personal idea or the idea of some faction in the party?" ”

"Are those differences?" Roosevelt asked rhetorically.

General Li Haihai nodded helplessly, admitting that the president was justified -- congressmen have always been representatives of certain constituencies and interest strata, and they are by no means mere personal acts.

The letter, which came to be known in American history as the "September Letter," was co-signed by five senators and eight members of the House of Representatives and addressed to President Roosevelt through informal channels.

First, war-weariness is growing. After the Pearl Harbor incident, in less than two years, the casualties of the entire American military and civilians have exceeded 1 million, and the number of casualties has exceeded 500,000. News such as the formation of the SS American Division shocked everyone's emotions even more;

Second, the use of U.S. national power is approaching its peak, but the hope of victory remains slim. The total number of troops mobilized by the United States has exceeded 8 million, and the acquisition, production, and transportation of all material resources have reached an incredible height, and the military expenditure in fiscal year 1944 was originally intended to be controlled within 100 billion, but after deliberation, the congressmen believed that it would not be less than 120 billion anyway, and finally had to set it at 123.3 billion according to Roosevelt's suggestion (6.7 billion additional for this year's expenditure), which was almost equal to the total military expenditure of the United States in the first ten years before the war, and even exceeded the gross national income before the war. Although the United States is relatively wealthy and has extremely abundant materials and means of production, more than 100 billion yuan a year is also a heavy burden, and what makes people even more desperate is that even at such a great cost, the United States still cannot gain an advantage on the battlefield, let alone win.

Third, as the war progresses, the inherent weaknesses of the United States in the strategic sphere are becoming more and more clearly exposed. The two-ocean moat was originally a unique geographical advantage of the United States, but in turn, the geographical environment of the two oceans also restricted the way and efficiency of the United States' power projection. At present, the total number of land forces that the United States can fight exceeds 5 million, although it is not very elite, but the equipment, supplies, and materials are sufficient, and there is no shortage of human resources; if it borders Europe on land and pushes these 5 million to the Western Front, the German army that is caught in a two-sided war can only collapse immediately -- because the total strength of the German army on the Western Front on the European continent is only about 500,000, but the existence of the Atlantic Ocean allows the United States to hold its huge troops at home, and at most 50,000 or 100,000 troops will be transported up. In addition to giving the Germans their heads, there is no second outcome.

Another example is transoceanic transportation, although the navy is optimistic that the newly built ships of the United States are worthy of the enemy's sunk number, the enemy will never be able to win this tonnage war. But anyone who really knows the inside story understands that this is nothing more than psychological warfare, a free ship costs 2 million US dollars, plus a variety of equipment and full loads of supplies, a single ship is usually worth more than 10 million US dollars, such a ship German submarine only needs one torpedo, about 20,000 US dollars to solve, even if the Germans launch 10 torpedoes only 1 out. The exchange ratio is also 50:1, so it's clear who wins and who loses. What's more, the speed of German man-made submarines is not slow, and the latest situation reported by the escort command shows that the German submarine force has invested in new equipment -- a fast submarine with an underwater speed of more than 17 knots, which is much faster than that of the Liberty Wheel or the Victory Road, and the traditional anti-submarine methods cannot catch it at all.

Fourth, and most importantly, the Axis countries did not have the idea of destroying or subverting the American regime, and Japan and Germany offered olive branches to the United States at different times and through different channels, hoping to reconcile with the United States and achieve a decent peace. Although the conditions varied, there was a general recognition of the status of the United States as a world power and agreement that the United States would continue to lead the Western Hemisphere and the Pacific, which attracted the attention of the isolationists. Most of the American people only hope that they can live a small life behind closed doors, without much ambition to dominate the world, and they are not like Germany, which has suffered grievances for 20 years.

As high-level figures, Roosevelt and Lehi also knew the subtext behind the letter: the capitalists and the consortium were currently very distressed by the losses in South America, and they were concerned that the situation could spread to the countries of South America, a market that the American capitalists would never give up compared to possible markets in Europe, Africa, and Asia.

After reading the letter, Lehi sighed and said, "I admit that these questions are all right, and I also see the hidden essence behind things, but what I want to know more is, what are they going to do?" Is there a public appeal for peace? ”

Roosevelt was silent for a long time before he spoke: "They put forward a proposal that the government would adjust its overall strategy: make peace with Germany -- or sign an armistice, at the cost of us giving up support for Great Britain, ask Germany to give up support for Japan, and then concentrate all efforts on dealing with Japan, and then go back to the European threat." On the one hand, abandoning Great Britain helps us to concentrate our energies and resources on our own business. On the other hand, if Germany suspends its aid to Japan, it will in fact lead to the disintegration of the Axis camp, which will facilitate our eventual settlement of the Japanese question. ”

Because of the Pearl Harbor incident, the United States from top to bottom hardly wanted to reach a decent peace with Japan, and everyone had only one thought -- to wipe Japan off the map, but they had different views on the conflict between Germany and the United States; apart from the fact that some people represented by Roosevelt believed that there were differences of principle and hegemonic struggle between Germany and the United States, many people believed that there was no essential contradiction between the two countries in the first place, but that sympathy was overflowing because the United States could not stand the situation in Europe. The countries of the East enslaved by Russia were liberated by Germany, France was reborn after being defeated by Germany, and even the Jews, who had been rumored to be slaughtered, found a place to live in Africa.

Lehi knew very well that Roosevelt must have changed his mind when he opened his mouth to communicate with him today, and he subtly asked, "Will you adjust your strategy appropriately to deal with the current situation?" ”

Roosevelt first shook his head, and finally nodded: "It is also a strategy to concentrate on defeating Japan first, and if it takes 2-3 years to solve Japan, we will be very advantageous in the future." ”

"What do you mean?"

"The scientists at the Manhattan Project have made significant progress, and they told me that within three years we could get a powerful bomb." Roosevelt gritted his teeth and said, "In a place like the Azores, there is no need to send millions of tons of warships and hundreds of thousands of soldiers to fight, one, as long as one, the whole world will be clean!" ”

"I understand what you mean, I will find a way to communicate within the army and formally propose the adjustment policy after the end of the South American campaign."

Roosevelt laughed: It doesn't take much effort to talk to smart people. (To be continued.) )