H.W. Brands, "The General vs. the President"

When the Chinese entered the Korean War in November 1950 on the side of North Korea, they precipitated not only a geo-strategic crisis but sparked a showdown between two of America’s most powerful leaders. Starting with this decisive moment, Brands, a professor of history at the University of Texas at Austin and author of a wide range of narrative histories, including American Colossus and American Dreams, traces the battle between the popular General MacArthur—who had predicted the Chinese would not enter the war—and the underestimated President Truman over how America should conduct its foreign policy. Drawing on correspondence and transcripts of official hearings, Brands conveys the full tension and drama of the period, which ended with Truman firing MacArthur in April 1951.

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