Assignment task:
Thoughts on this?
President Eisenhower's status as a military hero impacted his presidency greatly. He served in World War I and in World War II as the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. He set out to reduce the amount of ground troops the United States had and started to focus on atomic weapons. "Instead, he encouraged his analysts to design a security policy and military forces that the nation could support over the long haul: strong enough to provide adequate security, but not so expensive as to damage the growth and stability of the economy."
1. Eisenhower sought to reduce the number of troops, especially in the Army. This would anger many Army generals who believed that xxx. When Eisenhower became President he tried to take a step back and let the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of each branch run their departments. But that was not the case when it came to the Army. Eisenhower knew many of the officers and so he would take it upon himself to make decisions on promotions and transfer assignments of Army personnel. "Throughout the war he willingly sought out and accepted the counsel of many of his subordinate leaders. As President, he appeared much less inclined to seek and accept advice or to entertain differing points of view."
2. Eisenhower believed in the nation as a whole and demanded complete loyalty to his military policy and defense strategy.
Republican Conservatism was a way to preserve the old way of doing things. This would appeal to Eisenhower but he had to figure out a way to implement it into his political agenda. "The New Republicanism reflected Eisenhower's well-developed style of leadership with its emphasis upon realism, accommodation, and compromise."
3. Eisenhower expanded Social Security, created the Interstate Highway System, and created the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. He strived to keep individual freedoms but wanted the government to help when applicable for better livelihoods of individuals.