In 1938, during one of his first meetings with President Franklin Roosevelt, Gen. George Marshall listened to plans to counter Hitler's military build-up by amassing an air force of 10,000 planes immediately, followed by 20,000 annually.
Other persons in the room chimed agreement, then FDR turned to Marshall, who was soon to become chief of staff. “Don't you think so, George?” the confident president asked.
Marshall believed that the proposal was amateurish and militarily unsound, that the projected price far exceeded the money available. Further, he had spent the past years building the ground Army which he felt vital for America's defense. So he replied, “I am sorry, Mr. President, but I don't agree with that at all.” The planes idea died.
