From: Guy Alcala

I do wonder what the U.S. would have done if, in the mid-30s,
President Quezon had said to General MacArthur

"Douglas, It's been swell having you here, but we don't consider having bases
owned
and operated by a foreign military on our soil consistent with our national
sovereignty. So we'll have to ask that you leave, although we'll be happy to
have
you come and visit from time to time."

In 1935 congress passed theTydings-McDuffie Act, which created the Philippine
Commonwealth, with Quezon the first president, the Commonwealth status to end
after a decade, a which time the country would become independent.
Roosevelt asked MacArthur if he would like to become High Commissoner of the
new Commonwealth. But Mac would have to retire from the Army (he was CoS) to
take the job. He declined, but Quezon asked him to become military adviser to
the Philippine Commonwealth, a job he could take and still remain on active
duty.
Paul McNutt, former gov. of Indiana became PI High Commissioner and invited
Quezon to Washington, as FDR wanted to talk to him about the future of the
Philippines.
Instead of going directly to D.C., Quezon went by way of Tokyo and an audience
with Hirohito. When he finally arrived in L.A. Quezon announced to the press
that he had come to the US on behalf of the Filipino people to demand
independence from the US in 1938. He would insist on seeing the president and
having his demand met. Then he went to New York, took over the Roseland
Ballroom and partied, partied, partied.
FDR, who was considering speeding up Philippine independence to as early as
1940 at the suggestion of former Philippines High Commissioner Frank Murphy,
with the caveat that the Philippines declare themselves neutral and neither
maintain their own armed forces or host foreign forces, was furious with
Quezon, and also MacArthur, who had accompanied Q. FDR completely ignored
Quezon while he hung out in New York for months.
Finally MacArthur went to D.C. and asked to see the president on behalf of
Quezon. FDR gave him 5 minutes. He agreed to lunch with Quezon. But no
serious meeting.
At lunch Quezon demanded independence--and US guarantees of protection--in
such a rude and insulting manner that Roosevelt later told Harold Ickes of
Interior, which controlled administration of the Philippines, that as far as he
was concerned, the Philippines were not worth even attempting to defend. Let
the Japs take them and see how "the little weasel" likes taking orders from
them.
One immediate result of that lunch was when, shortly after, Quezon tried to buy
rifles from the US to equip the new Philippine Army, FDR blocked the sale. He
also ordered MacArthur recalled to the US and given another assignment.
MacArthur thereupon retired from the Army so he could stay on in the
Philippines with Quezon.
One reason the US was late in sending forces to defend the Philippines in the
face of the growing Japanese threat was the personal dislike by Roosevelt and
key membors of his government of Quezon, whom they considered a corrupt,
disloyal fop. McNutt described him as "the statesman as lounge lizard."
Goes to show just what a fiasco the whole Philippines episode was. We never
should have taken over the place, and, having taken it over, we should have
dumped it at the earliest possible opportunity, like maybe soon after the last
Moro fighting ended.


Chris Mark