Command Decision Page #8

They're here,

and they're coming over.

Have you got the tape

for Operation Stitch?

- Well, put up...

- What are you doing?

Ordering tomorrow's operation.

- This changes everything.

- One moment, George.

The impressions of this committee

mean life or death.

I'm not going to have them watching

the sort of thing we saw this afternoon.

Sir, we can't keep the groups waiting.

I'm sorry, we'll have to pick

the safest naval target we can find.

- Sir, you...

- No more argument, Casey. That's an order.

Never mind, George. I'll call you back.

Can you give these congressmen

a decent dinner?

I hope so, sir.

If Evans hasn't commandeered

that chicken.

And I know he is,

and I don't mind saying that after hearing...

...what American boys

went through this afternoon...

...I feel that what I said to the president

in 1940 still stands, in my humble opinion.

But hold on, Arthur.

Well, sergeant, that looks mighty good.

Never listen to Italian thieves...

I said, "Mr. President, this is my..."

Give me the VIP quarters.

Is this the officer in charge

of visitors' quarters?

This is Major Prescott,

General Kane's aide.

Are those rooms ready?

Clean sheets in all of them?

Good. Be sure you have

a coal fire in each room.

Now, it's pretty cold.

Have you any hot-water bottles?

How would I like to what?

Oh, very funny.

"I contend you remind me of someone"...

...I told the president

before this whole thing started.

Well, we doughboys

had our songs too, you know.

Oh, no. No.

Well, Clifton,

do you find travel broadening?

You can't walk out of there like this, Ted.

You're almost as bad as Casey.

Were you sent to replace him?

- I don't think so.

- What does Kane think?

He asked me confidentially

if I'd been sent here to replace him.

Please, you haven't done anything bad

enough to be a major general, have you?

Same old rebel, huh, Ted?

Listen, old man,

Helen's worried about you flying missions.

What does she want me to do?

Transfer to infantry?

You can do so much more

with your experience.

What?

I've been fighting for bombardment

in my own way.

I think the combined chiefs are gonna

give me a B-29 command in the Pacific...

...to make me prove what I've been saying.

- A B-29 command?

- Do you realize what that means?

- Well, it means another star.

Star.

The greatest bomber ever built,

the biggest assignment of the war.

That's not gonna be conference fighting.

Can you handle it?

I think I can, with the man

I've picked for my chief of staff.

- Who's that?

- Brigadier General Ted Martin.

Me? Chief of staff?

With all those papers?

Oh, adjutants do that.

We'll be a perfect team, Ted.

I'll fight the Navy,

and you can fight the Japs.

You might try to be more helpful.

Now, get back in there.

I wanna talk to Casey a minute.

I'm sticking around for the field order

to come through, then I'm going to turn in.

Did you listen to what

Congressman Malcolm said?

I've done nothing but listen

to Malcolm for the last hour.

Good heavens.

You must be more careful.

- He's not chairman, but he's important.

- He's no more important than the others.

Why should we be rattled

by one noisy individual?

The other fellows seem all right.

It's precisely because Malcolm

is a troublemaker that l...

- Yes, Homer?

- Representative Malcolm is anxious...

...to get in touch with his nephew

as soon as possible.

- Could we ask Captain Jenks over here?

- You and I must be losing our grips.

Tell him that Jenks

will be here in a few minutes.

With all these things exploding at once,

I forgot all about the famous nephew.

Let's make Malcolm happy.

Get Jenks over here fast as you can.

- Sir, I'm afraid...

- Say, hasn't Jenks...

...got another decoration coming up?

Get the citation...

...and tomorrow afternoon I'll present

the medal to him in Malcolm's presence.

That's what I mean. I'm afraid

you're asking for something difficult.

You haven't been told yet, sir, but

Captain Jenks is in rather serious trouble.

Trouble? Young Jenks?

Yes, sir. He flatly refused to fly

this morning's mission.

He's confined to quarters

pending further action.

What? Casey, you're...

Captain Jenks is one of the most

highly-publicized heroes in this Air Force.

I know.

Maybe he's had too much newspaper stuff.

My people feel that's his trouble.

- You've had him examined?

- Thoroughly.

The doctors can find no medical excuse,

and Jenks doesn't claim any.

Mightn't this defiance, in itself, indicate

a certain neurosis or a psychic condition?

Surely nobody will call Jenks

a simple coward.

No, sir. Cowards

welcome medical excuses.

In any case, this is not quite the moment

to be decorating him.

Oh, Casey,

we've got to think of something.

Why, Malcolm wouldn't forgive

the Air Force.

- I know one way, sir.

- What?

If Jenks had been acting under verbal

orders to hold himself in readiness...

...for special escort duty

to his uncle's committee...

...he would have been justified

in refusing to fly.

Exactly, exactly, but why must you

do everything the hard way?

Get him over here.

I will, as soon as I've ordered

Schweinhafen for tomorrow.

This is blackmail.

For the good of the service,

our bombardment is at stake.

Ingenious, but you've got your orders.

Then at midnight, I charge

Captain Jenks with desertion.

Are you insane?

Don't you realize there'd be

an investigation, press attacks, publicity?

If the Air Force can't attack what it should,

then an investigation may be a good thing.

How many years

have you known me, Casey?

Have you ever seen anyone

who got away with blackmailing me?

No, sir.

All right...

...just so you don't

get the wrong idea.

- Are you releasing the division to me?

- You're a scoundrel, Casey.

You'll get us all hanged

in the end.

Go ahead and name your own target

for tomorrow, on your own responsibility.

- I'll notify my headquarters.

- Thank you, sir.

- On the Greenland icecap.

Get me Colonel Haley.

The other crew managed to survive

by cutting off his leg...

All right, this way, men.

Point out the man of the year to me,

I've only got one flashbulb.

Landing under extraordinarily

hazardous conditions...

Haley, call the 32nd and tell them

I want Captain Jenks released...

...from all restrictions immediately.

He's to report to my quarters at once

in class A uniform.

This is General Dennis. Major Rockton.

George...

...scrub those naval targets. Have you

still got the tape for Stitch in the printer?

Good. Send it out.

Bomb and fuel loadings

same as yesterday.

I'll help you with the routes and timings

as soon as I can get away from here.

How did you do it, general?

It doesn't matter how, Mr. Brockhurst.

It's on.

Yes, it was on.

Once again, Dennis' command

set the big machine in motion.

Bomb loads, fusings, target intelligence

plot Hitler's flak guns.

This was no raid tomorrow.

No gallant dash to the target

and out again.

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