Editing Douglas MacArthur (section)

====Leyte====
In July 1944, President Roosevelt summoned MacArthur to meet with him in Hawaii "to determine the phase of action against Japan". Nimitz made the case for attacking Formosa. MacArthur stressed America's moral obligation to liberate the Philippines and won Roosevelt's support. In September, Admiral [[William Halsey Jr.]]'s carriers made a series of air strikes on the Philippines. Opposition was feeble; Halsey concluded, incorrectly, that [[Leyte]] was "wide open" and possibly undefended, and recommended that projected operations be skipped in favor of an assault on Leyte.{{sfn|Drea|1992|pp=152–159}}

[[File:Douglas MacArthur lands Leyte1.jpg|thumb|left|"I have returned" – General MacArthur returns to the Philippines with Philippine President Sergio Osmeña to his right with the pith helmet and sunglasses, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Carlos P. Romulo at his rear, and Lieutenant General Richard K. Sutherland on his left. Photo taken by [[Gaetano Faillace]].  This iconic image is re-created in larger-than-life statues at [[MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park]].|alt=A group of men wading ashore. With General MacArthur is Philippine President Sergio Osmeña and other U.S. and Philippine Generals.]]

On 20 October 1944, troops of Krueger's Sixth Army [[Battle of Leyte|landed on Leyte]], while MacArthur watched from the light cruiser {{USS|Nashville|CL-43|6}}. That afternoon he arrived on the beach. The advance had not progressed far; snipers were still active and the area was under sporadic mortar fire. When his whaleboat grounded in knee-deep water, MacArthur requested a landing craft, but the beachmaster was too busy to grant his request. MacArthur was compelled to wade ashore.{{sfn|James|1975|pp=552–556}} In his prepared speech, he said:{{blockquote|People of the Philippines: I have returned. By the grace of Almighty God our forces stand again on Philippine soil—soil consecrated in the blood of our two peoples. We have come dedicated and committed to the task of destroying every vestige of enemy control over your daily lives, and of restoring upon a foundation of indestructible strength, the liberties of your people.{{sfn|MacArthur|1964|p=216}}}}

Since Leyte was out of range of Kenney's land-based aircraft, MacArthur was dependent on carrier aircraft.{{sfn|MacArthur|1964|p=228}} Japanese air activity soon increased, with raids on [[Tacloban]], where MacArthur decided to establish his headquarters, and on the fleet offshore. MacArthur enjoyed staying on ''Nashville''{{'}}s bridge during air raids, although several bombs landed close by, and two nearby cruisers were hit.{{sfn|James|1975|pp=561–562}} Over the next few days, the Japanese counterattacked in the [[Battle of Leyte Gulf]], resulting in a near-disaster that MacArthur attributed to the command being divided between himself and Nimitz.{{sfn|MacArthur|1964|pp=222–231}} Nor did the campaign ashore proceed smoothly. Heavy monsoonal rains disrupted the airbase construction program. Carrier aircraft proved to be no substitute for land-based aircraft, and the lack of air cover permitted the Japanese to pour troops into Leyte. Adverse weather and tough Japanese resistance slowed the American advance, resulting in a protracted campaign.{{sfn|MacArthur|1964|pp=231–234}}{{sfn|James|1975|pp=568–569}}

[[File:USA C-260 Invasion of Leyte, October 1944.jpg|thumb|right|General Douglas MacArthur (center), accompanied by Lieutenant Generals George C. Kenney and Richard K. Sutherland and Major General Verne D. Mudge (Commanding General, First Cavalry Division), inspecting the beachhead on Leyte Island, 20 October 1944 with a crowd of onlookers|alt=A large crowd of soldiers and jeeps on a beach. There are palm trees in the distance and landing craft offshore. A small group in the center conspicuously wear khaki uniforms and peaked caps instead of jungle green uniforms and helmets.]]

By the end of December, Krueger's headquarters estimated that 5,000 Japanese remained on Leyte, and on 26 December MacArthur issued a communiqué announcing that "the campaign can now be regarded as closed except for minor mopping up". Yet Eichelberger's [[Eighth United States Army|Eighth Army]] killed another 27,000 Japanese on Leyte before the campaign ended in May 1945.{{sfn|James|1975|pp=602–603}} On 18 December 1944, MacArthur was promoted to the new [[five-star rank]] of [[General of the Army (United States)|General of the Army]], placing him in the company of Marshall and followed by Eisenhower and [[Henry H. Arnold|Henry "Hap" Arnold]], the only four men to achieve the rank in World War II. Including [[Omar Bradley]] who was promoted during the Korean War so as not to be outranked by MacArthur, they were the only five men to achieve the rank of General of the Army since the 5 August 1888 death of [[Philip Sheridan]]. MacArthur was senior to all but Marshall.<ref name="history.army.mil 5star" /> The rank was created by an [[Act of Congress]] when Public Law [[s:Public Law 78-482|78-482]]<!-- a hyphen (-) is proper here, not an endash  --> was passed on 14 December 1944,<ref name="PL78-482">{{USPL|78|482}} This law allowed only 75% of pay and allowances to the grade for those on the retired list.</ref> as a temporary rank, subject to reversion to permanent rank six months after the end of the war. The temporary rank was then declared permanent 23 March 1946 by Public Law 333 of the [[79th Congress]], which also awarded full pay and allowances in the grade to those on the retired list.<ref name="PL79-333">{{USPL|79|333}}</ref>