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American Morning
Lessons Learned From Pearl Harbor, 60 Years Later
Aired December 07, 2001 - 08:22 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN NEWS: Some call September 11th, America's Second Day of Infamy -- a reference, of course, to the first one, which was December the 7th, 1941.
Today is the 60th anniversary of Japan's sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. Twenty-four hundred Americans died that Sunday morning, and the United States was subsequently plunged into World War II.
The anniversary comes as the United States is engaged in another war spurred by the terrorist attacks on America that happened on September the 11th.
Joining us to talk about Pearl Harbor and lessons that may have been learned is historian Stephen Ambrose. He is the author of, in my opinion, the best book ever written about D-Day. It's called "D-Day."
He is the author of "Band of Brothers," and that hugely successful mini-series that aired recently on HBO.
And he's in New Orleans for the opening of the Pacific Wing of The National D-Day Museum.
And it's a pleasure to get a chance to visit with you for a minute. Thanks for being with us.
STEPHEN E. AMBROSE, AUTHOR/HISTORIAN: Thank you for having me.
CAFFERTY: My -- our pleasure, believe me.
Can you put the events of September the 11th into some sort of context as they relate to the celebration of a -- not the celebration, but the anniversary day of Pearl Harbor day?
How did September the 11th impact what we're going to be doing in this country today?
AMBROSE: The first thing that it did was to bring the country together, which was the first thing that happened after Pearl Harbor.
Before, on December 6th, 1941, we were a very badly divided country over the biggest question of the 20th century. Should America get into this war or not?
December 7th, that problem was gone. September 10, 2001, we were a divided country. We had voted 50- 50 for the next president. We were arguing over taxes, what to do with the Social Security surplus.
September 11th brought us together. One of the things that was notable, was how much the American people today yearn for a sense of national unity. And that brought it about.
So there are a lot of things that happened after December 7, 1941, that are happening now, and will continue to happen, the most important of which is, we became one people.
CAFFERTY: You know, there were a lot of questions, Mr. Ambrose, about America's military ground forces, in particular.
We no longer have a draft. The World War II generation was described, I think by Tom Brokaw in his book at NBC, as the generation ever.
It's an all-volunteer force. These young people are not battle tested, certainly not battle hardened.
What sense do you have of today's military compared to the generation that went out and defeated Japan, defeated the Third Reich, defeated Mussolini?
How do today forces stack up?
AMBROSE: I get asked that question a lot. Do you think that the kids of today could do D-Day over again?
Of course, they could. They're bigger. They're smarter. They're better educated. They take more risk.
And, like their grandparents or great-grandparents, they are the children of democracy. And are they going to go out and defend democracy? Of course, they're going to go out and do it.
Can they do as good a job as their grandparents did? Of course, they're going to be able to do as good a job.
So, I think there's no question.
I just came back from Bosnia. I was over there on a USO tour, talking to the troops. Those are so good, those troops over there.
They're -- there's the 29th Division. They are so good.
CAFFERTY: Yeah, indeed they are.
You're there for the opening of the new wing of the D-Day museum. Tell me a little about that fine facility down there in New Orleans. Maybe we can get some people to come down and take a tour.
AMBROSE: Well, I hope that they do come. And we now have added to the Normandy wing of the D-Day museum, the Pacific wing. And we're going to be continuing to expand as time goes by.
But we were under a lot of pressure from Marines, especially, in Navy (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll tell you, (INAUDIBLE) ...
AMBROSE: When are you going to get the Pacific wing up? Well, we've got it up. And it's open now, and we're having a grand celebration.
CAFFERTY: How do you suppose history will treat the events of September 11th? And that's a bit of an unfair question, but you have probably as good a perspective on these things as anyone, at least, that I've talked to recently.
Where does 9/11 go into the history books for the next generation?
AMBROSE: Well, it'll be remembered. It's a date that will live in infamy, to paraphrase President Roosevelt.
And I don't know how it's going to be remembered. It depends on how things turn out.
CAFFERTY: Right.
AMBROSE: If we are successful in two, three, four, five years in eliminating terrorism, September 11th is going to have -- this was the date on which we got going.
CAFFERTY: Right.
AMBROSE: If we're not able to eliminate terrorism, it's going to be looked at in a different way. So it depends how things turn out.
CAFFERTY: Is there any question in your mind about our ability to get the job done?
AMBROSE: Right after Pearl Harbor, Winston Churchill came to the United States and he spoke to a joint session of the Congress, and he asked this question.
What kind of a people do they think we are?
CAFFERTY: Yeah.
AMBROSE: Well, the Japanese found out. And the Taliban, now gone, apparently, but all of the fundamentalist terrorists in the world are going to find out.
What kind of a people are we? We'll be glad to show you if we have to.
CAFFERTY: And I think we are. You're leaving this interview to go talk to the father of the President of the United States, Mr. Bush. What are you going to talk to him about? AMBROSE: Whatever he wants to talk about. And he's more than the father of the President. He is the former president.
CAFFERTY: No, I understand, but, you know, they have to (INAUDIBLE) ...
AMBROSE: And we're going to have fun ...
CAFFERTY: ... differentiate that.
AMBROSE: ... taking him through the -- that. We're going to have great fun taking him through the Pacific exhibits, because that's where he fought in the Second World War.
And I'm going to listen to what he says. When he asks me, (INAUDIBLE), but whatever.
CAFFERTY: Well, I would look forward to doing this again with you at some point in the future.
I mentioned that I think your book on D-Day is maybe the finest document, certainly that I've ever read about the subject. And I appreciate very much the contribution ...
AMBROSE: Thank you.
CAFFERTY: ... you made to all of our understandings of events that preceded us.
Stephen Ambrose joining us this morning from New Orleans. Thank you very much.
Paula.
AMBROSE: Thank you.
ZAHN: Jack, as I listen to that, and his reflections on our troops and their commitment, I thought of one thing ...
CAFFERTY: What's that?
ZAHN: ... that you could do for me this Christmas? Could you give me a personal tour of that museum with Stephen Ambrose.
CAFFERTY: Oh, well, yeah. Wouldn't that be something.
ZAHN: What a privilege. Boy, he has a such a perspective ...
CAFFERTY: Yeah, he really does and a ...
ZAHN: ... on what's happened so ...
CAFFERTY: ... a great craftsman when it comes to the language. I mean, he can put things on a piece of paper that, I mean, that -- they're just -- it's mind boggling.
ZAHN: I know. You and I both kind of welled up, too, ...
CAFFERTY: Yeah.
ZAHN: ... when he talked about the pride ...
CAFFERTY: Yeah.
ZAHN: ... in meeting with some of the troops that are ...
CAFFERTY: And how good they are, ...
ZAHN: ... engaged in this war on terrorism.
CAFFERTY: ... how good they are.
ZAHN: You could, you know, it was palpable when he ...
CAFFERTY: Yeah.
ZAHN: ... talked his pride in them.
CAFFERTY: The Saddam Husseins of the world have no shot. It's a matter of time.
ZAHN: Winston Churchill quote was?
CAFFERTY: Yeah, what kind of ...
ZAHN: What do they ...
CAFFERTY: ... people do they think we are?
ZAHN: Yeah.
CAFFERTY: Yeah.
ZAHN: They're going to find out, aren't they. Well, ...
CAFFERTY: I think they are now.
ZAHN: We'll see.
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