Welcome to the Kim Monson Show podcast. Kim Monson is your host. Memorial Day. From the Revolutionary War to today, many Americans gave the last full measure of devotion. Col. Bill Rutledge (Ret. USAF) shares the stories of Medal of Honor recipients Eddie Rickenbacker and Joe Foss, who shot down 26 Japanese aircraft in 44 days during the Battle of Guadalcanal. Plus a conversation with Roger Mangan. ————————————————————————————– The Kim Monson Show airs on KLZ 560 AM every Monday thru Friday, 6-8 AM MST. You can listen to the live stream by going to www.klzradio.com
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It’s the Kim Monson Show, analyzing the most important stories.
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And welcome to the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us. You’re each treasured. You’re valued. You have purpose. Today, strive for excellence. Take care of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body. My friends, we were made for this moment in history. And thank you to the team that I get to work with. That’s Producer Joe, Luke, Rachel, Zach, Echo, Charlie, Mike, Teresa. Amanda and all the people here at Crawford Broadcasting. Check out the website. That is Kim Monson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter while you’re there. That goes out on Sundays. My email is Kim at Kim Monson. That’s M-O-N-S-O-N.com. I appreciate all of you who support us. We are an independent voice on an independent station. searching for truth and clarity by looking at these issues through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom. If something’s a good idea, you should not have to force people to do it. And the show comes to you 6 to 8 a.m. Monday through Friday. First hour is rebroadcast 1 to 2 in the afternoon. Second hour, 10 to 11 at night. And that is on all KLZ 560 platforms. That’s KLZ 560 AM, 100.7 FM, the KLZ website, the KLZ app. You can say Alexa Play KLZ. And then everything is on Spotify and iTunes as well. It is Memorial Day. It’s a day to stop and reflect about those that gave all or at least some. There are those that came home today. that have been injured. And so it’s a time to stop and reflect about the sacrifices that have been made for our liberty. And so it’s a day sometime today. Sit down with your family, your kids, your grandkids, and just talk about the significance of Memorial Day. And so we are pre-recording the show and very pleased to have on the line with me Colonel Bill Rutledge, 96 years young. He is a retired Air Force colonel, and he’s traveled the world. He reads extensively, has a great curiosity about people and places and things. And he said for Memorial Day weekend, both for the America’s Veterans Story show and for the Kim Monson show, let’s talk about Medal of Honor recipient Eddie Rickenbacker. And so, Colonel Rutledge, welcome to the show. Well, good morning, Kim. It’s good to have you, and it’s a really remarkable story. So let’s start with Eddie Rickenbacker’s story. Where was he born?
SPEAKER 15 :
Okay, well, Eddie was, first of all, Eddie’s mother and father came from the German-speaking part of Switzerland, and they immigrated in the 1880s. And Eddie was a third of eight children, and he was born in Columbus, Ohio, October the 8th, 1890. And his parents really wanted to be a part of the American society. So they gave all of their eight children English first names. And not only that, when they were in Switzerland, Rickenbacker was spelled slightly different. So when they came to America, by coincidence, people put it down like it sounded to them, B-A-C-K-E-R, and it would have been B-A-C-H-E-R had they stayed in Germany.
SPEAKER 13 :
Okay. And so he was born in Columbus, and even at a young age, he was really an entrepreneur, right?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes, he felt an obligation to, first of all, to help his family. And so he took a job when he was 10 where he was delivering newspapers, and he got $1 a week for all of his work. And then shortly thereafter… Actually, when he was 13, he was in the seventh grade. His father was in a working accident and was killed. So Eddie dropped out of school. Now, it’s not unique, his experience, because I compare him very often in the aviation field and also especially commercial aviation. And I relate him to people like Edison and Bell and Ford and Chrysler, all of these great, great people. Most of them never had a high school education and certainly they never went to college. And so he had an education until he was 13 and then he became an apprentice as a machinist working with people who, with a company that was designing and building race cars.
SPEAKER 13 :
And he became really an expert, ultimately, as a mechanic, yes?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes, he became so good as a mechanic that they started having him ride in the race car. Now, in the early days, the race cars were designed specifically for that, so they weren’t the flat traditional one that Ford was building and others but they always had two people in the cab so there was the driver and they always had a mechanic with them because sometimes they did cross-country competition as well as a fixed track and there were occasions when they’d have to get out and just stop and the mechanic would have to get out and work on the engine and he became an absolute expert in his field
SPEAKER 13 :
So ultimately, though, he wanted to also learn to drive, right?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes, right. He was so good at his job, people wanted to keep him as a mechanic, but he wanted to move up and become a driver. So he did, and he moved up. And in his late teens, then he was a driver. And since he also was so good at mechanics, he was in a position to sort of make that transition where you didn’t have to have two people in the cab of the car. So he was again a pioneer in early race driving and he competed throughout the Midwest and in those days normally you’d pay some money to enter the competition and the winner got the money. It wasn’t like it is today where they scale it down and the winner gets the largest piece of the cash. In those days, if you came in second, that’s too bad. No money.
SPEAKER 13 :
Interesting. And so he did end up racing at the Indianapolis 500, which that race is always over Memorial Day weekend.
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, he did, and he became very interested in doing it. And He was really ready in 1917. By this time, he was 27 years old. He’d had a lot of driving experience. And in May of that year, he was in Indianapolis preparing his car to go into the Memorial Day race competition. When he got a call from an old friend who was on the staff of General Pershing. And the friend said that General Pershing wanted to have a particular driving pool of experienced drivers to help move him around and other members of his general officer staff. So Eddie talked to him and he said, well, you know, I’m going to be racing next week. So if you would just let me do that, then I’d be ready to go. And the man who was a major on Pershing’s staff, he said, Eddie, we’re leaving tomorrow from New York, and if you’re not ready to be on the ship, you’re not going with the 1st Division. So Eddie said, I will be there. He hung up, and he went straight down and got on the trains there. and moved as fast as he could to New York and got there in time to get aboard ship.
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Wow. So it’s such a fascinating story, and really a story of American exceptionalism as well. And we get to have these great shows and these great stories because of wonderful sponsors.
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And welcome back to the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us. Be sure and check out our website. That is KimMonson.com. And we actually are pre-recording this show for Memorial Day weekend and for Memorial Day. And also because Eddie Rickenbacker was a Medal of Honor recipient recently. So a military career as well. We thought it appropriate that we would broadcast this interview both for America’s Veterans Stories on Sunday and then for the Kim Monson Show on Monday. And so pleased to have on the line with me Colonel Bill Rutledge, retired United States Air Force, 96 years young. Amazing curiosity about people and places and things and reads extensively. And we’re talking about Eddie Rickenbacker. And really quite a career. So as we mentioned in the previous segment, Eddie Rickenbacker volunteered in late May 1917 to become a part of General Pershing’s American Expeditionary Force. And he was selected because of his automobile driving skills and his exceptional mechanical ability. And so he gets to New York and they get on the ship. So then what happened, Colonel Rutledge?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, when he got to New York and he was about to go aboard the ship, one of the senior officers, and I think it was a full colonel, had the authority to designate the military rank or grade that they would have. So they designated him as a sergeant. And, of course, we know we have privates and corporals and then sergeants. So he was a sergeant. And as he got aboard ship, they looked at the stripes on his uniform and thought, checked their records, and they said, okay, you’re a sergeant, so you’re going to be down in the hold with all of the other enlisted men. So he went down there, and it was crowded. It was smoky. There was oil fumes around. The food was terrible, and he didn’t like it. So he went up on the deck, and he came across another old friend who he had known in the automobile business And he said, where are you staying? You’re not with us. He said, oh, I’ve got my private cabin. And he said, well, why? He said, I’m a sergeant, you’re a sergeant. He said, yeah, Eddie, but I’m a sergeant first class. And Eddie said, well, I ought to be also. And he said, well… you aren’t and he said well Eddie said well how can I do that he said you’ll have to talk to the colonel so he did he went to the colonel he said so and so is he has a private quarters and he’s up on the main deck and it’s very nice and it’s terrible down the hold so I want you to promote me so he did and And he promoted him, and by that second night, Eddie had his own stateroom. And this was sort of the respect he had with his seniors because he was very good, but he was also very direct. And he made it very clear that he was not happy down in the hold area.
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, and I love the initiative of him finding out how to change things and to change it. So then he gets over to Europe. What happens then?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, then the 1st Division went over, and they were there for several months while they were preparing to get involved actually in the combat. And Pershing refused to let— the Americans be integrated into the French force or into the English. Both of those wanted to be having American units coming in to replace their units that were decimated by the war. And he said, no, we will fight as a unit and we will be the American Expeditionary Force and we will not be ready for a few months. So they went through a formative period and Eddie then was working with other drivers. And, of course, he was the best mechanic in the whole bunch. So he did not actually drive for General Pershing. Many people often thought he was. It was Pershing’s motor pool driving drivers. But he was so good that he was selected by Billy Mitchell, who was a brigadier, And he was in charge of the Army Air Corps to be his driver so that whenever he went out, he wanted Eddie. And one of the interesting stories was that they were up near the front and it was muddy and bad roads and it was night and dangerous to be out. So Eddie was driving and they got in this area with a lot of mud on. and the car stopped and he got out and General Mitchell was very concerned and Eddie said well I’ll check it out so he was so good he found out what the problem was he actually developed a replacement part that he put back in there and he got the engine started and they got out they moved So this was the caliber of an individual he was. He was creative, and he always took initiative. So he got the reputation of being extremely good with engines. And because of this and because of his affiliation with General Mitchell, then he was actually assigned to one of the airplane companies. It was being formed on the 94th. And he then became the principal mechanic for the aircraft engines. And when he did this, they just sort of centralized their maintenance because of his skill. And Eddie then approached the major, who later would become one of the chief of staff of the Air Force 20 years later. And he talked to the major and said, well, if I’m going to be working on these engines, I ought to know how to fly. And he said, but you’re too valuable. And Eddie insisted, and he kept insisting. So finally, because of his persuasiveness, the major agreed to let him go to a French flying school. Now, Eddie didn’t speak French, but Eddie was a fast learner. And so he went to the school, he learned how to be a pilot, and he had promised he would come back, which he did. So after he’d gone and came back, then he learned to fly, and he would fly around a little bit in non-combat areas. And then the class of Americans that he had been in were sent away to go to gunnery school, and Eddie didn’t go. But the reason he didn’t go, because a major said he was too valuable as a mechanic. So Eddie again started his persuasiveness and kept telling him, look, I’m going to be working with these people. Yes, I’m working on the mechanical part, but I want to be able to qualify as a combat pilot. So if the opportunity or the need is there, I can participate. help our mission so he did he went down to a French school which is down in the southern part of the country and it was designed specifically to teach people how to use machine guns on aircraft so he learned that and then he came back and so when he got back it was now the winter of 1917 1918 so he had to have some more opportunities to fly before he ever was exposed to combat.
SPEAKER 13 :
So in the year 1918, though, he did do combat missions, and he ultimately was awarded the Medal of Honor for those, yes?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes, but that was years later. What happened was he had to have enough training to be confident so he didn’t go out. A lot of the pilots, the new pilots, were shot down in their first missions. Eddie flew enough with an experienced person, and actually he was the best American pilot. He’d been born in France, and he took Eddie sort of under his wing, so to speak, and worked with him one-on-one. where he would take his plane, Eddie would take his plane. They were flying French-made Newports, and so they trained. And then Eddie had their first chance for combat the last week in April 1918. So he did his flying. He was up and around, and he got his first aircraft shot down that time. But it was a harrowing experience, and he was learning a lot. because that’s a situation where you either learn fast or you’re shot down and you’re gone. So shortly after he had had some combat experience, he had some sort of a respiratory problem. So Eddie was actually in and out of the hospital for almost two months. So May and June were basically gone. So then he came back and now He’s got about four months to work with, July, August, September, October. Within four months, Eddie had become the squadron commander and had shot down 26 German aircraft.
SPEAKER 13 :
Wow, that is amazing. And again, this would be like the old-time dogfights, right?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes, absolutely. Yes, for sure. And he learned hard. he really learned a lot from the Germans because the Germans were the ones that developed the attack program. And he was very observant of their procedures and he used a lot of the tactics that the Luftwaffe was using then. Of course, then it wasn’t called the Luftwaffe. It was only named that later. But nevertheless, he was flying during the period after most of the German aces had actually been shot down because of constant exposure. But nevertheless, there were still, the German pilots still were more experienced than these young Americans. One thing was interesting about, that they had to make a waiver on, and this is a flashback. Eddie, when he wanted to be a pilot, the age requirements was 27. You could not fly if you were that old, I mean, if you’re over that age. I thought it was 25. 20, I’m sorry, 25, correct. And, of course, he was born in 1890, so he was already 27. But what happened was the doctor who did the physical exam was a good friend of Eddie’s. So he just changed the record to show that Eddie was born really in 1892. So… It shows, again, a little of his initiative and how his good friends helped get him into combat.
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Boy, remarkable stories about Eddie Rickenbacker. And we get to have these discussions because of our sponsors.
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All Kim’s sponsors are in inclusive partnership with Kim and are not affiliated with or in partnership with KLZ or Crawford Broadcasting. If you would like to support the work of The Kim Monson Show and grow your business, contact Kim at her website, kimmonson.com. That’s Kim Monson, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com.
SPEAKER 13 :
And welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That is KimMonson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter. You can email me at Kim at KimMonson.com as well. And thank you to all of you who support us. We’re an independent voice on an independent station searching for truth and clarity by looking at these issues through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom. Something’s a good idea. You shouldn’t have to force people to do it. I’m talking with Colonel Bill Rutledge, retired United States Air Force, 96 years young. We’re talking about Eddie Rickenbacker, just really an amazing man, both military and an entrepreneur. We are pre-recording this for both Memorial Day and for America’s Veterans Stories for the day before. So Colonel Rutledge, it’s 1918, April. Eddie Rickenbacker in combat flight, he gets his first kill on that. And then he was in and out of the hospital because he had some respiratory stuff going on. And so then he ended up having four months left because then the war came to an end. Right. And a rather remarkable record that he had 26 additional, a total of 26, I guess, Germans that he shot down, right?
SPEAKER 15 :
Correct. And also, he had moved up where he was a squadron commander. And so when the war ended and he came back home, he was certainly the aviation hero. And also because of his close affiliation with General Billy Mitchell, he maintained contact with those people who were still flyers in the military. But he was also recognizing that in order to have a good pilot and a number of pilots for any kind of future combat, that we needed to develop commercial aviation for many reasons. But one of the reasons, of course, was to gain experience as pilot. So he was doing that. Then he also went back and he bought the Indianapolis Speedway. It was on the market. It was going to be sold. And it looked like it was going to be converted into homes and businesses. and he was very good working with financial people so he got backers and put it put together enough money to buy the property and he always claimed it because of the importance of the facility that it was one of the greatest test places for the automobile industry this is long before they had big outdoor tracks like they do in Arizona now. But the race tracks were great. And the people, of course, in the tire business really promoted and encouraged racing there because they had to change their tires a lot when they were doing the Indianapolis 500. So he bought that so they could continue the procedure, which is still today. On Memorial Day weekend, it is the elite race in America. And so he saved it and then the same time he decided because of his mechanical skills that he liked wanted to go into the auto production field. So he actually did and he set up factories. He got people that were going to be dealers for him around the country. because he’d had some experience like that before the war. And they actually produced Rickenbacker automobiles, many thousands, during the 1920s. But what happened was because of the great crash and depression as it started in 29, they just didn’t have enough cash to survive. So He had to go out of business and then he started directing his attention more to commercial aviation, especially he affiliated with the very small airport airplane operations in Florida. And then he eventually switched the name to Eastern Airlines and he became the executive and eventually the owner of Eastern Airlines. Now, when he was going through this transition, Roosevelt was elected in 1932. He took office in March the 4th, 1933. And he was trying to figure out how to save money. And there had been some movement of airmail by commercial carriers. And that seemed to be fairly safe because they would only do it during the daytime and where they could see They used to follow railroad routes or paved roads. They did all sorts of things because aviation was in its infancy on the commercial aspect. So he worked a lot with that. Roosevelt decided in the spring of 1934 that instead of paying commercial contractors to fly the mail, he was going to have the Army Air Corps do that. Well, the Army Air Corps didn’t have nearly as good of planes as the commercials. They were still using training planes left over from World War I, plus the fact they didn’t know enough about flying at night, they didn’t know the routes well, and they didn’t have enough flying time. So consequently, when Roosevelt directed that happen… He canceled all the contracts with the commercial carriers and gave the assignment to the Army. And Lindbergh, along with Rickenbacker, both made public announcements to the effect that this was terribly dangerous, that it shouldn’t be done, and for some of the reasons I’ve already mentioned. And so what happened in the spring of 1934, about a month or so, they had enough crashes. They lost 12 new young pilots in crashes. And I can remember, because I was very young, I was in the first grade, but I was in Georgia, and one of the pilots was from a town down there. It was from Albany, Georgia. And they used to have articles in the paper every day about them. This man who’d been in a crash in Florida, he was an Army Reserve. But what his health condition was, how he was recovering, his name was Mason Reed. And I just kept hearing people talk about, how is Mason Reed doing today? How is Mason Reed? Well, after a few weeks, Roosevelt realized that he had made a terrible mistake. So he backed off. and took the Army out of the mail business and went back for commercial contracting. And that continued on until today. It’s done by commercial purposes, not by military aviation.
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, and Roosevelt kind of held a grudge, didn’t he?
SPEAKER 15 :
Oh, he held a real grudge. He held a grudge against Rickenbacker and also, of course, against Lindgaard. Both of them, Lindbergh had been designated a colonel in the U.S. Army Air Corps Reserve, and Rickenbacker had been, he served on active duty as a captain during World War I. But after the war, through the reserve, he was promoted also to full colonel in the Army Air Corps. And he was presented, of course, with his Medal of Honor many years after the war. But these were the two most important pilots recognized by the American public. And when they both came out in opposition to Roosevelt, it had an impact. So when we got to World War II, both of them wanted to come back and be on active duty, and Roosevelt refused. He wouldn’t let them do it. It was just a chip on his shoulder.
SPEAKER 13 :
So how did—we’d done that show on Lindbergh. How did Rickenbacker end up serving in World War II then?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, what happened was he had gotten to know a number of the general officers, of course, from the First World War who had become generals then and served. Hap Arnold now was the chief of staff for the Army Air Corps. And Hap Arnold knew how good Rickenbacker was. So when they started the military draft in 1940 and started building new fields all around the country, he approached Rickenbacker and said, I would like for you to go and inspect each one of these new bases. And what he did, he took him into the Secretary of War because there was no Air Force that’s separate at that time. And Stimson was the Secretary of War. So he told him what he wanted to do. So Stimson gave him a letter that he could use and show to the base commanders at all of the new Air Force bases being built that he was speaking on behalf of the Secretary of the Army, and had the authority to direct any changes necessary to make the bases and the training staff more efficient. So that’s what he did. And he went all over America, did a marvelous job. And he was so successful there that they even sent him to some of the other areas. And then even when Russia got into the war, in 1941. In June of 41, when they were invaded, we started sending aircraft over to assist them. And Eddie went to Russia, representing the U.S., to help the Russians understand how to fly the American fighter aircraft. And he also had the opportunity to see what the Russians were doing as far as their aircraft construction. So he was what we used to call a tech rep, technical representative, and to monitor and to come back and to share what he had learned in the field with the Army Air Corps. And it was very important. Now, it was so important, and now we get a situation where Japan has invaded, I mean, December 7, 1941. In 1942, when Corregidor fell in the Philippines, MacArthur was sent by direction from Roosevelt, was sent to Australia. And he was to be the commander of that whole theater with the Army. But the Secretary of the Army wanted to relay some confidential information to MacArthur. So he elected to have Eddie go directly to talk to the general. Okay.
SPEAKER 13 :
Colonel Rutledge, let’s keep that as a cliffhanger. And also before we get into that remarkable story, I also wanted to ask you about 1941 when he was in that plane crash. So let’s keep those two things as cliffhangers.
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes, we can do that. We should do a flashback on that.
SPEAKER 13 :
Absolutely. And I did want to mention the Center for American Values located in Pueblo, and they will be having a Memorial Day event on the 28th, and it will be an On Values presentation. You can get more information about that by going to AmericanValuesCenter.org. That’s AmericanValuesCenter.org. And I also want to mention Lorne Levy for Everything Mortgages.
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With all the chaos and confusion in our world, how can you plant yourself on a foundation based on truth and clarity? The Kim Monson Show is here to help. Kim examines news, politics, and opinion through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom, and shares human interest stories that will inspire you and make you smile. Tune in to The Kim Monson Show each weekday, 6 to 8 a.m., with encores 1 to 2 p.m. and 10 to 11 p.m. on KLZ 560 a.m., KLZ 100.7 f.m., the KLZ website, and the KLZ app. Shows can also be found at KimMonson.com, Spotify, and iTunes.
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And welcome back to the Kim Monson Show.
SPEAKER 13 :
Be sure and check out our website. That is KimMonson.com. Happy Memorial Day to all of you. It’s a day to remember and reflect upon those that have given their lives for our liberty. And something that you might consider doing is the USMC Memorial Foundation will be sponsoring an event out at the memorial at 2 o’clock on Memorial Day. So be sure and check out their website. That is usmcmemorialfoundation.org. I’m talking with 96-year-young Colonel Bill Rutledge, retired United States Air Force, about Eddie Rickenbacker. And we’re getting ready to talk about when he was to take the message down to General MacArthur. But let’s go back earlier in the year. I think it is, I guess, the year before, February 1941. What happened to Eddie?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, Eddie had become the chief executive officer for Eastern Airlines. And Eastern had become the largest commercial carrier in America before the start of our involvement in World War II. So he was a passenger aboard one of the DC-3s, which were the real advancement in commercial aviation for passengers. And he was just a passenger aboard on his way to Atlanta, coming out of New York. And so there was no bad weather or anything going on and nothing was unexpected and they were approaching Atlanta and something happened as far as the technical aspects of the aircraft and communication of the grounds because it was all, a lot of it was experimental in those days. Anyhow, what happened was that the pilots and the co-pilots were both killed in the crash that happened in North Atlanta. And it was finally after a flight investigation, they found that their altimeter had been wrong. They thought they were at an altitude of about 2,000 feet higher than they really were. So they flew right into the forest. And a terrible crash happened. And many of the people aboard were killed. And Eddie was, it was a miracle that he wasn’t killed. He was in the wreckage and the people came out as quickly as they could get there, but it took them about an hour, an hour and a half to come to the wreck site. Then the emergency people were trying to excavate and get their survivors who could walk, get them out of the way first. And then they heard that Eddie was still breathing. So it took them over an hour to use cutters and things to get him out. He was so enshrined with metal all around him. So they got him out. They put him in the ambulance. They all went to the hospital. When they got to the hospital, the doctors who were on call that night in the emergency room They looked at Eddie and they thought, this guy’s not going to make it. They said, put him over there to the side. So they just wanted to work on the ones that looked like they had a chance to survive. The good news for Eddie was that Eddie knew the doctor who was in charge of the hospital. And the doctor was alerted of the crash. So he came over and he arrived there alive. within an hour or so after eddie got to the hospital and he asked where’s eddie and they said they pointed out to him over there well he’s over there with a group we don’t think will make it well the doctor in charge went over and became eddie’s personal physician and he did everything he could and he saved eddie’s life and but eddie had many many broken bones and a skull and things which would normally kill anyone. And so the doctor told him, he says, you’re going to stay here and we’re going to treat you. And he said, I believe that you will need to be here for eight months. And Eddie said, I don’t think so. And in four months, Eddie got up and walked out.
SPEAKER 13 :
Amazing. Amazing. So let’s get over to he walked out, and we’re now getting into World War II. So now what happened?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, then we’ve talked about his visits to all of our air bases and acting as a tactical consultant. But he then left. was asked directly by the Secretary of War to take a personal oral message to General MacArthur, who was now down in Australia. So he flew to Hawaii, and when he got to Hawaii, there was a B-17 available to fly him from there on down towards Australia. Well, they took off. There was Eddie and seven other members of the crew And Eddie was the passenger. And they were going. They had their headings. Everything was going fine. But then their radio communications didn’t work right. And the long and the short of it was that their contact with the islands that they were supposed to be able to stop at and refuel, they got lost. And After a while, it looked like there’s no way they’d make any kind of a landing on surface. So the pilot told them we’re going to have to crash land. So they moved their supplies of water and also their supplies of emergency food, and they moved it to a particular spot on the plane. And so they had to crash into the ocean. So they came down. made a good landing but in their panic to get out of the plane they forgot the food in the water so they went out and inflated their three little rafts that were done and so they all got in those they got off and when they got safely away from the airplane it went under and suddenly they realized hey We don’t have any water, and we don’t have any food. And yet there’s eight of us floating around out here, and nobody knows where we are. And so what they were doing, they realized they were going to be dependent upon rain for water and try to fish. And so one of the first notable things happened. Eddie very smartly kept on his coat and regular suit and a big felt hat. Now a lot of the people had thrown a lot of their personal clothing item away because they thought it would be easier for them to swim, to swim away from the plane. That was stupid because it also exposed them to terrible sun. So one day, and this is shortly after they’d gotten out there floating around, A bird came, a seagull, and landed on top of Eddie’s head. And nobody moved. Nobody said anything. They didn’t want to frighten the bird. So Eddie real quickly wham on top of his head. And he had the, he killed the bird. And so they took the bird and divided it up into eight parts. And they ate the bird. And, of course, there was no way to cook the bird or anything like that. They probably picked some of the feathers off. But nevertheless, that sustained them for a while. And then they also rigged up some devices with some strings and some sort of hooks they made that they could use and try to catch a fish once in a while. And then they had rain. And the rain is what saved them. And they were floating in the drift. They were lost and the newspapers didn’t cover much about it because it was a very highly classified mission. But they did later report that Rickenbacker was missing on a combat flight to Australia. So we knew this. But at 22 days before One of the aircraft, which was an amphibious plane from one of the smaller islands way out in the middle of the Pacific, flew over their area and identified them. And it took them another 24 hours to go back and get some other amphibious aircraft to come down and pick them up and take them all back to this island. And so then all the people wanted to go back to Hawaii. But Eddie said, no. I’m going on to Australia because I have a mission to perform, and it’s verbal. So he did continue on, and he went and visited with MacArthur and relayed the information from the Secretary of the Army.
SPEAKER 13 :
Remarkable. And we’ve got a couple of minutes left. What would you say would be the big takeaways regarding Eddie Rickenbacker that you want our listeners to hear?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, I think— The most important thing to me was, well, the amazing thing is that I talked to many people that I’ve known during the last few weeks. And I’d say, do you know anything about Eddie Rickenbacker? They said, who’s he? I couldn’t find hardly anybody who’d ever even heard of Eddie Rickenbacker. And I told them a little bit about the story and that he was the most famous American fighter ace in World War I. But I also tried to equate him with other people of his era. And that’s when I mentioned that he was on a par with people who they recognized. In other words, Edison and Bell and Ford and Chrysler, all of whom had no degrees. And you could go all the way back to Benjamin Franklin. People mostly didn’t know anything about him either. But all these people did not have formal educations but they were leaders in their field. Nobody else could have taught them because they were inventing and creating. And he was, Eddie was a person who was creative especially in business and organization for commercial aviation. In other words, he was to commercial aviation. what Billy Mitchell was to the development of military aviation.
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, Colonel Rutledge, I so thank you for all of the research that you’ve done on this. And thank you so much for sharing this. And our quote for the end of the show is from Eddie Rickenbacker. He said, the four cornerstones of character on which the structure of this nation was built is initiative, imagination, individuality, and independence. So my friends today, be grateful, read great books, think good thoughts, listen to beautiful music, communicate and listen well. Live honestly and authentically. Strive for high ideals. And like Superman, stand for truth, justice, and the American way. My friends, you are not alone. God bless you. God bless America. And stay tuned for hour number two.
SPEAKER 16 :
Like a new moon rising fierce Through the rain and lightning And I don’t want no one to cry But tell them if I don’t say
SPEAKER 10 :
The views and opinions expressed on KLZ 560 are those of the speaker, commentators, hosts, their guests, and callers. They are not necessarily the views and opinions of Crawford Broadcasting or KLZ management, employees, associates, or advertisers. KLZ 560 is a Crawford Broadcasting God and country station.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s the Kim Monson Show, analyzing the most important stories.
SPEAKER 13 :
The socialization of transportation, education, energy, housing, and water, what it means is that government controls it through rules and regulations.
SPEAKER 03 :
The latest in politics and world affairs.
SPEAKER 13 :
Under this guise of bipartisanship and nonpartisanship, it’s actually tapping down the truth.
SPEAKER 03 :
Today’s current opinions and ideas.
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On an equal field in the battle of ideas, mistruths and misconceptions is getting us into a world of hurt.
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Is it freedom or is it force? Let’s have a conversation.
SPEAKER 13 :
And welcome to the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us. You each are treasured, you’re valued, you have purpose. Today, strive for excellence, take care of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body. My friends, we were made for this moment in history. And thank you to the team. That’s Producer Joe, Luke, Rachel, Zach, Echo, Charlie, Mike, Amanda, and all the people here at Crawford Broadcasting for their support and good work. Check out our website and join our community. There’s three different levels, and you can find all of that at the website. And it is Memorial Day. We are pre-recording for Memorial Day, but this is a day at some point in time to step back and reflect upon those that have given their lives for our liberty, and our liberty is the responsible exercise of freedom. And later today on Memorial Day at 2 o’clock out at the USMC Memorial, there will be an event. It’ll be about 45 minutes long, and it’s a great way to just stop and reflect and honor those that have given their lives. And you can get more information about that particular event by going to usmcmemorialfoundation.org. That is usmcmemorialfoundation.org. And while you’re there, right across the street where I normally park my car is Little Richie’s. There’s two locations. They are… Locally owned. And there’s Little Richies in Parker and in Golden. And so after the event, I will pick up one of those delicious calzones to take home. And I do appreciate Little Richies as they are a sponsor of the show as well. And pleased to have on the line with me, 97-year-young Colonel Bill Rutledge, retired United States Air Force. He has this great curiosity for people and places in history, and we are blessed that he has shared that with us through many, many broadcasts. Colonel Rutledge, welcome to the show. Well, good morning, Kim. It is good to have you. And we’re going to talk about a hero that most people have not heard of, and that is Joe Foss. And so where should we start regarding Joe Foss? And that’s F-O-S-S.
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, first of all, I think we should expand a little bit on your comment about nobody knowing anything about Joe Foss. I’ve asked several people recently about Joe Foss, and whenever I would bring up the subject, I’d get sort of a blank look, and they’d say, who is he? And so it’s true that most Americans don’t know, and I was living in that era. I was in junior high school when he was first on the public scene. But again, because during the war, we had very controlled news information. Matter of fact, we had what was called an Office of War Information in Washington. It was a censor program. And they only sent us information about facts. the war and the battles and things after they no longer were significant and when they would give no advantage to either the Germans or the Japanese in the Pacific. But we’ll get back to Joe’s origin. Joe was born actually on a farm near Sioux Falls, South Dakota in 1915. And his father had a Norwegian background. He was a disciplinarian, but like in most families, his mother made a lot of decisions for the children and especially for Joe. His mother had been forced to drop out of school after she’d finished the third grade. And since she was actually born in the late 1800s, that was not unusual. for someone in a rural area not to advance very far. They hoped to learn how to read and write. But because of her lack of formal education, she set very high goals for her son. And she insisted that he finish high school and obtain a college degree. This was a long-range goal for her. And Joe had a love for hunting and fishing. He liked that better than farming and certainly better than school. But he was very careful on his hunting because his father was a specialist in hunting and he taught Joe how to be very safe with a gun. It reminded me of my own grandfather who was a a fisherman and a hunter. And I remember going with him when I was five or six years old and him showing me how to be very safe with the use of a .22 caliber rifle that he would always carry with him when he went into the woods or when he went fishing. Joe’s interest in hunting was clarified a little bit more later. when he had to have physical examinations within the military. And they found out that he had exceptional vision. He had 20-10 vision, which meant at 20 feet, he could see what most people could see at 10 feet. And that was the same capability of Ted Williams in baseball, one of the great hitters of all times, that people wondered, how can he see the ball? Well, he could see it better than your eye. So this was one of those qualities that kept him interested in gunnery. And it gave him a great advantage later during the war when he was really a specialist as a gunner when he was in the fighter plane.
SPEAKER 13 :
Yeah, it’s amazing to me, after speaking with so many World War II veterans, to just think what those pilots did. And so we’re going to continue the story about that. But before we go to break, he had this interest in flying, correct?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes. He was a teenager in the 20s, and he was growing up when there were a lot of – People who were mostly World War I veterans who wanted to be pilots, but they didn’t have a chance because there weren’t very many airplanes in those days. But at the end of the war, there were a lot of training aircraft, which were biplanes with wing on top and wing on the bottom. And they were used for training, but they were put on the market and sold very cheaply to people who could fly. And they were called barnstormers. and they would fly their planes from city to city, usually landing in agricultural areas or someplace that was safe. And they would go to special events like county fairs and others, and they would give people rides in their airplanes. The biplane that they had, they had two cockpits, and the pilot sat in the front, and the person who wanted to take a ride would sit in the back. And this is, Joe had experience like this when the barn farmers came to Sioux City, or Sioux Falls rather, and his father would take him over and let him go up in the airplane. I had a similar experience exactly like that when I was five years old at a county fair in Kentucky when my father was anxious to go fly And he thought he’d take me. So he went over and talked to the pilot and said, how much would it cost if we went up in the air and flew? And he said it would cost two dollars. And for two dollars, my father got in the back seat and sat down and he had me sit on his lap.
SPEAKER 13 :
Oh, my God.
SPEAKER 15 :
We’ve had a seat belt across our waist and we went up in the air from we were actually in them in there. center of a racetrack on a field that’s right in the middle. And that shows you how easily these airplanes could land and take off on short areas. So we went up and flew around about 200 or 300 feet in the air over the Ohio River, made a big loop, and then we came back down and landed. So I could read this story about Joe and I could identify with him.
SPEAKER 13 :
Okay. Very interesting. We’re going to go to break. We’re talking with Colonel Bill Rutledge on this Memorial Day, and we have these discussions because of our sponsors. And one of those great sponsors is the Roger Mangat State Farm Insurance Team. Give them a call for a complimentary appointment to go over your insurance coverage, and you might be able to save some money. That number is 303-795-8855. Like a good neighbor, the Roger Mangat Team is there.
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SPEAKER 13 :
And welcome back to the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us on this Memorial Day. We are pre-recording it. But I wanted to mention, if you’re looking for something more for your child’s education, Excalibur Classical Academy is a new private school opening this fall in Centennial, serving kindergarten through third grade with 100% scholarship tuition available. Their classrooms are rooted in a classical Christian tradition where students grow through phonics, math, music, art, and the great books that have shaped generations. They believe that young minds thrive on wisdom, virtue, and truth. So give your child a strong foundation for life. Enrollment is now open. Space is limited. Visit Excalibur, that’s E-X-C-A-L-I-B-U-R, ExcaliburClassicalAcademy.org today. And I also wanted to say thank you to Laramie Energy for their goal sponsorship of the show. They are also goal sponsors of the Kim Monson Community and Newsroom. And my friends, it is reliable, efficient, affordable, and abundant power from naturally occurring hydrocarbons such as oil, natural gas, and coal that powers our lives, fuels our hopes and dreams. and empowers us to change our own personal climate. We’re talking with Colonel Bill Rutledge, retired United States Air Force, regarding Joe Foss. And Colonel Rutledge has this great curiosity about people and places and things. So Joe Foss grew up in South Dakota, And he was born in 1915. And in the 30s, South Dakota experienced the Dust Bowl, like many other states in that area. So what happened after that?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, they were having the dry periods and praying for rain. And on one occasion, they had an experience like many places out there. There would occasionally be a thunderstorm, sometimes very tremendous impact. And in 1933, his father was driving from the farm into town. And on the way, he was right in the middle of one of the storms. And the winds were so great that they blew down some of the power lines. So this happened in front of Joey’s father’s car. And one of the poles actually was blown over him. So his father was going to get out and move the pole out of the way so he could go on with his car. And what he didn’t know was that one of the power lines had broken loose from the pole, but it was still live. And It was touching one part of his car, which he didn’t know, couldn’t see. And so as soon as he opened the door and stepped out, he was grounded and he was immediately killed, electrocuted. And this was a terrible tragedy. And Joe was now the the man of the house. He was a senior in high school when this occurred.
SPEAKER 13 :
Wow, so then what happened after that, now that he’s the man of the house?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, he went on and graduated from high school, and then his mother insisted that he enroll that fall at the University of South Dakota. So he took summer jobs that summer after graduating from high school, and then Whenever he had the opportunity, he would save his money throughout his college career. He’d save just a little bit because he wanted to learn to fly and it was going to cost a lot more than he and his mother could afford. And we say a lot that we have to go back and think about what was a lot of money in the early 1930s. He had to acquire $64 to be up front and give to the people who were going to teach him how to fly. So he gradually saved that money and he started taking flying lessons. And I’m sure that he was taking flying lessons in one of the planes similar to what he had flown in when he was younger, because those were the principal planes that were used for teaching aviation for civilians in that era. So he continued and he actually completed his flying and was able to get a flying license before he graduated. And he graduated from the University of South Dakota in 1940. He had already logged many hours in the air by that time.
SPEAKER 13 :
And so then he anticipated that the United States would become involved in the war, but he thought it would be the war in Europe, right?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes. In 1940, in May of that year, that was when the Germans broke through and they invaded the Netherlands, Holland, Belgium and on into France. And that’s when Dunkirk occurred with all of the French and British troops that were surviving the battle were encircled and they had that evacuation across the channel back to England. So we in America, everything was looking towards Europe. There was no thought or no discussion of anything in the Pacific. So, but there was a certain anticipation that we would eventually get involved because England was being battered. And starting in September of 1940, they began what was called the Battle of Britain, which is all an aerial battle between the Royal Air Force and the German Air Force, because the Germans had to gain aerial control in order to invade England. So Joe wanted to go into the military so that he would be prepared in the event that we were going to get involved in the war. So 1940, now he is 25 years old and he is an older person to be applying to go to go to fly. But he approached the Marines and they said, fine. He passed all the exams. But he very carefully did not tell the Marines that he had had any flying license. He wanted to go in and excel. And he did. So he was the oldest person in his pilot class at Pensacola. And he did so well there. that they wanted him to stay on and be an instructor pilot as a graduated marine lieutenant. And of course, remembering now, we are not yet involved in the war, but we’re getting close to December of 1941.
SPEAKER 13 :
Okay, so the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941. What happens with Joe Foss?
SPEAKER 15 :
By that time, Joe Foss was a lieutenant, and he was still an instructor pilot in Pensacola, but he applied for and was assigned to a tactical squadron, and then his squadron was assigned to the West Coast. There was a a period shortly after Pearl Harbor’s attack, when there was great fear that the Japanese might bring some of their carriers up towards the West Coast and endanger California, especially. So there was a lot of mobilization along the California coast. So he was actually stationed out there in Southern California. And that’s where he was. when the war actually started to turn around a little bit after Midway, he was not involved in the Battle of Midway because he was not flying off carriers. But after the Battle of Midway, then the concentration was on stopping the Japanese from getting closer and closer to Australia. And they were getting very close. And they were in the summer of 1942, they were on Guadalcanal. They had occupied it. And they hadn’t done much with it yet, but there was a presence there. And the US forces decided that that would be a first place where they needed to turn it around because it was getting awfully close to aerial range of northern Australia. His flight, he and his squadron went to the southwest Pacific in late 1942.
SPEAKER 13 :
Okay. And the Guadalcanal, it’s spelled G-U-A-D-A-L-C-A-N-A-L. It’s an island of the Solomon Islands chain in the South Pacific. And it was also a very long battle as well. So Joe Foss was key in this. So tell us about that, Colonel Rutledge.
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes. Hickenfield was down there, and what happened is – we had a landing. Japanese were surprised because they didn’t have very many people on the island at the time because they were moving so fast. But the decision was made by the U.S. military that that had to be the turning point. So the Marines landed there and there was a muddy a small field for fighter planes. And as soon as they landed, of course, the Navy Seabees went out and started working on improving the landing conditions. And that was their principal job so that they were able to bring in fighter planes. And Joe was in one of the first squadrons that landed on Guadalcanal in late 1942.
SPEAKER 13 :
Okay, and he had become a master in combat tactics. So what happened next, Colonel Rutledge?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, he was a commander of a flight. He was a captain at the time. He was not the squadron commander initially. He would become one later. But he was so accomplished as a pilot that Many of the other pilots learned much from him. And so they would, of course, prepare to defend the airfield because this was so important also for bringing in supplies because the Japanese were already occupying several of the Solomon Islands north of Gorda Condal. So they had a base of operations. And they were able then to land on the north end of Guadalcanal. And they actually had more soldiers, I mean, more soldiers on the ground, but they did not have a flying facility or runways or anything of that nature on the north end. So they were assisted as far as flying area by aircraft coming from distant islands. And so they had a limited range. They could come down and be over there. But they also had a bombing procedure so that they weren’t doing a huge amount of damage. But what they did, they would always have a bomber come over at night so that the pilots and the other people had a terrible time getting sleep. They could almost set their watch on the time that the bomber would come over and drop a bomb or two just to wake them up, keep them awake. It was an annoyance. And then the Japanese decided they were going to.
SPEAKER 13 :
So quick question on this. And actually, I’m going to keep that as a cliffhanger. I need to make a note so I don’t forget what that is. We’re talking with Colonel Bill Rutledge regarding Joe Foss. These discussions happen because of our sponsors. And if you’re having any trouble with your own personal climate, being warm in the winter, cool in the summer, reach out to Ben’s Plumbing, Heating, and Cooling.
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The Kim Monson Show is expanding and augmenting our voice and reach. In addition to the Kim Monson Show broadcast, we have created the Kim Monson Newsroom and the Kim Monson Community. We call them the three presses, and they are foundational to free speech and engaging in responsible self-governance. Go to kimMonson.com, click on the Newsletter tab, and sign up for the weekly email newsletter and the Daily Digest. And join the Kim Monson community, which is a modern salon where you can contemplate, connect, and converse around the principles we cover daily. Sign up today at kimMonson.com.
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SPEAKER 01 :
All Kim’s sponsors are in inclusive partnership with Kim and are not affiliated with or in partnership with KLZ or Crawford Broadcasting. If you would like to support the work of The Kim Monson Show and grow your business, contact Kim at her website, kimmonson.com. That’s Kim Monson, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com.
SPEAKER 13 :
And welcome back to the Kim Monson Show. And I wish you all a blessed Memorial Day. And it is a day to stop and reflect regarding those that have given their lives for our liberty. Liberty is the responsible exercise of freedom. And because of that, that’s one of the reasons why I highlight the Center for American Values on a regular basis on the show. The center is located in Pueblo, focused on honoring our Medal of Honor recipients, as well as telling those stories. educating kids on these foundational principles of honor, integrity, and patriotism. And so for more information, check out their website. That is AmericanValueCenter.org, AmericanValueCenter.org. I’m talking with Colonel Bill Rutledge. He is retired United States Air Force. And we’re talking about Joe Foss and the Battle of Guadalcanal. And Guadalcanal is located in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific. And the Japanese wanted Guadalcanal because they wanted to be able to continue on to try to conquer Australia. So my question regarding this battle and the decisions that Captain Joe Foss made at the time was that at the Battle of Midway, I remember my father telling me about this battle, that we were able to sink, was it three of the Japanese aircraft carriers? Is that right, Colonel Rutledge?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, we thought three, but it turned out eventually that the fourth one went down also. So four carriers went down, and it just blunted their whole effort to control the Hawaiian Islands. Midway, of course, was a part of the Hawaiian Island chain, and it was the greatest threat to our West Coast. So the Battle of Midway in June of 1942… halted that but they were still progressing in the southwest pacific uh going all the way down through the into into indonesia and into new guinea and then solomons and they were just really close to be in a position to have uh australia on their if there were radar in those days, there weren’t.
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, and the other thing I wanted to connect then is they don’t have the aircraft carriers, so they’re going to have to launch their aircraft in the battle for Guadalcanal from islands, which means that they have to fly a longer distance.
SPEAKER 15 :
That’s correct. Okay. And not only that, even if they had had any carriers available right then, they didn’t want to endanger them at the cost of trying to capture one more small island in the Solomons. So they still would have to fly many miles south to get to Guadalcanal, and therefore they’re using up a lot of fuel, whereas our planes right there are flying really close to the island. So we had a capability of staying – in the air longer than they so they could come down do their attacks on the field and principally this is this was their main target was to try to destroy our aircraft there and to enable them to be able to come in with more troops and land on the north part of the island and have those boats that were carrying troop carriers that they would be protected from the air So consequently, the importance of controlling the air over Guadalcanal was key.
SPEAKER 13 :
So then what happened?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, in the late fall, early winter of 1942-43, there was a great concentration of air battle struggles over and around Guadalcanal. So the Marines… there, lost a few planes, but their planes were, their pilots were pretty well trained so that they were holding their own. And the Marines who had landed had done a great job of moving north on the island and had gained control of a lot of the islands. And the Japanese had retreated, but they still had a control line up there so that they could bring in their landing ships and do the reinforcements. Well, the American commander on the island felt that we had it where our Marines were going to be able to make a final thrust and control everything. And he didn’t think that the Japanese had the will or that they could gain enough control of the air and come down and land more troops. Well, Joe Foss didn’t quite agree. So his squadron had actually been planned to be rotated out and have a new squadron come in. But Joe hid out eight airplanes in his flight and he put them out into the jungle around the perimeter of the airfield. But the general didn’t get out and check on what was going on all the time. So one day, the general did go out, and he did find these. And he called Joe in and wanted to know what was going on. And Joe explained to him that his men wanted to stay there and protect the field. They weren’t quite ready. And he thought that there might be another attempt to land on the north part of the island. Well, shortly after this discussion, that is exactly what happened. The Japanese had several troop ships that were loaded with soldiers that were going to be landed. And they also mustered, their estimate was maybe 48 or 50 fighter planes that were coming down to the island. Well, one of the unusual situations was that WOS realized that they were grossly outnumbered as far as aircraft. So he didn’t want to encounter them because he was fearful they would just all be shot down because of the numbers themselves. But what he did, they did all sorts of evasive actions so that they got up high in anticipation of the Japanese planes coming in And then they played sort of like a dodgeball game. The Japanese would come up for them, and then they would go lower. So they evaded and kept flying around until the Japanese pilots lost control of the situation because their fuel was so low. So they had to turn around with their aircraft and go back to their islands north of there. So there never was any encounter there. that particular day when the great effort was made. And because the air cover was gone, then the troop carrier ships that were going to come down turned around and went back to the islands north of there. So the initiative of Joe was so significant. And, of course, by this time, he had already shot down 20 ships about 23 aircraft, and he later shot down three more. So he was already a multi-fighter ace and was considered the best pilot in the whole area, and the oldest, I might add.
SPEAKER 13 :
Question, I’m not quite clear. So when the Japanese came over, he did these aircraft. Did the Japanese, were they able to destroy the other aircraft?
SPEAKER 15 :
No, there were never any attack because their objective was to take out Joe’s flight, his aircraft. They couldn’t tell also because of elevations up and down and a little cloudy area and things like that, because there’s a lot of rain and clouds down there. They didn’t know exactly how many were there, but they wanted the Americans to attack them. But Joe realized that they couldn’t do it. I mean, they’d be defeated. So he used this strategy to keep the evasion to the point where they just had to turn around and go because they were out of fuel. Enough to get them back to their return island.
SPEAKER 13 :
I’m not quite getting, so he hid the aircraft from the general. I can’t quite connect why, you know, why did he have to hide the aircraft from the general, or was he hiding it from the Japanese?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, it was both, really. It was camouflaging the aircraft, which protected them from the Japanese routinely. But the main reason he was doing it right at the end is that he wanted to stay there because he had an anticipation that the Japanese were going to make one last big shot from the air. And the general didn’t think so. So he did this intentionally without consultation to protect protect those aircraft. And it turned out that that was exactly what was needed. And the irony of the whole situation was at the end, when the Japanese were not able to make this final big surge, the general who had gotten so upset with Voss is the one who wrote up his recommendation for the Medal of Honor.
SPEAKER 13 :
Wow, that’s really interesting. So he then was awarded the Medal of Honor for, was it for this shooting down on the other, the flights, or what was it?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, he was awarded it based primarily on his fighting record of being the best ace in the whole area. He had 26 Japanese kills. But in addition to that, what lent to the nomination also was his strategic planning and thought and the tactical use of his airplanes against that encounter with the Japanese in, um, early 1943. So the general was, uh, humble enough to give full credit to Joe Foss and to send the nominations back. And then, uh, They were rotated out and another squadron came in when obviously they had they’d turned a corner. And so they did fly to one of the other Solomon Islands. And so they’re out of range. And another squadron came in. to relieve the squadron Joe was in.
SPEAKER 13 :
Okay. Now tell us a little bit about, you know what, I think we’re going to go to break and we’re going to continue the discussion about Joe Foss. These discussions happen because of all of our great sponsors. If you’ve been injured, be sure and reach out to John Bozen and Bozen Law.
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SPEAKER 07 :
With all the chaos and confusion in our world, how can you plant yourself on a foundation based on truth and clarity? The Kim Monson Show is here to help. Kim examines news, politics, and opinion through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom, and shares human interest stories that will inspire you and make you smile. Tune in to The Kim Monson Show each weekday, 6 to 8 a.m., with encores 1 to 2 p.m. and 10 to 11 p.m. on KLZ 560 a.m., KLZ 100.7 f.m., the KLZ website, and the KLZ app. Shows can also be found at kimMonson.com, Spotify, and iTunes.
SPEAKER 13 :
And welcome back to the Kim Monson Show. We are pre-recording this show for Memorial Day. And Memorial Day is a day where you carve out some time to reflect and be grateful for those that have given their lives for our liberty. And what is liberty? It is the responsible exercise of freedom. And we’re talking with Colonel Bill Rutledge. He is 97 years young. He’ll soon be 98. regarding Joe Foss. And Colonel Rutledge, through his whole life, has had this great interest in people and places in history. And, my friends, I would take great inspiration from that and encourage each of us to incorporate that into our lives as well. But the show comes to you because of our great sponsors, and one of those is Mint Financial Strategies. And Jody Hinsey and her team have been helping people for over 25 years put together plans and strategies for people their financial freedom. They are helping me with my financial freedom as well. And so give them a call. That number is 303-285-3080 to embark on that journey to financial freedom. And again, that number is 303-285-3080. Colonel Bill Rutledge, we’re talking about Joe Foss, and you put together a great amount of You had read the book, A Proud American, Joe Foss, and we’re not going to get through all of it today. So I think this will be part one, and then we will record part two next week so that we can really delve into the life of this remarkable man. But he is now rotating out of R&R from Guadalcanal. So what happens next with Joe Foss?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, Joe and his other pilots, so seven other pilots, they flew to a nearby island who was out of the range of the Japanese aircraft. And they were going to be evacuated back to the States for a lengthy R&R period after being under intense fire for many months. So they were on this small island, and they were waiting for a troop ship that would take them back. Now, most of the ships that were going, or I should say many of the ships, were actually commercial cruise ships, and therefore they were pretty nice to take people back to the States. And so he was advised that he would be put aboard this ship, and he would go back. And he said, well, what about my crew, my men? Not only his pilots, but also his crew chiefs and things of this nature. And he was told, well, they’re not on the schedule. They’re coming later. And so he said, well, can I see somebody that we could maybe make arrangements? Because he said, I’m not leaving without my men. They said, well, this is controlled by the Navy. So you have to go down and see the operations officer who handled all of the assignments aboard the ship. And he said, well, who would that be? And he said, well, that’s a lieutenant named Nixon. And so he did. He went down and talked to Lieutenant Nixon and explained what was going on. And Lieutenant Nixon said, made special arrangements so that he and his crew were all able to go back at the same time. And that Nixon, of course, later became the President of the United States.
SPEAKER 13 :
Wow, that is remarkable. So they are able to get back stateside. What’s the next thing that happened with Captain Joe Foss?
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, the next thing was when he got back, they immediately wanted to get him to Washington so that he could be awarded the Medal of Honor. They had already made that decision in his absence. And so he and his mother came down from the Dakotas to Washington to be there. They were both at the White House and they medal was presented by President Roosevelt and his mother was there and she’d always been a very strong supporter of the president. So it was a great, great occasion for the family. And Joe then anticipated that he would shortly be able to go back to the Pacific because he wanted to get back into combat. But he was told that from the the value of someone who had received an award such as he could not be put back into combat for fear that he might be killed and that he could do much more good for the war effort by traveling around the country and talking to people about what he had done and the progress and to help inspire others and perhaps improve recruiting so he did and so for almost a year afterwards he was traveling around from city to city and he would give lengthy presentations about what it was transpiring and basically to encourage the home front because for the first year and a half everything in the pacific was going south i mean it was bad um we just weren’t making any progress and that Joe was one of the key men in turning the corner in the southwest Pacific. So he did many of these. But they had to give him sort of a base of operation. So they assigned him to one of the marine air stations in Oregon. And he was up there for several months, quite a few months, because he never went back into to combat in the Pacific. But this procedure was followed also in other theaters of World War II. And subsequent engagements since that time, you take a Medal of Honor winner out of line so that they’re not further endangered.
SPEAKER 13 :
Okay, and he received the Medal of Honor from President Roosevelt in May of 1943. There’s still another two years of the war, and as you mentioned, things were not going well in those first years of the war in the Pacific. And so to boost Americans’ morale was very important, and so that was what his focus was then after he received the medal, correct?
SPEAKER 15 :
Yes, that’s correct. And there was a personal experience that was relevant to this. He was stationed in Oregon, and he was there so that it was sort of a funnel for people coming in from the Pacific, like if they’re coming in for an R&R break, and then also for people coming back from R&R to check in there to get ready to get aboard ship to go back to the Southwest Pacific. So a very good friend of mine, many years after that, I met this gentleman actually in Denver, but he lived in Fort Collins and we became extremely good friends. And he told me, he said, well, I had an experience in 43 where I had come back from the Pacific after being out there for almost two years in many landings. And I’d had leave in Minneapolis and I’d gone back to visit my family and my girlfriend. And he said, when I was back there, I had given her a ring and we were engaged and things were going well. But then I got too wrapped up talking to a couple of sailors I met in Minneapolis who had been at Midway. So we talked about Midway and Guadalcanal, and time just passed by. So I was late getting over to dinner at my girlfriend’s home with her family. I was two hours late. And he said she was furious and gave me back my ring. And I decided I better stay there and try to make up. So he stayed an extra day. And he said, if I stayed an extra day, I might be able to make up things. But I for sure was going to get in trouble with the Marines. Okay.
SPEAKER 13 :
And we’re going to keep that as a cliffhanger with what happened with your friend. Colonel Bill Rutledge, thank you so much. This is so fascinating. And I appreciate you sharing all of this with us. So thank you.
SPEAKER 15 :
Thank you for the opportunity.
SPEAKER 13 :
And indeed, as we are hearing these stories, we do stand on the shoulders of giants. So this Memorial Day, God bless America and God bless you.
SPEAKER 16 :
And I don’t want no one to cry But tell them if I don’t
SPEAKER 10 :
The views and opinions expressed on KLZ 560 are those of the speaker, commentators, hosts, their guests, and callers. They are not necessarily the views and opinions of Crawford Broadcasting or KLZ management, employees, associates, or advertisers. KLZ 560 is a Crawford Broadcasting God and country station.
