ROBERTS COMMISSION

Roberts Commission report on Pearl Harbor

Roberts Commission report on Pearl Harbor

Introduction

On December 7, 1941, after the surprise attack by Japanese forces on Pearl Harbor, which was an American naval base at Hawaii, several investigations were performed to establish where the reason for the loss is present, and how US may keep away from this sort of disasters in the future. Roberts Commission was among them. It was assigned by the President of that time Roosevelt and headed by Owen J. Roberts who was a Supreme Court Justice. The Commission established that the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet (Admiral Husband Kimmel) and the Army officer (Lieutenant General Walter Short) accountable for protecting American military systems were unsuccessful to sufficiently answer cautions of a possible attack by Japan. Submitted in January 1942, the report also contained some other findings as well. This paper discusses the Roberts Commission report on Pearl Harbor in historical and analytical context.

Discussion

In 1946, the U.S. Congress conducted investigations into the apparent government failure to anticipate the Japanese attack. While the concluding report affixed ultimate responsibility on the Japanese and declared that the Roosevelt administration had neither provoked nor coerced Japan into the attack, it nevertheless found disturbing errors in the evaluation and dissemination of information. Those with access to the most pertinent intelligence in the administration had failed to communicate it, and commanders at Pearl Harbor had failed to comprehend the imminent danger. [1]

Roberts Commission Report

Roberts Commission report on Pearl Harbor was the description and investigation of the Pearl Harbor by the Roberts commission. The report was issued on January 24, 1942. The report performed the initial investigation of the Pearl Harbor attack. The president appointed the Commission and it was led by Owen J. Roberts who was a Supreme Court Justice. Although the report comprised just an ambiguous section of prying by Consular agents of Japan and other people taking no vulnerable associations with the foreign service of Japan, the Roberts Commission report was extensively considered associating native Japanese Americans and was a crossroads in civic view for exclusion of them from the West Coast.[1]

The President at that time was Franklin D. Roosevelt. After the shocking attack, he employed an investigative commission on December 18. It was headed by Justice Roberts. The other committee members were retired or active army officers: Admiral Joseph M. Reeves, Admiral William H. Standley, General Joseph T. McNarney, and General Frank R. McCoy. The team met in Washington and then progressed to Honolulu to maintain its analysis from 22nd December to 10th January 1942. Finally, 127 witnesses were interviewed by the Roberts commission. Roberts commission put the burden of attack on Pearl harbor on Admiral Husband E. Kimmel and General Walter C. Short. They both were highest commanders in navy and army. The commission charged them with "negligence of responsibility" for their absence of alertness. [2]

Pearl Harbor

The commission played an important role in helping people know about the disaster and thus making our strategy for the ...