Lucius D. Clay: An American Life

During World War II, President Roosevelt called upon Lucius D. Clay to run military procurement. It took a man of his logistical genius to oversee the requirements of an eight-million-man army. Clay set priorities, negotiated contracts, monitored production, and coordinated military Lend-Lease—all without a breath of scandal.

In 1945, Clay was called upon once again to act as military governor of a decimated Germany. He dealt with everything from de-Nazification to quarrelsome allies, from feeding a starving people to processing vast numbers of homeless and displaced. Above all, he had to convince a doubting American public and a hostile State Department that German recovery was essential to the stability of Europe.

Clay went on to play key roles in business and politics, advising presidents of both parties. He helped run Eisenhower's 1952 campaign, led the federal highway program, raised the ransom money for the Bay of Pigs prisoners, and boosted morale in Germany as the Berlin Wall was built. In honor of their debt to him, the Berliners placed a simple stone tablet at his West Point grave: Wir Danken Dem Bewahrer Unserer Freiheit—We Thank the Defender of Our Freedom.