[disjointrevelry]

MacArthur publicly stated dropping nuclear weapons on the northern border of the Korean peninsula to prevent the Chinese hordes from invading was necessary to secure peace in the Korean peninsula. Truman fired him because the long-term strategy the US had with the Chinese had a threshold of military conflict that MacArthur was far surpassing. Truman and the strategists involved believed the conflict with the Chinese had to remain on the Korean peninsula. They believed MacArthur's plans to drop nuclear weapons on the Chinese side of the Korean border would escalate the conflict to a point of becoming an uncontrollable conflict in the region.

[scarmig]

MacArthur also repeatedly tried to goad China into intensifying the conflict, against the direct orders of Truman.

There's the escalation with China/nuke part of things, and there's the total rejection of civilian control of the military part of things.

[nemo]

Yep, MacArthur was a great military strategist, but very politically naive. Truman really had no choice but to relieve him after MacArthur went off the rails and tried taking executive authority he didn't have to further military goals.

[cubano]

MacArthur wanted to nuke everyone...including Stalin's new Soviet Union.

Perhaps it's best he didn't get a chance to do all that.