After extensive study, Pershing decided to base the AEF in the Lorraine region, as it offered sufficient space for American lines of communication, as well as close proximity to the major strategic objective of Metz, Germany. In line with his strategic goals, Wilson rebuffed demands to amalgamate American troops in Allied units, and ordered Pershing to maintain “a separate and distinct component of the combined forces, the identity of which must be preserved” With those orders, Pershing and a hand-picked staff of Regular officers sailed for France on. Baker (1871-1937) worked with Congress to enact a manpower draft sufficient for 100 combat divisions. Rejecting calls to organize volunteer units, Secretary of War Newton D. To meet Wilson’s ambitious goal, the US had to fully mobilize its available manpower. President Wilson believed that only a major, independent American contribution to the war effort would earn him sufficient political capital to lead the eventual peace negotiations. Pershing (1860-1948) to organize the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in France sufficient to conduct combat operations on par with the Allied armies. Despite these shortcomings, President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924) ordered newly promoted General John J. When the United States entered World War I, the miniscule Regular Army of 127,000 officers and soldiers lacked such essentials as a general staff, division structure, and modern weapons.
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