The Military Career of Dwight D. Eisenhower

Presidents often formulate public policy based upon their life experiences, and utilize the knowledge from their line of work to create answers to the vast problems with which they are confronted when running a country. Dwight David Eisenhower was certainly no exception, relying on his lengthy career as a staff officer and one of the greatest Army commanders the United States has ever seen to guide budgetary policy and public diplomacy based upon a strong desire for peace and fair play during his two terms as President. Dwight David Eisenhower’s military career began with his appointment to West Point, from which he graduated in 1915. He was well-respected as a genuine team player, and his good natured attitude, easygoing spirit, and natural ability to lead were amplified and honed during his time at West Point, and he graduated a second lieutenant in infantry. He spent the next two years in the 19th Infantry at Fort Sam Houston in Texas, as the rest of the world geared up for World War I. As the United States prepared to enter the international arena despite Woodrow Wilson’s public isolationist policy, the military promoted officers at a furious rate; Eisenhower was already a captain by 1917, and a temporary lieutenant colonel just over a year later as the United States finally prepared to enter the fight(Dwight David Eisenhower 4).