[Homer_J_Simpson]

Allies Batter Foe (Daniel) – 2-3
Germans Periled in Rear by French – 3
Germans Moving Wounded en Masse (Archambault) – 3
Luftwaffe Bases in France Bombed (Anderson) – 3-4
Red Army at Coast (Lawrence) – 4-5
The Germans Picture Their Own Flight (page 1 photo) – 5
75,000 Germans Defend Florence – 5-6
New Looting Laid to Nazis in Italy (Johnston) – 6
War News Summarized – 6
Conquest of Tinian Termed Complete (Horne) – 7
Fate of Hengyang Called Uncertain (by Brooks Atkinson) – 7
Stilwell Named Full General – 7-8
Americans Attack Foe in Aitape Trap – 8
Admiral Cecil Dies in Pacific Crash – 10
Recalls Truman Criticism (by Arthur Krock) – 10
The Texts of the Day’s Communiques on Fighting in Various Zones – 11-13
Silent Robot Adds Horror to Attack – 13

[Homer_J_Simpson]

http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1944/aug44/02aug44.htm#

Turkey breaks with Germany
Wednesday, August 2, 1944 www.onwar.com

In Ankara... The Turkish government breaks off diplomatic and commercial relations with Germany.

On the Western Front... The US 3rd Army advances. The 8th Corps reaches Dinan and the outskirts of Rennes, in Brittany. To the left, elements of US 1st Army capture Villedieu in an attack around Tessy toward Mortain.

In the English Channel... During the night (August 2-3), off the coast of Courseulles-sur-Mer, 58 German Marder midget submarines attack allied shipping and sink the destroyer HMS Quorn as well as two other vessels. Only 17 of the German vessels survive the Allied counterattack.

In the Mariana Islands... On Guam, US forces make progress in attacks on the west side of the island but American attacks on the east side are repulse by the Japanese garrison.

[BroJoeK]

page 1 headline: "DEWEY DENOUNCES 'HITLER-LIKE' SMITH FOR BRICKER 'SMEAR'...

After Placing Wreath at Tomb of Lincoln He Promises Negros 'Complete Equality'."

The article's words are hard to make out, so can't tell what that 'Hitler-like' smear was all about, but it's just interesting to see how politicians have already begun to call-out their opponents with words like "Hitler" or "Nazi".
I predict we might see such words used again, in the future... ;-)

Also, it's good to remember that in those days, around half of blacks still considered themselves to be Republicans, even though 70% were voting for Franklin Roosevelt.

Republicans did not completely lose the black vote until 1964.

[henkster]

This is the big map for the American sector from the online archive. I've been cropping various sections of these maps to show the areas where fighting has been taking place. Today I decided to post the whole map for a couple of reasons. First, just to show how big these original maps really were (and for a guy who likes maps, to me they are works of art). Second, the map shows how the Americans have started to spread out from the Cotentin and into Brittany and the area of active operations is now much larger. I'll crop a few sections of this for more detail.

[henkster]

This is the cropped sector for 7th Army. As you can see, the Germans are patching together some kind of line and have transferred LXVII Panzer Corps from Panzer Group West. LXXXIV Corps is no longer on the map. Remnants of divisions from that parent organization are assembled in the center of the line. The chaos is so great the Germans don't even have divisional boundaries identified. More ominously, the German line peters out somewhere south of 116th Panzer's reconnaissance battalion, where they aren't sure if 275th Infantry Division is there or not.

[henkster]

This is the even more worrisome part of the map for the Germans; the area south of where 7th Army's defensive line ends. Von Kluge is more or less taking personal control over this area because the command, control and communications in this zone has completely vanished. This is in part a result of Hausser's decision a few days ago to abandon Coutances and break out to the southeast, where the fragments of Das Reich and 17th SS Panzergrenadier are. Kluge wanted him to break out to the south to maintain some sort of cohesive front to the sea. By going southeast, Hausser left the door to Brittany wide open.

There are some scattered German troops in this area, but Kluge has no contact with them. Worse, he has no solid information on the Americans in this area, but he has a pretty good idea what they're up to.

[henkster]

This is the sector just to the west of the preceding map. The Germans just have a few scratch units at roadblocks south of St. Malo. Once the Americans brush them aside, the road to Brest is open.

[henkster]

To the south of Avranches lies Rennes, capital of Brittany, and held by a scratch group of Luftwaffe flak units. Kluge is planning on bringing up 708 Infantry Division, a static coastal defense unit. (I figured out the German map color scheme. Red is the enemy, blue is where their units are, and green is where they have ordered units to go, but they aren't there yet).