[Non-Sequitur]

He enlisted right after Pearl Harbor. It wasn't uncommon for the military to commission someone at a higher rank based on skills gained in civilian life. I have no idea what skills Johnson brought in, other than political savvy and an ability for self-promotion. Look at the bright side. If Johnson had been a Senator he probably would have demanded that they make him an Admiral.

BTW, FDR had all the congressmen and senators who enlisted discharged and returned to Congress shortly thereafter.

[aristeides]

BTW, FDR had all the congressmen and senators who enlisted discharged and returned to Congress shortly thereafter.

All of them? I thought Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. served throughout the war. However, now that I think about it, I have a vague recollection that he resigned his Senate seat and had to run to get back into the Senate in '46.

All the other members of Congress who wanted to serve were free to do the same thing and resign their seats. I guess they decided not to.

Strom Thurmond was of course at D-Day, but I don't think he had been elected yet to Congress at that point.