Osborne Pros And Cons

But Osborne often had to depend on his subordinates, all Navy officers, to keep him out of trouble. While he proudly wore his lieutenant commander’s uniform, he generally had disdain for Navy traditions and Navy protocol. However, it was invaluable to have the staunch support of Secretary of the Navy Daniels and the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Chamberlain, 1935). Rudolph Chamberlain in his biography of Osborne makes a point of noting that it was amazing that in two and a half years in this position Osborne somehow avoided being court martialed.
Among his final suggestions to the Navy was that criminals and ex-convicts be recruited for the war effort. This idea was vetoed by the Navy, including his son Charles,