At a Cabinet meeting one day Roosevelt gleefully told the story about an American marine who, ordered home from Guadalcanal, was disconsolate because he hadn’t killed even one of the enemy. He stated his case to his superior officer, who said: “Go up on that hill over there and shout: ‘To hell with Emperor Hirohito!’ That will bring the Japs out of hiding.”
The marine did as he was ordered. Immediately a Japanese soldier came out of the jungle, shouting, “To hell with Roosevelt!”
”And of course,” said the marine, “I could not kill a Republican.”
Source:
Boller, Paul F. “Franklin D. Roosevelt.” Presidential Anecdotes. New York: Oxford UP, 1981. 276. Print.
Original Source Listed:
Hassett, Off the Record, 175.
Further Reading:
I've always liked the anecdote about Coolidge's "You lose."