William Pye and the confidence Japan would not attack

Vice Admiral William Pye's assertion that Japan would not attack because the United States was too large and powerful contrasts with Kimmel's concern about war. The remark may have been intended to reassure personnel, yet it also shows how difficult it was to generate urgency within the command. Preparing for war required strengthening the fleet without provoking the crisis leaders hoped to deter. Pye had supported Roosevelt's policy of keeping the battle fleet in Hawaii, making him part of the strategic decision Kimmel inherited. His outlook was part of the institutional setting in which Kimmel had to train, warn, and allocate scarce resources.