Johnson, Nixon, and the War at Vietnam (1964-1973)

Vietnam was divided into North and South

• The North was communist.

• The South was capitalist and our ally

For the better part of a decade we waged a war to stop the communist North Vietnamese conquering the South.

Causes

• The Cold War: containment was still our priority.

• The Domino Theory: Eisenhower’s belief that if one nation in Asia fell to  communism, neighboring states would follow.

Politics

• Truman had been blamed for “losing” China.

• LBJ fears being seen as soft on communism (especially in an election year).

• JFK’s last word on South Vietnam committed US support after its leader Ngo Dinh Diem was overthrown and killed (LBJ afraid to reverse course).

What was the immediate cause of the war?

Gulf of Tonkin incident (August 2, 1964). LBJ announced that North Vietnam torpedo boats fired on 2 US destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin.

When was the 2nd attack announced?

August 4, 1964.

What were the controversies surrounding these attacks?

1. LBJ did NOT tell us that our ships were in North Vietnam’s territorial waters, and helping South Vietnam conduct electronic spying on the North.

2. Nor did he tell people the attack may never have happened!!!!

What was the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (August 7, 1964)?

It authorized the president to “take all necessary steps to repel any attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.”

What were the goals of giving Johnson war powers?

1. Preserving South Vietnam.

2. Preventing Communist North Vietnam unifying the country under their rule.

What was was the Battle of the Ia Drang Valley (November 14-16, 1965)?

US Air Cavalry vs North Vietnamese Army. Our men were dropped in by helicopters and supported by artillery and air power. We won the battle, but both sides suffered terrible losses.

What lessons did each side learn from the Battle of the la Drang Valley?

• US- We thought the air cavalry would win the war but this was an entirely new kind of warfare. This didn’t work…

• North Vietnam- the enemy realized they could bleed us out of Vietnam and they were right…

Who did we fight with?

The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN).

Who did we fight against?

The enemy: The North Vietnamese Army (NVA), and the Viet Cong: South Vietnamese rebels.

The enemy committed everything to winning the war.

What were the US’ strategies employed during the North Vietnamese-USA struggle (1965-1969)?

• Force Vietnam to give up war.

• Make North Vietnam agree to a settlement acceptable to the US.

• Protect South Vietnam and win the support of South Vietnamese.

 

What were the South Vietnam Government’s strategies employed during the North Vietnamese-USA struggle (1965-1969)?

• Remove Viet Cong from villages.

• Defend South Vietnam from invasion.

• Rely on US $ and support to achieve objectives.

What were the North Vietnam and Viet Kong’s strategies employed during the North Vietnamese-USA struggle (1965-1969)?

• Convince the people of South Vietnam to get rid of their government.

• Destroy the morale of the ARVN (South Vietnam Army).

• Inflict enough damage on US troops to convince them to withdraw.

• Fight until full national liberation and unification of Vietnam was achieved.

What self-imposed limits did we fight with?

• We didn’t declare a national emergency. 

• We would not invade North Vietnam.

• We would not act in neighboring states (until Nixon was president).

• We would not blockade North Vietnam.

• We built up our forces slowly (gradually).

How did we play into our enemies hands?

• Gradualism:

  • Instead of going in with overwhelming force, we began small, and increased our presence each year.

  • This approach allowed the enemy to match our numbers.

• We never had numerical superiority (and we should’ve).

How did we lack winning tactics?

We didn’t use tactics that would accomplish our mission meaning that young men could count on being drafted into the war year after year. This helped fuel the later anti-war movement.

Anti-war movement started small and grew the longer the war went on (It really took off in 1968)-

• Teach-ins: students gathered to educate themselves about the war, society, and the changes they wanted.

• Draft anger: a lot of Baby boomers didn’t want to go to Vietnam.

Who were the “Doves”?

The “Doves” were against the war. They included many college students, professors, conscientious objectors, etc. Teach-ins and war protests were common.

Who were the “Hawks”?

The “Hawks” were for the war. They believed that we needed to continue our presence in Vietnam to prevent it from falling into Communism.

What was another major problem during the war?

The generational rift between young and old.

What was the Tet Offensive (1968)?

The NVA and Viet Cong launched an all out attack across South Vietnam. We were excited initially by the attack because we had a chance to get at the enemy now that they were out in the open.

We wiped out the Viet Cong and the NVA was driven north.

Tet was a spectacular military victory but it cost us the war…

How did the credibility gap negatively affect the war?

We were told for years that the enemy was nearly defeated so people started to doubt the positive reports of our progress coming from the president and our generals during the Tet Offensive.

A majority of Americans supported the war until 1968 but popular support shrank from then on…

Who was the Democrat candidate during the election of 1968?

Hubert Humphrey.

Who was the Republican candidate during the election of 1968?

Richard Nixon. He would win and take office in 1969.

Who was the Independent candidate during the election of 1968?

George Wallace.

Why did Johnson drop out of the presidential race?

He was the war president so by 1968 he was too unpopular for reelection.

This created a 3-man race.

What did Johnson promise he would do before the end of his term?

He said he would try to end the war in 1968.

What did Nixon do after he became responsible for the war?

He expanded the war into Cambodia. He sought to destroy enemy bases across the border. LBJ had never allowed this, so things are different now. But invading Cambodia inflamed the anti war movement.

How was Nixon determined to end our fight in Vietnam?

Vietnamization and the “Long Game”.

What is Vietnamization?

Nixon’s policy of withdrawing US troops while training South Vietnam to take over the fighting. It was part of the Nixon Doctrine.

What is the Nixon Doctrine?

The US would provide financial and weapon support to anti-communist allies, but no US troops!

What was the “Long Game”?

Nixon exploited a rift in the USSR-China alliance and played them off each other. As both the Soviets and the Chinese were worried we would align with the other against them, they both were helpful.

This was because Nixon wanted aid to North Vietnam (their ally) cut off, and pressure put on NV to accept a ceasefire.

What were the Pentagon Papers (1971)?

A top-secret study leaked by Daniel Ellsberg, former Department of Defense official, revealing how previous administrations deceived Congress and the public about Vietnam.

How did the Pentagon Paper fuel anti-war movements?

Congress originally stopped the publication of the papers but it was brought to trial. In New York Times Co. vs United States, free speech won and the papers were published.

We now knew our government had lied to us.

What were the agreements specified in the Paris Peace Accords (1973)?

• The United States would withdraw all its forces from South Vietnam within 60 days.

• All prisoners of war would be released.

• All parties to the agreement would end military activities in Laos and Cambodia.

• The 17th parallel would continue to divide North and South Vietnam until the country could be reunited.

What happened after Nixon promised SV that if NV resumed the war, he’d send the Air Force?

In 1975, the north did resume the war. But Nixon could not help the South.

Nixon resigned in disgrace in 1974.

President Gerald Ford could not persuade Congress to allow him to help South Vietnam.

Who was the president after Nixon?

Gerald Ford.

What event united Vietnam under the communist north?

The fall of Saigon in 1975.

What happened to the soldiers after the war?

Many were mistreated because the nation struggled with the Vietnam legacy for a long time and could not accept that we hadn’t won.