Vietnam: A Disaster?

The War of Vietnam was, to say the least, was perplexing. No matter what each of the three presidents in office did at the time, it was seen as either too strong or too weak, but not necessarily the wrong action. No matter what they did, nothing seemed to work. The whole situation was overwhelming to the American public through all the scandals and controversies. Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon all faced immense pressure not only from North Vietnam, but also from the American people. Many of their actions were based on the popularity of the people, all while trying to stay within the boundaries of their foreign policies. Each president tried to make the right decision by looking back and learning from the previous president's mistakes. Every action taken was followed by another event that the president had to deal with with great confidence and determination.

John Kennedy's inaugural speech showed that he would, with all his power, protect America and keep communism out of third world countries. His foreign policy was called flexible response. It allowed him to react and respond to any situation. This policy allowed Kennedy to what he felt was necessary, depending on the situation. When the Vietnamese rebels, under Ho Chi Minh, started to attack the government, Kennedy saw this as an opportunity to show his strength. He knew that if they did not fight in Vietnam, they would fight a war elsewhere. In response, Kennedy escalated the war. He sent thousands of military advisors to train South Vietnamese soldiers so that there were no American casualties. Kennedy saw that this was not working as the South soldiers had no motive to fight. At the battle at Apbac, the South had the Viet Minh, rebels, surrounded and outnumbered. The South troops had no willingness to fight so they dropped their weapons and ran. American troops were brought in. Kennedy made no actual real mistakes in the war. More so, his decisions, such as getting involved in Vietnam and using Vietnamese troops, were well thought out, but just did not work out. His foreign policy allowed change in his decisions later on in his term before he was assassinated.

Lyndon Johnson was much more positive in his efforts toward the war. His foreign policy was Americanization. His plan was to contain Communism, strengthen the South Vietnamese army, and win the hearts and minds of the people involved in the Vietnam War. If he could do this, it would bring success to his administration. Johnson promised victory in saying that "victory is just around the corner." However, things changed when he introduced the draft. The first major protest broke out in 1967. His administration was in trouble when Dan Elsberg wrote and printed the Pentagon Papers. The papers reported that Johnson fabricated the Gulf of Tonkin incident by saying that American ships were attacked in open waters. This was a lie made by his administration looking for an event to get popular support in the War. Because of this event, Johnson was given the "blank check" by Congress, allowing him to do whatever he wanted in the effort against Vietnam. Although he was lying to the American public, this was a good move on his part in being able attack the Viet Minh as he wanted. Johnson knew he could have dropped bombs on Vietnam and just ended the war, but he knew better. Johnson did not want China or Russia to get involved and cause a nuclear war. The "silent majority" supported what the United States was doing in Vietnam. Johnson shocked the public when he announced that he was not going to run in the election of 1968, as well as things were going for him and the country.

Richard Nixon's presidential run toward success in Vietnam did not go as expected. He told the people that he had a "secret plan" if he was elected. This was a lie fabricated in order to win the election. His foreign policy was Vietnimization and included reducing American troop strength, ending the draft, and expanding the war. He expanded the war by bombing Cambodia and Laos because the Viet Minh were hiding in these neighboring countries. At this time, anti-war protests were at their all-time high. Colleges were erupting, and Vietnam veterans were joining in, explaining to the people what was really going on in Vietnam. Nixon finally ended the draft, relieving many people. The Pentagon Papers exposed lies of the administration, including the scandal at Watergate, in which the Nixon administration tried to sabotage the Democratic National Committee. With all the scandals and controversies, Congress looked to impeach Nixon. Instead of facing the humility of impeachment, Nixon resigned, ending the worst period in United States history.

All three presidents had one goal in common, to stop the Viet Minh from taking over South Korea. They all failed. No matter if some of things went well and succeeded, or were tried and failed, it all comes down to one conclusion, the United States lost the War of Vietnam. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers were shipped out into Vietnam and for what? The presidents of the country, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon, did not do their job and duty to the American people. Each individual succeeded in attaining separate, individual, short-term goals, but that does not make up for the lives lost in the jungles of Vietnam. The presidents did not even take care of the shell-shocked veterans when they returned home. Going back in time, the American people were outraged at their government in conducting themselves the way that they did. The American people looked up to the leaders of the United States and they were let down; not one favorable thing came out of the War of Vietnam.