Transcript Section 2- Escalation in Vietnam - Waverly

Exploring American History
Unit IX – Post War America
Chapter 29 – Section 2 – Escalation in Vietnam
Why are we in Vietnam?
• “Domino
Theory”Eisenhower
• Stop Aggression
• Protect our
reputation- our
“credibility”
Escalation in Vietnam
The Big Idea
Johnson quickly expanded U.S. involvement in Vietnam, but
American soldiers faced a determined enemy.
Main Ideas
• President Johnson committed the United States to victory
in Vietnam by expanding U.S. involvement.
• American soldiers faced new challenges fighting the
Vietnam War.
• The Tet Offensive was an important turning point in the
war.
South Vietnam Troops Counter Rebel Attacks (01:39)
Main Idea 1:
President Johnson committed the United States
to victory in Vietnam by expanding U.S.
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
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involvement.
August 1964– North Vietnamese torpedo boats are reported to have attacked U.S. ships.
President Johnson saw actions as act of war.
Congress passed Tonkin Gulf Resolution, giving president authority “to take all necessary
measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States.”
Johnson Takes Action
• First U.S. combat troops sent to South Vietnam in March 1965
• Operation Rolling Thunder, a series of air strikes, targets North Vietnam war industries and
attempts to disrupt the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a North Vietnamese supply route.
• By late 1968 more than a million tons of explosives had been dropped on North and South
Vietnam.
Increasing U.S. Involvement
Diem’s Overthrow
• Diem’s government continued to
grow more and more unpopular.
• He arrested and killed Buddhist
protesters.
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
• To increase the American military
effort in Vietnam, Johnson needed
to obtain authority from Congress.
• U.S. leaders said they would
withdraw support if Diem did not
change his ways.
• Johnson asked Congress for this
authority claiming that the USS
Maddox had been attacked by
North Vietnamese torpedo boats
in the Gulf of Tonkin.
• Diem refused to change his stand
against Buddhists, and the United
States began to support a plot to
overthrow Diem.
• Johnson claimed this attack was
unprovoked, but really the
Maddox had been on a spying
mission and had fired first.
• In November 1963 the South
Vietnamese plotters murdered
Diem.
• The Tonkin Gulf Resolution was
passed on August 7.
The Tonkin Gulf Incident
U.S.S. Maddox- On 2 August 1964, while on patrol
in the Gulf of Tonkin, she was attacked by North
Vietnamese motor torpedo boats- torpedoes and
machine gunfire.
U.S.S. Maddox
During the night of 4
August a second attack
was believed to have
taken place against both
the Maddox and the
Turner Joy, leading to
retaliatory strikes on
North Vietnam by U.S.
carrier planes.
U.S.S. Turner Joy
Orders were to conduct some electronic
eavesdropping, monitoring North
Vietnamese radio traffic, and to
support South Vietnamese patrol boat
raids on North Vietnamese Coastal
Radar.
Most historians are nearly certain that
no communist attack had occurred.
U.S.S. Maddox
U.S.S. Turner Joy
Tonkin Gulf Resolution- Jan 7, 1964
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The resolution passes unanimously in
the House, and by a margin of 82-2 in
the Senate. The Resolution allows
Johnson to wage all out war against
North Vietnam without ever securing
a formal Declaration of War from
Congress.
Resolved by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the United States
of America in Congress assembled,
That the Congress approves and
supports the determination of the
President, as Commander in Chief, to
take all necessary measures to repel
any armed attack against the forces
of the United States and to prevent
further aggression.
Johnson did not believe the
Commander in Chief needed this
resolution (approval)
Main Idea 2:
American soldiers faced new challenges fighting
the Vietnam War.
• President Johnson pursued policy of escalation, or
increased involvement, in the war.
– By 1968 more than 500,000 American troops were
serving in Vietnam.
• General William Westmoreland commanded U.S.
ground forces.
– Used strategy based on search-and-destroy
missions, where U.S. patrols searched for enemy
camps, then destroyed them with massive firepower
and air raids
• War was fought in jungles and villages of South
Vietnam.
Challenges of War
• Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army were challenging
opponents.
– Used their knowledge of region and guerilla warfare tactics
– Continual supply of troops at the ready
– Received weapons and supplies from Soviet Union and
Communist China
• Civilians of South Vietnam were often caught in the
middle of fighting.
– Vietcong killed people they believed were cooperating with the
South Vietnamese government.
– U.S. and South Vietnamese forces attacked villages they
suspected of assisting the Vietcong, undermining the U.S. goal
of winning support and loyalty from the South Vietnamese.
Soldiers in Vietnam
•
More than 2 million American soldiers served in Vietnam.
– Average age was 18-21
– One-quarter of them were drafted, many from minority groups and
poor families.
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American troops faced harsh conditions.
– Carried 70-90 pounds of equipment in 100-degree heat and
rainstorms
– Never knew when they might encounter enemy fire
– Danger of land mines and booby traps
– Rarely able to control captured territories for very long
Tet Offensive- 2:04 min
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Main Idea 3:
The Tet Offensive was an important turning point
in the war.
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January 30, 1968 was Vietnamese New Year, called Tet.
– In previous years, a cease-fire halted fighting on this holiday.
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Vietcong and North Vietnamese forces launched the Tet Offensive.
– Surprise attacks all over South Vietnam
– Attacked U.S. Embassy in Saigon, South Vietnam’s capital
– Showed that they were still strong and determined
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Attack was successfully fought off by American and South Vietnamese
forces but they were shocked by the size and force of the offensive.
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February 1968– President Johnson denied the military’s request for more
troops.
– American support for the war was dropping.
The Tet Offensive
Tet Offensive
Khe Sanh
The Main
Attacks
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A series of massive coordinated attacks throughout
South Vietnam
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In January 1968 thousands of NVA and Vietcong troops
attacked a U.S. military base in Khe Sanh.
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This and other rural attacks were diversions to draw
U.S. and ARVN forces away from urban areas.
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Main Communist offensive began on January 30, 1968,
at the start of Tet, the Vietnamese New Year.
•
Some 84,000 Communist soldiers attacked 12 U.S.
military bases and more than 100 cities across South
Vietnam.
Effects of the Tet Offensive
• General Westmoreland called the Tet Offensive a decisive defeat
for the Communists.
– The cities taken by the Communists were retaken.
– About 45,000 enemy soldiers were killed. About 1,100 Americans and
2,300 ARVN troops also died.
– The Communists showed that they were determined to keep on
fighting.
• The Tet Offensive showed that no part of South Vietnam was safe
from attack.
• The Tet Offensive caused many Americans to question whether or
not the war in Vietnam could be won.
• President Johnson announced that he would not seek reelection.
Effects of the Tet Offensive
Growing Doubts
• Walter Cronkite broadcast a
television report in which he gave
his personal assessment of the
situation in Vietnam.
• Major national magazines such as
Time and Newsweek also
expressed doubts about the war
and began to call for its end.
• Public criticism of the
government’s policies grew louder
and more intense.
• Leaders within Johnson’s
administration began to criticize
Johnson’s policies.
• Robert S. McNamara began to
seek ways to end the war.
Democratic Challengers
• Roughly 3 out of 4 Americans
opposed his policies in Vietnam.
• Minnesota senator Eugene
McCarthy challenged Johnson for
the Democratic Party’s
nomination.
• New York senator Robert
Kennedy entered the race.
• Shaken by the divisions within his
party, Johnson announced that he
would not seek nor accept the
office of the presidency.
On the Homefront
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Television reports had important impact on public opinion.
– Americans could see the action.
– People were shocked by the brutality of war.
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Public opinion on the war was split.
– Supporters of the war, hawks, called for increased military spending.
– Opponents of the war, doves, believed that the war was draining money that
should be spent at home.
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On March 16, 1968, a company of U.S. soldiers massacred hundreds of
unarmed people in the village of My Lai.
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The My Lai massacre caused many more Americans to question U.S.
involvement in Vietnam.
My Lai Massacre - March 16, 1968
My Lai Massacre - March 16, 1968
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American soldiers under the command of Lt. Calley
entered the village of My Lai on a Search and Seizure
mission.
By the end of the day the soldiers had slaughter between
175-400 men, women and children of the village.
Lt. Calley called the victims- non humans, an enemy with
whom one could not speak or reason.
Lt. Calley had no remorse, and said simply that he was
following orders- the “mere gook rule”, which meant he
could be a self appointed Judge, jury and executioner.
Due to some large losses in Charlie Company, Calley had
said the Capt. had given orders to treat all native as the
enemy and destroy everyone and everything in My Lai.
Often prisoners in such cases were used as guides over
trails that could be booby trapped or to walk first through
mine fields. If they were too slow they were shot.
The orders of the day were common- burn the houses, kill
the animals, destroy food and wells and round up the
people. Lt. Calley was found guilty and served 1/3 of the
sentence, and received a dishonorable discharge.
Protests against the War and the My Lai Massacre (03:23)