1968 & the Vietnam Legacy

1968 & the Vietnam LegacyChapter 30 Sections 4 & 5I The Tet OffensiveJanuary 30th in Vietnam marks beginning of Lunar new year festivities known as Tet = to our New YearsAgreed on truce for festivities ppl pouring into citiesTet Offensive= Vietcong launch surprise attack on over 100 cities in S Vietnam Was military failure but frightened Amer. Pop who believed war was almost over openly criticized warLBJ- If ive lost Walter (Cronkite), then its over. Ive lost Mr. Average Citizen

II Democratic Party FracturesGroup within Dem sought to unseat LBJ as pres. In next electionRobert Kennedy refuses but McCarthy accepts Pres primary gains speed after TetLBJ wins by only 6% in NH Kennedy announcing his candidacyLBJ speech announces US in peace negotiations & will not seek re-electionRFK wins crucial Cali primary race shot by Palestinian immigrant who was angered by his support of IsraelAll while campus protests kept raginghttp://www.history.com/videos/johnson-says-he-wont-run#johnson-says-he-wont-runIII Turbulent Race for PresidentLBJ resigned & RFK dead left McCarthy v Humphrey for Dem. Pres nomineeSDS protester arrive at Dem. National convention to force anti-war platformYippies ( Youth International Party) came to provoke violence & discredit Dem. PartyDem convention massive riot disorder and violence of Dem convention sticks in ppls minds Nixon runs on restoring LAW & ORDERWallace (Ind.) wins 5 southern statesNixon Wins (43% pop vote but over 100 electoral)

IV President Nixon & VietnamizationNixon comes to office w/ peace talks going nowhere & institutes Vietnamization strategyGradual withdrawal of US troops so that the S Vietnamese take more combat rolePeace with Honor = maintaining US dignity while withdrawing troops & preserve US power at negotiation tableNixon order secret bombing campaign of N and neighboring Laos & Cambodia Wanted enemy to believe he was capable of anything

V Trouble Continues at HomeNixon appeals to silent majority to pass his policies further divided countryModerate mainstream AmericansMy Lai Massacre shocked the nation1970- Nixon announces US troops invade Cambodia college campuses erupt in protestKent State protest Natl Guard fires into crowd and kills students

Nixon looses support of CongressBombing & invading of Cambodia Congress repeals Tonkin Gulf ResolutionPentagon Papers= doc. Written for Sec. of Def. that revealed the govt was making plans to enter Vietnam even as LBJ was promising not to send troopsAlso no plan to end war If N Vietnamese continued their campaignPentagon paper ppl viewing the govt not being honestVietnam War ends after short lived peace broken and another bombing raid

VI Veterans return HomeVietnam vets did not get welcomed back with parade but with hostilityPpl still bitter and divided on the warDelayed stress syndrome recurring nightmares, headaches, memory lapses, drug & alcohol abuse, etc.Vietnam Veterans Memorial in DC

VII Khmer Rouge & Vietnams effect of AmericaUS invasion of Cambodia Civil war Khmer RougeCommunist group who committed genocide in Cambodia in order t transform country into a communist peasant led societyWar Powers act (1973) pres. Must inform Congress within 48 hrs. if US forces are sent into hostile area w/o declaration of warCan stay up to 90 days unless congress approves actions or declares warVietnam Syndrome- Americans weigh poss risks before intervening in other countriesCynicism of political leaders