Junior MAV Power Vietnam War Essential Question: How did the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and the War Powers Act change the balance of power between the executive and the legislative branches of our government?

Connection What is this an image of? How does this image explain the Vietnam War?

Connection These images depict the domino theory. The idea was that if the United States allowed one country to fall to communism others would also. The Vietnam War was an effort by the United States to contain communism to North Vietnam.

Gulf of Tonkin Document Analysis Step 1: As a class, read and annotate the document. Pay attention to date. Think: Who was president at this time? Which branch of government has the power to commit our troops to a foreign conflict?

Gulf of Tonkin Document Analysis Step 2: Analyze the document. According to the document, what did the North Vietnamese do? Why did the United States feel compelled to respond at this point? How did this resolution change the balance of power between the President and the Congress?

Gulf of Tonkin Document Analysis Step 2: Analyze the document. The document states that the North Vietnamese attacked a naval vessel in the Gulf of Tonkin.

Gulf of Tonkin Document Analysis Step 2: Analyze the document. 2. The United States felt compelled to respond, because they believed they were assisting the people of Southeast Asia in maintaining their freedom from Communist North Vietnam.

Gulf of Tonkin Document Analysis Step 2: Analyze the document. 3. Congress gave the President the authority to take all necessary measures to combat North Vietnamese Communist forces, thereby allowing him to increase troop levels without having to get their consent. This essentially gave the President power that since the founding of our nation only Congress had.

Document B Think: What trends do you notice in this chart?

Document B Think: What trends do you notice in this chart? -Notice the increase of military forces in Vietnam from 1964 to 1965 What was passed in 1964 that allowed this to happen?

Document B Analyze Document: What president was responsible for escalating the conflict in Vietnam? -Johnson

Document B Analyze Document: How is the trend in this document related to the information in Document A? -The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution passed in 1964 gave Johnson the authority to escalate troop levels on the ground in Vietnam without needing Congressional approval. Document B

Document C Analyze Document: As a class read and annotate the document. Think if I had to summarize what the War Powers Act, what should I include in that summary? Document C

Document C Analyze Document: The War Powers Act was passed in order to restrain the president’s ability to commit U.S. forces overseas by requiring the president to consult with and report to Congress before involving U.S. forces in foreign hostilities. Document C

Document C Analyze Document: The War Powers Act was passed in order for Congress to take the power back from the President that they had given by passing the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. It is directly related to the escalation of forces in Vietnam, which by 1973 was generally viewed as as mistake. Document C

Closure: Visualize the significance of the following terms: Gulf of Tonkin Resolution Escalation War Powers Act