2. RAH Day 26 Agenda Goal – to understand how the Vietnam War affected the US at home politically, socially, militarily and economically. To understand Nixon’s election and domestic policies. 1.Read p 8 and answer questions 1 and 2 – how did the War in Vietnam affect Johnson’s Presidency? 2.Review legacy of war p 15 3.Read p 11 and 12 and identify the many lessons the US learned from the Vietnam War 4.Cartoon analysis – study p 18 – identify who each caricature is and what the cartoonist is trying to convey. What one other person should be added to the picture to make it historically complete? 5.The lessons of Vietnam for US foreign policy 6.Geography skills – complete p 16 and 17 7.Read p13-14 – answer guided reading questions 1 and 2 and Analyzing Reading 1 and 2 – How does RFK compare to LBJ?

3. 1948 – Truman elected 1952 – Ike elected 1956 – Ike reelected 1960 – JFK elected 1964 – LBJ elected 1968 – Nixon elected 1972 – Nixon reelected

4. The End of the War and its Legacy 1.Nixon continues Vietnamization –Vietnamization unpopularity of the war, the stalled negotiations to end war increasing casualties 2.My Lai Massacre shocks US – March 16, 1968 Charlie company, after heavy casualties in prior weeks, kills 300 villagers. Seymour Hersh reports on the story Nov. 1969. Americans are outraged at the atrocity of killing the people we were fighting to save 3.Nixon order invasion of Cambodia – April 30, 1970. NVA was using Ho Chi Minh trail to increasing supply to the VC in the SouthinvasionCambodia 4.First student strike in US history occurs to protest the Cambodia invasion – 1200 campuses shut down – like in Kent State where 4 were killed & 9 wounded and Jackson State with 2 dead and 12 woundedKent State 5. Congress repeals Tonkin Gulf Resolution Jan 1971– to limit the power of the president to widen the war like in Cambodia and give war powers back to Congress 6. The Christmas bombings take place Dec 1972 because peace talks had broken down due to South’s General Thieu’s refusal to go along with the US proposal. Nixon then orders the very heavy bombing of the North to bring them back to negotiate terms Thieu could accept

5. The End of the War and its Legacy Legacy 7. RVN surrenders to NV – the US had pulled out all of its troops by 1973, but continued to fund ARVN. 1974 Congress cut all new aid to RVN and the NVA invaded – ARVN could not hold on – Saigon fell April 30, 1975 the war was over.troops by 1973Saigon fell 8. Vietnam veterans receive cold homecoming – as the war became more unpopular, and events like My Lai were known, many people took out their displeasure on the troops coming home. 9. Cambodia erupts into civil war – the US and NV operated in Cambodia to address the Ho Chi Minh trail, each wanted a compliant gov’t – so each side supported a different group – NV supported communist Khmer Rouge, US supports Lon Nol. 10. To limit the power of the pres in starting and running wars like in Vietnam – Congress requires approval within 60 days of combat or the troops must be brought home. Pentagon Papers showed that the war was not fought to win and the Pres had too much power 11. The draft is abolished in 1973 because the war was winding down and new troops were not needed, and war and the draft were very unpopular due to its inequality 12. Pentagon Papers made clear that the people had been lied to by gov’t, promises were not kept, the war was not run well, the US gov’t did nasty things in the war like My Lai, Agent Orange, napalm, assassinations

6. The Ceasefire, 1973 zConditions: 1. U.S. to remove all troops 2. North Vietnam could leave troops already in S.V. 3. VC will be part of political solution 4. General Thieu will remain as President of RVN 5. POWs must be returned Results: zLast American troops left South Vietnam on March 29, 1973 zNorth Vietnam would resume war z1975: North Vietnam defeats South Vietnam zSaigon renamed Ho Chi Minh City

7. The Fall of Saigon South Vietnamese Attempt to Flee the Country

8. The Fall of Saigon America Abandons Its Embassy April 30, 1975

9. The Fall of Saigon North Vietnamese at the Presidential Palace

10. Formerly Saigon A United Vietnam

11. The Costs 1.1.5 to 3 million Vietnamese killed 2.58,000 Americans killed; 300,000 wounded 3.Under-funding of Great Society programs 4.$150,000,000,000 in U.S. spending 5.U.S. morale, self-confidence, trust of government decimated 6.Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia fell to communist regimes 7.Cambodia is decimated by civil war and the evil brutality of Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge – almost ¼ of the population is killed 8.President Johnson’s presidency is destroyed and his Great Society weakened and less successful 9.President Nixon is involved in Watergate scandal

12. The Impact z26 th Amendment: 18-year-olds vote z1973 - Congress abolished the draft  all-volunteer army zWar Powers Act, 1973 ٭ P President must notify Congress within 48 hours of deploying military force P President must withdraw forces unless he gains Congressional approval within 60-90 days zDisregard for Veterans  seen as “baby killers” No welcome home (shamed and ashamed), high unemployment, alcohol & drug abuse; poor care of disabled vets: underfunded vets hospitals, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; Agent Orange health problems, birth defects in vets’ children. zPOW/MIA issue lingered zVietnam has been an issue in elections

13. Some American POWs Returned from the “Hanoi Hilton” Senator John McCain (R-AZ)

14. I f we have to fight, we will fight. You will kill ten of our men and we will kill one of yours, and in the end it will be you who tires of it. And in the End…. Ho Chi Minh:

15. Lessons for Future American Presidents 1.Strategy for war must be to use all of the necessary resources to win within the context of the history and culture of the enemy and allies. 2.Wars must yield few American casualties. 3.Planners must develop specific and viable plans for how to bring the troops home. 4.Develop and maintain Congressional and public support. 5.Set clear, winnable goals and match the strategy to achieve the goals, including planning for contingencies. 6.Can’t win a war against a people in their own country who have a suicidal devotion to their cause 7.Leaders must be open and honest about costs, reasons, length of effort and shared sacrifices