Standard Addressed:
11.9 Students analyze U.S. foreign policy since
World War II.
Lesson Objectives: Section 2 - U.S. Involvement and Escalation
• 1. Explain the reasons for the escalation of
U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
• 2. Describe the military tactics and weapons
used by U.S. forces and the Vietcong.
• 3. Explain the impact of the war on American
society.
Section 2
U.S. Involvement
and Escalation
The United States sends troops to fight in Vietnam,
but the war quickly turns into a stalemate.
NEXT
SECTION
2
U.S. Involvement and Escalation
Johnson Increases U.S. Involvement
Strong Support for Containment
• LBJ hesitates breaking promise to keep troops out;
works with:
- Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara,
Secretary of State Dean Rusk
• Congress, majority of public support sending troops
NEXT
Guided Reading:
1. What role did the following play in the decision to
escalate U.S. Involvement in Vietnam?
Lyndon B. Johnson
made decision to
escalate the war.
Guided Reading:
1. What role did the following play in the decision to
escalate U.S. Involvement in Vietnam?
Robert McNamara
Advised president
Johnson on
escalation of the
war.
Guided Reading:
1. What role did the following play in the decision to
escalate U.S. Involvement in Vietnam?
Dean Rusk
Advised
president Johnson
on escalation of
the war.
Guided Reading:
1. What role did the following play in the decision to
escalate U.S. Involvement in Vietnam?
U.S. Congress
Approved
president
Johnson’s policies
Guided Reading:
1. What role did the following play in the decision to
escalate U.S. Involvement in Vietnam?
American
public opinion
Approved
president
Johnson’s
policies
SECTION
2
U.S. Involvement and Escalation
Johnson Increases U.S. Involvement
The Troop Buildup Accelerates
• General William Westmoreland—U.S.
commander in South Vietnam
• Thinks southern Army of the Republic of
Vietnam (ARVN) ineffective
• Requests increasing numbers; by 1967 500,000
U.S. troops
NEXT
Guided Reading:
1. What role did the following play in the decision to
escalate U.S. Involvement in Vietnam?
William
Westmoreland
Requested more
troops
Guided Reading:
U.S. military strategies result in a bloody stalemate.
2. What military advantages did the Americans have over
the Vietcong?
Superior
weaponry
SECTION
2
Fighting in the Jungle
A Frustrating War of Attrition
• Westmoreland tries to destroy Vietcong morale
through attrition
• Vietcong receive supplies from China, U.S.S.R.;
remain defiant
• U.S. sees war as military struggle; Vietcong as
battle for survival
Continued . . .
NEXT
Who Is the Enemy?
 Vietcong:



Farmers by day; guerillas at
night.
Very patient people willing to
accept many casualties.
The US grossly underestimated
their resolve and their
resourcefulness.
The guerilla wins if he does not lose, the
conventional army loses if it does not win.
-- Mao Zedong
Guided Reading:
U.S. military strategies result in a bloody stalemate.
3. What military advantages did the Vietcong have over
the Americans?
Knowledge of terrain;
Ability to blend in
with civilians;
Willingness to pay
any price for victory
SECTION
2
continued
Fighting in the Jungle
The Battle for “Hearts and Minds”
• U.S. wants to stop Vietcong from winning support of rural population
• Weapons for exposing tunnels often wound civilians, destroy
villages
- napalm: gasoline-based bomb that sets fire to jungle
- Agent Orange: leaf-killing, toxic chemical
• Search-and-destroy missions move civilian suspects, destroy
property
• Villagers go to cities, refugee camps; 1967, over 3 million refugees
Continued . . .
NEXT
The Air War: A Napalm Attack
• Weapons for exposing
tunnels often wound
civilians, destroy villages
- napalm: gasolinebased bomb that sets
fire to jungle
• Weapons for exposing tunnels often
wound civilians, destroy villages
- napalm: gasoline-based bomb
that sets fire to jungle
- Agent Orange: leaf-killing,
toxic chemical
Search-and-destroy missions move civilian suspects,
destroy property
Guided Reading:
4. What military strategies did the Americans use against
the Vietcong?
U.S. military strategies result in a bloody stalemate.
Bombings;
War of attrition;
Preventing Vietcong support by South
Vietnam’s rural population;
The use of napalm and Agent Orange;
Search-and-destroy missions
SECTION
2
Fighting in the Jungle
An Elusive Enemy
• Vietcong use hit-and-run, ambush tactics, move
among civilians
• Tunnels help withstand airstrikes, launch attacks,
connect villages
• Terrain laced with booby traps, land mines laid by
U.S., Vietcong
Continued . . .
NEXT
An Elusive Enemy
• Vietcong use hit-and-run, ambush tactics, move among civilians
• Tunnels help withstand airstrikes, launch attacks, connect villages
• Terrain laced with booby traps, land mines laid by U.S., Vietcong
Guided Reading:
U.S. military strategies result in a bloody stalemate.
5. What military strategies did the Vietcong use against the
Americans?
Hit-and-run ambushes;
Booby traps and land mines;
Surprise attacks;
Guerilla warfare
SECTION
2
continued
Fighting in the Jungle
Sinking Morale
• Guerrilla warfare, jungle conditions, lack of
progress lower morale
• Many soldiers turn to alcohol, drugs; some kill
superior officers
• Government corruption, instability lead S. Vietnam
to demonstrate
NEXT
American Morale
Begins to Dip
 Disproportionate representation of
poor people and minorities.
 Severe racial problems.
 Major drug
problems.
 Officers in combat
6 mo.; in rear
6 mo. Enlisted
men in combat for 12 mo.
SECTION
2
continued
Fighting in the Jungle
Fulfilling a Duty
• Most U.S.
soldiers believe
in justice of
halting
communism
• Fight
courageously,
take patriotic
pride in fulfilling
their duty
NEXT
SECTION
2
The Early War at Home
The Great Society
Suffers
• War grows more
costly with more
troops; inflation rate
rising
• LBJ gets tax increase
to pay for war, check
inflation
- has to accept $6
billion funding cut for
Great Society
NEXT
Guided Reading:
Public support for the war begins to waver as a “credibility
gap” grows.
6. What role did each of the following play in this change
of public opinion?
The U.S. economy:
The cost of the war led to an increase in
inflation and taxes,
as well as to a reduction in funding for Great
Society programs
SECTION
2
The Early War at Home
The Living-Room War
• Combat footage on nightly TV news shows stark
picture of war
• Critics say credibility gap between administration
reports and events
• Senator J. William Fulbright’s hearings add to
doubts about war
NEXT
The Ground War
1965-1968
 No territorial
goals
 Body counts on TV
every night
(first “living room”
war)
 Viet Cong supplies
over the
Ho Chi Minh Trail
Guided Reading:
Public support for the war begins to waver as a “credibility
gap” grows.
6. What role did each of the following play in this change
of public opinion?
Television
Brought the war into U.S. living rooms;
Contradicted the Johnson administration’s
optimism about the war
Guided Reading:
Public support for the war begins to waver as a “credibility
gap” grows.
6. What role did each of the following play in this change
of public opinion?
The Fulbright hearings
Contributed to the average American’s
growing ambivalence about the war.
Impact of the
Vietnam War
Johnson announces (March, 1968):
…I shall not
seek, and I will
not accept, the
nomination of my
party for another
term as your
President.
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• A – What differing opinions did Johnson’s
advisors have about Vietnam?
– Some argued for US escalation in Vietnam,
claiming it was vital to stop the spread of
communism .
– George Ball argued against escalation, believing it
would be easier to get into the Vietnam War than
to get out.
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• B – Why did the U.S. forces have difficulty
fighting the Vietcong?
– The Vietcong’s guerilla tactics and their superior
knowledge of the terrain.
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• C – In what way did the United States
underestimate the Vietcong?
– The US believed the Vietcong would give up the
fight due to the massive number of casualties.
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• D – What factors led to the low morale of U.S.
troops?
– Frustration of guerrilla warfare, the jungle
conditions, and the continuing instability of the
South Vietnamese govt.
MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
• E – What led to the growing concern in
America about the Vietnam War?
– The continued reports of American casualties,
television coverage, and the Johnson
administration’s credibility gap