Ch. 31 Sect. 1
Deepening American Involvement
Objectives:
1.  Describe the background events leading up to war between
North and South Vietnam.
2.  Describe the Vietnam policies of President Kennedy and
Robert McNamara.
3.  Explain how President Johnson changed the course of the
war.
Main Idea:
The U.S. entered the Vietnam War to defeat Communist forces
threatening South Vietnam.
"
Vietnam’s Independence
  Ho Chi Minh began fighting for Vietnam’s
independence after World War I. Minh could only gain
support from communist U.S.S.R. and considered
himself the leader of the Vietnamese communist party.
  The U.S. did not considered Minh a revolutionist, so the
U.S. tried to keep Vietnam from becoming independent.
  The U.S. tried to help France maintain control of
Vietnam. When that failed the U.S. asked that Vietnam
be divided, just like North and South Korea.
Leader Of North Vietnam
Enforcing Containment
  Minh was put in charge of North Vietnam (communist) and the
U.S. chose Ngo Dinh Diem to lead democratic South Vietnam.
  The U.S. involvement in Vietnam started with military advisors,
who tried to train and give advice to the South Vietnamese army.
  Diem was a terrible leader and the U.S. decided that Diem could
not win the war. The U.S. did nothing to stop Diem’s overthrow
in November 1963.
  Three weeks later, President Kennedy will be assassinated and
Vietnam will become the problem of Lyndon B. Johnson. The
fourth U.S. president to deal with Vietnam.
Ngo Dinh Diem
Gulf Of Tonkin Resolution
  President Johnson will run for reelection in 1964. He will
campaign on peace, but knew that U.S. involvement in
Vietnam might escalate.
  In August 1964, North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked
U.S. ships. Johnson asked Congress to give him power to
do anything needed to protect the U.S. military in
Vietnam.
  Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, giving
the president nearly complete control over U.S.
involvement in Vietnam.
Event That Starts A War
SE Asia Domino Theory
Tet Offensive
  Johnson increased U.S. troops in Vietnam from 25,000 in
1965 to 543,000 in 1968.
  In January 1968, the North Vietnamese attacked several
cities in South Vietnam called the Tet Offensive. The Viet
Cong (N.V.) even attacked the American Embassy, an air
base, and presidential palace in Saigon, the capital of South
Vietnam. The Viet Cong were defeated in Saigon, but it
showed they could win the war.
  Many Americans began complaining about U.S.
involvement in Vietnam.
January 30, 1968