President Nixon and the Vietnam War E. America Enters World War II (1945-Present) h. Describe and evaluate the political and social impact of the Vietnam War

2.Changes at Home c. Identify the events and influential individuals of the civil rights, human rights, and counterculture movements and assess their impact After World War II, Stalin wanted Eastern Europe to be dominated by Communism after WW II. Truman’s goal of “Containment” was simply to keep Communism from spreading any further into the world. Vietnam

Communism expanded to China, North Korea, Cuba, and Vietnam from the 1940s to the 1960s. During the Vietnam War, the USA tried to protect South Vietnam by halting the spread of Communism at the 17th parallel. Protests broke out against the war back in the USA.

Many burned their draft cards to protest the Vietnam Draft. The Vietnam War escalated heavily during President Johnson’s time in office. Johnson decided not to run for the Presidency again in 1968, partially due to the Vietnam conflict and the controversy surrounding the hostilities. Richard Nixon won the Election of 1968 and inherited the conflict. Nixon Takes Over the Vietnam War -In 1969, Richard Nixon was sworn in as President and inherited the Vietnam War. He wanted to pull troops out. Yet, he wanted North Vietnam to lose its power over the South

-Nguyen Van Thieu was now the leader of South Vietnam and was recognized by the USA as the authentic leader of the South.

-Yet, North Vietnam wanted the Vietcong militants, who supported the North, to rule alongside South Vietnam leaders. In the long term, the North wanted Communism to dominate the South. Vietnamization -Henry Kissinger, an aid to Nixon, called for the gradual withdrawal of US troops to let the South Vietnam soldiers take on their own fight against the North. This was called Vietnamization.

-By 1972, the USA had returned over 450,000 soldiers from Vietnam.

-Many troops came home. Still, Nixon ordered massive bombing campaigns on North Vietnam and its neighbors Laos and Cambodia, which had Vietcong militants in them that had attacked the USA soldiers many times. Henry Kissinger, an aid to President Nixon, supported Vietnamization. While the USA did reduce the amount of American troops in Vietnam, still, North Vietnam and the militant group sympathetic to their cause, the Vietcong, continued to attack in the South. Nixon asserted that the USA would attack areas in Cambodia, because Vietcong were using the area to invade and attack South Vietnam. In this picture, Nixon is explaining why he felt it was necessary for the USA to attack areas in Cambodia where Vietcong were hiding. During the Vietnam War, the Vietcong militant group used complex tunnel systems to strike American troops. Many Protest the War Back in the USA -When Nixon announced his intent to attack in Cambodia, over a million college students led protests across the nation.

-Still, Nixon claimed there was a “silent majority” who supported his war plans, even though the “hippies” and protesters were more vocal in their protest.

-On May 4th, 1970, at Kent State University in Ohio, several students were wounded and two killed when the National Guard, fearing for their safety, fired into the crowd of students protesting the Vietnam War. May 4th, 1970: Kent State University, Ohio May 4th, 1970: Kent State University, Ohio May 4th, 1970: Kent State University, Ohio The Pentagon Papers -Daniel Ellsberg leaked the Pentagon Papers, which revealed that President Johnson was planning for war even when he promised to end the conflict in Vietnam.

-Even though Nixon was a Republican, and LBJ a Democrat, this incident caused many to distrust the government at large.

-By the early 1970s, most Americans wanted the Vietnam War to end and Nixon had little public support to continue with the conflict. Daniel Ellsberg released the Pentagon Papers to assert that the USA lied about reducing its military presence in Vietnam under President Johnson’s administration. The End of the Vietnam War -On January 27, 1973, at the Paris Peace Accords, the USA agreed to evacuate its troop presence in Vietnam. This did not end the war. Yet, it ended the USA’s involvement in the conflict.

-President Gerald Ford took power in 1974 and continued to keep American troops out of Vietnam. In April of 1975, the North Vietnamese military seized Saigon, the South’s capital.

-South Vietnam surrendered to the North and fell to Communism. Over 58,000 Americans had died in the conflict. Millions in North and South Vietnam had been killed as well throughout the war. The last Americans are evacuated from Saigon, in South Vietnam, as the North seizes the city. The End Copyright, USHistoryTeachers.com All Rights Reserved.