The devastating Christmas bombing succeeded in bringing North Vietnam to the negotiating table for a serious discussion this time, no more games. The relentless ‘Dogs of War” bombardment convinced Hanoi to settle. Nixon’s last-ditch gambit focused their attention on coming to terms. He took the risk of collective condemnation at home and abroad for the […]
The Vietnam War Revisited- Part XXVI – It’s Not Over Yet
Just when you thought the Vietnam war was winding down following Nixon’s landslide reelection in November 1972, it was just getting started in regards to the magnitude and extent of the targeted bombing. Nixon released the ‘Dogs of War’ after exhaustive attempts for a settlement with North Vietnam failed. Here’s the background. By 1972, the […]
The Vietnam War Revisited- Part XXV – Nixon Landslide
Despite the ongoing domestic chaos and anti-war activism, Richard Milhouse Nixon won the November, 1972 Presidential election in a landslide, carrying 49 of 50 States. Many issues contributed to his reelection. As with almost anything associated with the Vietnam War, the factors leading to his landslide victory involved complicated dynamics. Nixon’s Democrat opponent, George McGovern, […]
The Vietnam War Revisited- Part XXIV – Upping the Ante
Nixon continued the phased drawdown of our combat troops on his timetable, not Congress’ recently proposed accelerated one-year withdrawal program. He ignored the anti-war riots, the background political noise, and intensified the air war to offset his Vietnamization Doctrine of fewer U.S. ground forces serving in combat roles. One of the most dramatic examples of […]
The Vietnam War Revisited- Part XXIII – Widening the War
When the media exposed that Nixon had secretly extended the war effort into Cambodia, authorizing our combat troops to eradicate enemy sanctuaries, lawless outrage erupted in the U.S. The anti-war activism gained momentum in reaction to an invasion of a supposedly neutral country in Indochina. The public uproar, fanned by mostly negative press, accused Nixon […]
The Vietnam War Revisited – Part XXII – Nixon’s Policy in Action
Nixon radically reversed LBJ’s strategy with his Vietnamization program soon after taking office in 1969. He intended to defuse domestic protests by ending the draft and bringing home our combat troops. Unilateral action not requiring negotiations with Hanoi would indicate his sincere effort to wind down a war dividing the country. It would indicate he […]
