Vietnam War Research Paper

The Vietnam War was a long costly conflict, which occurred with Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam that marked the communists regime in North Vietnam and southern allies. The United States joined South Vietnam to prevent the spread of communism. They fought against North Vietnam and the southern part of Vietnam that was already communist known as the Vietcong. It is known as “the only war America ever lost” since they did not get a military victory and the North Vietnam government took over South Vietnam after the defeat.

First of all, the war begins when Ho Chi Minh rises to power and made North Vietnam communist. President Harry S. Truman authorized a program of economic and military aid to French, who were fighting to get control of their Indochina

colony, including Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam as well. The United State and South Vietnam were worried that if parts of Vietnam were becoming communist The Domino Theory would come in action and all of Vietnam would eventually be communist. The idea of The Domino Theory was popular during the 1950’s. The United State wanted to prevent getting involved in the war; however, they decided to intervene because they did not want communism to spread and also they were close allies of South Vietnam. In 1955 President Dwight Eisenhower promised to support South Vietnam with American military equipment. Part of South Vietnam was already communist and supporting North Vietnam, President Eisenhower called them the Vietcong. By 1959 they were already attacking the South Vietnamese. President Harry Truman, gave aid to the French during fighting with the Vietnamese.
In 1960 the Nation Liberation Front was formed supposedly by both communist and noncommunist to organize resistance to the regime.

President John F. Kennedy sent a team in 1961 to report conditions in South Vietnam and advised more American military, economic and technical aid in order to help confront the Vietcong threats. They were working through the idea of the domino theory, so Kennedy increased U.S. help. By 1962 the U.S military presence in South Vietnam had greatly increased compared to the 1950s. U.S involvement in the war; the Gulf of Tonkin and Escalation, 1964. Two U.S destroyers stationed in the Gulf of Tonkin in Vietnam communicated that they had been faries upon by North Vietnamese forces. This cause the 2 escalation of

forces.
The Credibility Gap became widely used with journalism, and public discourse during the 1960s and 1970s.

The president during the time, Lyndon B. Johnson, had administration statements and policies about the Vietnam War, which was constantly used to describe the public skepticism. The credibility gap was mostly used as the term of "missile gap" which was used by Senator John F. Kennedy, on August 4, 1958, when he had stated, "Our nation could have afforded, and can afford now, the steps necessary to close the missile gap." After the Vietnam War came to an end, the "credibility gap" became widely used by political opponents through cases where an actual, perceived existed through public pronouncements. As an example, the term was used from Richard Nixon, when handling the Vietnam War. When the government was still taking eighteen year olds to war and many friends and family saw how horrible the war was and many bodies were just there lying around national T.V. many Americans reacted and that’s when the Anti-War movement was attracting many college students and from many campuses were coming along. This was the role of media during the Vietnam war. It was the first televised war and it had a negative impact on people since they saw so many tragedies. Another role that the media played during the war was the political leaders were able to reach out to the people and gain the support on some

ideas.
The Tet Offensive was one of the largest military campaigns of the Vietnam War held by the (NVA) and the Viet Cong against South Vietnam. The campaign consisting of multiple surprise attacks launched in the morning of January 30, 1968. Also, the first day of Tet Offensive.During the War, about two-thirds of American troops were volunteered, the rest were selected for military service through the drafts. Most of U.S. soldiers drafted during the Vietnam War were men from the poor and working-class families. As a matter of fact, American forces in Vietnam included twenty-five percent poor, but very few came from the upper-classes families.
Silent Majority was popularized by President Richard Nixon, during his speech, in which he said, “And so tonight, to you, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans, I ask for your support.” The president had gone to television and speak to the public to call for the national solidarity on his war effort in Vietnam to gather support for his policies. Nixon during the speech was to attempt to blunt the renewed strength of the antiwar movement. Later, Nixon had maintained through the American commitment in Vietnam; on the other hand, he had then emphasized that America would later not end up fighting the war for them. President Nixon created a new strategy plan named Vietnamization, which was created for the goal of ending the U.S involvement of the Vietnam War by giving all military responsibilities to South Vietnam which would give more efficiency, endurance and strength to the South Vietnamese army so that they could take action on their own. What had later happened, the South Vietnamese people, assumed that the first responsibility for fighting in the war, they could defend their own freedom once the Voting Rights Act 1970. By July 1st, 1971 the 26th Amendment was ratified in record time to give the right to vote to people who are eighteen or older. Richard M. Nixon administration certified it four days later on July 5.
Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, had fallen into the hands of North Vietnam forces on April 30th, 1975. Now known as Ho Chi Minh City, the fall of Saigon, marked the end of the Vietnam War. On May 1975, President Gerald Ford declared the end of U.S involvement in the Vietnam war.