Quote:
Originally posted by Munchkin03
Actually, Eisenhower started American involvement in Vietnam. Ever heard of the Battle of Dienbienphu? It was in May 1954, while JFK didn't take office until January 1961.
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You were probably posting this as I was writing mine pointing out the Eisenhower involvement.
However, I have to point out the the French, not the US were defeated at Dien Bien Phu. That battle is why they finally gave up after years of war in "French Indochina," as Viet Nam was known for many years.
When the French finally pulled out, it left the vacum that we were sucked into.
As for Nixon getting us out of the war -- he really had no choice. He followed the same path as Johnson (And Kennedy, although he really didn't serve long enough for the war to reach it's peak). In fact, he (Nixon) really escalated the bombing and also incursions into neighboring countries.
At the point that we disengaged, American public opinion was so anti-war that he really had little or no choice.
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