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The US got involved in Vietnam during World War 2 and never left.
Anything involving Vietnam during WWII was, in fact, WWII. The USA sent military advisors there in 1950. With the withdrawal of French troops in Vietnam in the late 50s, President Kennedy escalated the conflict by sending in US troops in 1961-62 and President Johnson continued with this escalation.
President Nixon withdrew nearly all troops from Vietnam, thereby, ending the war. President Ford officially ended US involvement in 1975.
Anything involving Vietnam during WWII was, in fact, WWII. The USA sent military advisors there in 1950. With the withdrawal of French troops in Vietnam in the late 50s, President Kennedy escalated the conflict by sending in US troops in 1961-62 and President Johnson continued with this escalation.
President Nixon withdrew nearly all troops from Vietnam, thereby, ending the war. President Ford officially ended US involvement in 1975.
You're leaving out a very important part. JFK signed National Security Action Memorandum 263 on October 11, 1963. It authorized the withdrawal of 1000 military personnel from Viet Nam by the end of that year. Most JFK scholars believe that this indicates his intent to get out of Viet Nam. NSAM 273 was drafter on November 21, 1963 and reiterated the withdrawal. That NSAM was later issued by LBJ, who escalated the war anyway. He saw fit to appoint a committee on February 14, 1964, via NSAM 280, to oversee policy and operations in South Viet Nam.
NSAM 263 was never made public at the time or set as official policy and was basically invalidated by NSAM 273 in crucial wording surrounding the 'objective' of US policy in Vietnam. President Kennedy had no intention of revealing to the world that he would walk away from communist aggression given that era.
NSAM 263 was never made public at the time or set as official policy and was basically invalidated by NSAM 273 in crucial wording surrounding the 'objective' of US policy in Vietnam. President Kennedy had no intention of revealing to the world that he would walk away from communist aggression given that era.
Also President Kennedy had said to many in private that he wanted to get out, that the war was unwinnable, but he was ruled by his advisers, McNamara and Taylor. He had said privately that after the next election he wanted to get the troops out. It would not have been advisable before the next election because the political tide would have turned against him, due to the strong feelings and paranoia against Communism at that time. He had to pretend to go along with it and then, when re-elected he could have done as he wished.
I'm not so sure that LJB was totally FOR Viet Nam either but he was more aggressive than Kennedy ever was. LBJ went along with the advisers whereas Kennedy had started to turn against them.
It was after the fiasco with the Cuban missile crisis that Kennedy began to have a change of heart about war. He was determined to rein in the powers of the military industrial congressional complex.
NSAM 263 was never made public at the time or set as official policy and was basically invalidated by NSAM 273 in crucial wording surrounding the 'objective' of US policy in Vietnam. President Kennedy had no intention of revealing to the world that he would walk away from communist aggression given that era.
None of President Obama's have been made public either. They never are until after a President leaves office.
I think as we learnmore we see that JFK was a very reckless presdient he was so anti-communist.Few per resident would have taken the chance i bay of pigs nor tried toassinssinay te castro.Now we see supporters tryig to rewi i rite history on vietnam. just the other nite they has a special on vitnam with tapes of keenedy in meeetings when the president of vistnam was mudrered in a military coup and ask zuS for support. Did nothing ;he and brother were murdered. He was a alliy too.
I think the plans to assassinate Castro were already in place with the CIA, same with kiliing Diem in Viet Nam. The more I read the more I see that Presidents don't do too much more than rubber stamp what is already there and when they DO try to differ, that's where the trouble begins.
There is debate over whether NSAM 263 and NSAM 273 were even that much different. The first one was rubber stamped/signed by Kennedy and the second has the identical wording but includes something about "different levels of possible increased activity." I guess they were different but was the second one all set for JFK to sign? Or had that part been added in because LBJ was now the President? No one knows. JFK was killed so LJB signed it. Technically, whoever signed it was signing for possible escalation.
But JFK had learned a lesson from Cuba/Bay of Pigs that in the nuclear age, a war could not be won. He wasn't coming right out and saying it yet in public but he was saying it to his friends. He and Gen. MacArthur had a few talks and MacArthur was saying the same thing to him. Newer research is finding more and more evidence that JFK would have ended the war right after he got re-elected.
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