Ch. 22 – Vietnam – Flashcards
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Who served as the commander of the US troops in Vietnam?
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William Westmoreland
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In the 1968 presidential campaign, a dove would have been most likely to support...
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Eugene McCarthy
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What did president Nixon say would bring about "peace and honor" in Vietnam?
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Vietnamization
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What set off the first general student strike in US history?
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Invasion of Cambodia, 1970
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Which president asked Congress for the Tonkin Gulf Resolution?
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Lyndon B. Johnson
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Doves most probably welcomed the news of?
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The withdrawal of troops in Vietnam
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Approximately how many Americans were killed in Vietnam?
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58,000
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What enabled North Vietnam to supply allied troops in South Vietnam?
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Ho Chi Minh trail
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What event was most effective in leading the American public to conclude that the war was unwinnable?
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The Tet Offensive
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Which president adopted the policy of Vietnamization?
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Richard Nixon
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Whose goals were achieved with the reunification of Vietnam in the 1970's?
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Ho Chi Minh
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Almost 80% of US soldiers came from what class of society?
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Lower class
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Prior to 1967, did the majority of Americans support the war in Vietnam?
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Yes
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Who were the hard hats?
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Construction and blue collar workers who were sick of the protestors who were keeping them from their work, so the workers beat them up.
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Was the Tet Offensive a military defeat for the US?
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Yes
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Americans who strongly opposed the war and believed that the United States should withdraw from it were known as the...
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Doves
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Americans who strongly felt that the Johnson administration wasn't doing enough to escalate and win the war were known as...
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Hawks
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What happened on college campuses across he country when President Nixon announced that US troops had invaded Cambodia?
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Protests
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What happened at a college protest at Kent State University?
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4 Dead in Ohio
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What are the terms of the War Powers Act that Congress passed in 1973?
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President inform Congress within 48 hours if US forces are sent into hostile area without declaration of war and troops can remain no longer than 90 days unless Congress approves or declares war
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What happened to South Vietnam after communist North Vietnam captured Saigon in 1975?
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The two countries became one known simply as Vietnam.
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What is the significance of the Pentagon Papers?
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A document that revealed that the US government had been misleading the people about its involvement in Vietnam, both about the intentions and the outcomes of the conflict. The government in return brought a case against the publishers of the papers, declaring that the publication be halted because the papers were top-secret and relevant to national security. However, the court overturned the government's decision and approved the publication of the information.
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Because of the television images Americans were seeing of the Democratic National Convention, how did some Americans feel about the Democratic Party?
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They were very upset with the democratic party, they believed that everything was out of control, and they were right.
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Who were the silent majority?
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Moderate mainstream Americans who quietly supported the war
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What were the Christmas bombings?
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Nixon unleashed a bombing campaign against the two largest cities in North Vietnam. US planes dropped 100,000 bombs over the course of 11 days straight, pausing only on Christmas day.
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Were US soldiers warmly received when they returned home?
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No, many Americans were very cruel to the returning Veterans.
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How did the Tonkin Gulf resolution lead to greater US involvement in Vietnam?
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The Tonkin Gulf resolution was the congressional response to two alleged attacks on US ships in international waters by Vietnamese vessels. This brought about the first significant move to put US forces on the ground in Vietnam in a defensive role rather than a "support and train" role.
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List an explain three specific reasons why the US troops had difficulty fighting the Vietcong.
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1. Guerrilla Warfare a. hit-and-run tactics 2. Terrain laced with endless booby traps and land mines 3. Network of underground tunnels reduced effectiveness of US bombing
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Why were may African American leaders opposed to the Vietnam War?
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Rich people didn't have to go to war, but lower class people didn't have a choice, they also didn't approve of the fighting.
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Why was the Tet Offensive considered the turning point of the war?
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General Westmoreland declared that the Tet offensive was a major defeat for the Vietcong. The Vietcong lost about 32,000 soldiers, but the US and South Vietnam lost only 3,000 soldiers. The Tet offensive shattered America's confidence in the war.
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Explain in detail the position of the doves.
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The Doves did not want the war to go on. They were wanted peace in Vietnam and wanted the soldiers to be brought home ASAP. They did not support the fighting and the bombing that occurred in Vietnam.
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Explain in detail the position of the hawks.
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The Hawks supported the war, however; they believed that LBJ's policies were too weak and that they should be going the war with more gusto.
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Short term impact the Vietnam War had on America.
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The death toll of both Americans and Vietnamese
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Long term impact the Vietnam War had on America.
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The spreading of Agent Orange over Vietnam during the war still affects the health of the people and of the land.
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Richard Nixon
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Came into office 1968, founder of Vietnamization
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Khmer Rouge
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Took over Cambodia and killed a ton of people
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My Lai
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A village in northern South Vietnam where more than 200 unarmed civilians, including women and children, were massacred by U.S. troops in May 1968
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Martin Luther King Jr.
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He was against the war and he lead things and then he was assassinated
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Eugene McCarthy
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Democratic candidate for presidency in 1968
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Hubert Humphrey
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Vice president to LBJ and Democratic nominee in 1968
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Henry Kissinger
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Secretary of State, National Security advisor to Nixon
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War Powers Act
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A law enacted in 1973, limiting a president's right to send troops into battle without consulting Congress
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Gulf of Tonkin resolution
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A resolution adopted by Congress in 1964, giving the president broad powers to wage war in Vietnam
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Robert Kennedy
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He ran for president in 1968, then he was shot
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Lyndon Johnson
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President through most of the Vietnam war, Gulf of Tonkin resolution, Great Society
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Students for a Democratic Society
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an antiestablishment New Left group, founded in 1960, that called for greater individual freedom and responsibility
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Domino Theory
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the idea that if a nation falls under communist control, nearby nations will also fall under communist control
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Robert McNamara
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Defense Secretary for Lyndon Johnson, replaced by Clark Clifford
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Dien Bien Phu
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The place in Vietnam where they drove out the French in 1954
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Vietnamization
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President Nixon's strategy for ending US involvement in the Vietnam War, involving the gradual withdrawal of US troops and their replacement with South Vietnamese forces
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Spiro Agnew
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Vice president to Nixon
