Causes of the Vietnam War
Feb 16, 2011 Michael Streich
The chief cause of the Vietnam War focused on fears of the “Communist world revolution.” Both Democrats and Republicans viewed Vietnam as a test of the popular “domino theory.” Communist victory in Vietnam would begin the process of a deluge of terror in Southeast Asia. A February 1965 federal government “white paper” stated that, “South Vietnam is fighting for its life against a brutal campaign of terror and armed attack inspired, directed, supplied and controlled by the Communist regime in Hanoi.” This was the on-going message Americans heard every day.
Vietnam and the Policy of Containment
Following the exodus of the French from Vietnam, the Eisenhower administration, on the heels of President Truman’s containment policies, promised Vietnam’s Ngo Dinh Diem U.S. support at a time of Vietnam’s “hour of trial.” On May 13, 1961, Vice President Johnson reiterated U.S. support for, “…a brave country in the defense of its liberties against unprovoked subversion and Communist terror.”
Diem was viewed as a reliable ally “on the periphery of the Communist empire in Asia.” Writing to President John F. Kennedy December 7, 1961, Diem linked the Communist threat to the United States: “From the beginning, the Communists resorted to terror in their efforts to subvert our people, destroy our government.”
New York’s Roman Catholic Cardinal, Francis Spellman, perhaps the most political churchman of the decade, was quoted in the August 31, 1954 New York Times postulating a “Communist world plan” which allowed for no peaceful co-existence. Americans were building bomb shelters and strengthening civil defense measures in the light of that Communist world plan.
The Communist World Revolution Fuels Fears of the End of Capitalism
Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev predicted that Communist victory in the United States would come from within. America was decadent and self-absorbed. According to Dean Rusk, speaking April 23, 1965, Communism was committed to “different ideas of the conduct and organization of human affairs…” The global battle was far more than ideological.
The decade of the sixties was turbulent, especially after 1964, the “last innocent year,” according to writer Jon Margolis. John F. Kennedy and his brother, Senator Bobby Kennedy were assassinated as was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The August 1964 Tonkin Gulf Resolution allowed President Johnson to vastly upgrade U.S. military actions in Vietnam. Congressional leaders like Senator Mike Mansfield orchestrated a Vietnam policy determined to halt Communist expansion.
Capitalism was the cornerstone of American prosperity and growth. At its core stood the American family. In her study of Cold War families, historian Elaine Tyler May equates attacks on accepted domesticity with Communist proclivities: “Those who claimed that South Vietnam fell as a result of softness against communism also blamed feminism for what they perceived as the destruction of the family.”
Causes of the Vietnam War Tied to Fears of Communism
The advent of the Cold War focused on Communist expansion and the fears that the “free world” was being confronted by an insidious, atheistic ideology intent on destroying the American way of life. Vietnam, like Taiwan, South Korea, Greece, and other “third world” nations was a small nation but implied far-reaching global consequences if allowed to fall to the Communist “wars of national liberation.”
American troop presence in Vietnam began in earnest with President Kennedy. After billions of assistance, it was not possible for the U.S. to walk away. There was too much at stake. Despite anti-war protests, many Americans continued to support the war, as demonstrated by President Richard Nixon’s 1972 reelection victory. Events like the 1970 Kent State massacre failed to trump fears of a Communist victory.
The Communist “evil empire” would not be crushed until the presidency of Ronald Reagan. Communism was out-spent by the West, opening the door to a market economy. Vietnam would be the last prolonged conflict involving American soldiers in vast numbers sent to foreign shores to combat Communism.
Sources:
- Stephen Ambrose and Douglas G. Brinkley, Rise to Globalism: American Foreign Policy Since 1938 (Penguin books, 1997)
- Marvin E. Gettleman, editor Vietnam: History, Documents, and Opinions on a Major World Crisis (Fawcett Books, 1965)
- Jon Margolis, The Last Innocent Year: America in 1964 (William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1999)
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