In 1963, Mr. Lyndon B. Johnson, the vice president at the time, became the 36th president of the United States after the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He inherited his predecessor’s commitment to assist South Vietnam against the communist North Vietnam in the Vietnamese War which began in 1959 and lasted until 1975. In fact, the Vietnam War was a struggle between nationalist forces attempting to unify the country of Vietnam under a communist government and the United States and South Vietnam attempting to prevent the spread of communism. It may be argued that President Johnson was an effective leader because of his social reform program called the Great Society program, which introduced Medicare through the Social Security system, The Voting Rights Act, and other extensive new programs of federal aid towards education, housing, and deprived areas. However, President Johnson was overly concerned over domestic policy and did not care much about foreign policy. President Lyndon B. Johnson was not an effective leader in the Vietnam War based on a three-point strategy.
Firstly, President Johnson was not a successful or trustworthy leader due to his dishonest representation of the facts regarding the Gulf of Tonkin Incident which led to the United States’ direct involvement in the war in Vietnam. This situation was a naval battle that involved North Vietnam and the U.S. in the waters of the Gulf of Tonkin on August 4, 1964. Supposedly, the North Vietnamese attacked and engaged in combat with a U.S. patrol ship. This, however, never occurred and even in 1995, General Vo Nguyen Giap, commander-in-chief of North Vietnamese forces at the time said “we disavow any involvement with the August 4 incident.” (The Black Vault). Basically it was a big scam. President Johnson used this fake incident just as an excuse to invade Vietnam. Indeed, he used this incident to persuade and convince Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. It granted him the authority to assist any Southeast Asian country whose government was considered to be jeopardized by “communist aggression” (The Black Vault). This resolution, which obviously was passed, served as President Johnson’s legal justification for deploying U.S. forces and the commencement of open warfare against North Vietnam.
Secondly, Lyndon Johnson consistently and unnecessarily increased the number of U.S. troops sent to the country to aid the South Vietnamese government against North Vietnam and Vietcong insurgents. By 1967, nearly half a million troops had been sent. His decision to escalate the war was extremely detrimental and without a doubt, a great mistake. By the summer of that same year almost a hundred thousand Americans had been killed or wounded in the war. Many servicemen were captured and tortured as prisoners of war. Numerous will forever remain missing in action. Furthermore, over four million innocent Vietnamese civilians were left dead as a result of the war. The myriad of casualties that resulted from this war are solid evidence that United States should never have taken military action in this conflict. In addition, there was very little military success despite all the years, effort, and money spent (Gaddis, 2006).
Clearly, there was very little military success as a result of President Johnson’s poor judgment, decisions, and leadership capabilities. Instead of withdrawing troops or calling for a cease-fire, he took action by giving authorization for bombing raids and aerial strikes on targets in North Vietnam. Though initially supportive of U.S. involvement, the American public turned against the war (Gaddis, 2006). Consequently, violent anti-war riots and protests broke out across the U.S. If Lyndon would have been a good leader, he would have been able to perceive that the war was unwinnable, which would have spared many lives.
Finally, President Johnson’s decisions and actions related to the Vietnamese War adversely affected the U.S. economy. He spent so much money in order to fund the war that it hurt the economy in the United States and left the country suffering from high inflation. The prices of goods and services were higher than normal due to military spending that resulted in an increased demand for these things and therefore driving up their prices. President Johnson demonstrated poor judgment when it came to spending money on the war. No longer was there sufficient money to fund some of the social programs that were so important to him. Americans felt that he had failed in the handling of domestic and foreign affairs (Gaddis, 2006)..
In conclusion, President Lyndon B. Johnson was not an effective leader in the Vietnam War because of his dishonesty related to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, his decision to escalate an unwinnable war by deploying U.S. troops that resulted in an unimaginable number of human casualties, and for the damage his actions had on the U.S. economy. It may be argued that Johnson was a successful president due to his achievements in civil rights and in his pursuit of equality. However, he is primarily associated with the Vietnam War and the cause of the dreadful outcome of it. The United States entered the war to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam. It was part of their wider strategy of what they called containment, which was the stance against Soviet communism. The war ended in 1975 with the communists winning. President Johnson’s decisions to increase the military presence in Vietnam, the manner in which he obtained an unlimited spending ability to fight this cause and the division among the American population, only hurt the U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson’s leadership and involvement in the Vietnam War significantly impacted the United States and its citizens. The impact, unfortunately, was detrimental and the wounds will not be easily forgotten.
Works Cited:
Gaddis, John L. The Cold War . London: Allen Lane, 2006. Print.
