South Vietnam and U.S. Political and Military Leaders
(1901-1963) Ngo Dinh Diem was South Vietnam's first president. Diem dedicated his life to setting up a free democratic Vietnam. In the 40's, he worked towards freeing Vietnam from France and Communism. In 1954 when Vietnam split, Diem was appointed prime minister of South Vietnam by Emperor Bao Dai. In 1955, Diem was elected President of the Republic of South Vietnam. Soon afterwards, Diem took on the demeanor of a dictator and became increasingly unpopular. He served until 1963 when a group of army officers took over the government and assinated him with the blessing of our C.I.A.
(1916-2001) Duong Van Minh, took over as president from 1963 until 1975 and was the last president of South Vietnam. Prior to this post, he led the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. In 1963, he became chief of a military junta after leading a coup in which Di?m was assassinated. Minh lasted only three months before being toppled by Nguy?n Khánh, but assumed power again as the fourth and last President of South Vietnam in April 1975, two days before surrendering to North Vietnamese forces. He earned his nickname "Big Minh", because at approximately 6 ft tall and weighing 198 lb, he was much larger than the average Vietnamese. He died in Pasadena, California
(1917-1963) John Fitzgerald Kennedy was the youngest man ever elected to the office of President of the United States at the age of 43. He was not only loved and supported by his fellow Americans, but he was also held in great esteem by foreign leaders. During his administration, he improved foreign relations with the Soviet Union while managing to take care of the Cuban missile crisis. The space administration was at an all-time high with the first manned space flights. He initiated the talks between the Communists and South Vietnam. On November 22, 1963, John Kennedy was shot to death on a trip to Dallas by Lee Harvey Oswald.
"And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country."
(1908-1973) Lyndon Baines Johnson became the 36th President of the United States hours after the assassination of President Kennedy. Though born in a small town in central Texas, Johnson rose to serve his country as a U.S. Representative, a U.S. Senator, and Senate Democratic Leader (age of 44). He combined 24 years of experience in Congress to become Vice-president and eventually President. Although he carried a "can-do" attitude in passing bills, he suffered during and after the Vietnam War ended. His failure in leading the nation during the war led to his political failure, making a second term out of the question. He died on January 22, 1973, from a heart attack.
"He'll be a United States Senator some day."
-Samuel Ealy Johnson, Sr., on the day LBJ was born.
(1909-1995) Dean Rusk was Secretary of State from January 1991 to January 1969. He was followed by Charles Bohlen (two days), William Rogers from January 1969 to September 1973, Kenneth Rush for 19 days, and finally Henry Kissinger. Dean initially expressed doubts about the escalation of the U.S. role in the Vietnam War, he became known as one of its strongest supporters. He was a favorite of President Lyndon Johnson after the Assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963. He left the secretary role in January 1969, and taught international relations at the University of Georgia School of Law.
(1923- ) Henry A. Kissinger was Secretary of State from 1973-1977. He was appointed by Nixon and stayed when Gerald Ford was elected President. He was also a top foreign policy expert and national security advisor to both Presidents. From 1969-1973, he participated in secret negotiations with the North Vietnamese, in an effort to stop the Vietnam War. He also went to the Soviet Union and China to prepare for Nixon's visits there. He also served under President Reagan on a commission to create foreign policy concerning Central America.
(1913-1994) Richard M. Nixon was President during a large part of the Vietnam War. He initiated the policy of "Vietnamization," or turning the war over to the South Vietnamese. Nixon was the first President to visit China while in office. He also visited the Soviet Union, and bettered relations with both Communist powers. He brought trade agreements and nuclear arms reduction treaties between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. After becoming entangled in the Watergate scandal, Nixon was forced to resign. He died of a major stroke in 1994.
"You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore."
(1916-2009) Robert McNamara was Secretary of Defense from January 1961 to February 29, 1968. After his departure, it was a turnstyle of men who followed for very brief tenures: Clark Clifford, Melvid Laird, Elliot Richardson, Bill Clements, James Schlesinger, all from 1968 until November 1975, when Donald Rumsfeld assumed the post for the next two years.
McNamara, after the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident, the number of US soldiers in Vietnam escalated dramatically. McNamara and other US policymakers feared that the fall of South Vietnam to a Communist regime would lead to the fall of other governments in the region. In October 1966, he launched Project 100,000, the lowering of army IQ standards which allowed 354,000 additional men to be recruited, despite criticism that they were not suited to working in high stress or dangerous environments. McNamara grew increasingly skeptical of the efficacy of committing American troops to South Vietnam. In 1968, he resigned as Secretary of Defense to become President of the World Bank.
(1914- ) William C. Westmoreland was the Commander of U.S. forces in Vietnam from 1964-1968. He used the "search and destroy" strategy, which put more importance on enemy deaths than on gained territory. He issued several optimistic statements about American progression in the war. Late in 1968 the general became the Army's Chief of Staff. A controversy surrounding Westmoreland was created when CBS charged that Westmoreland underestimated North Vietnamese forces to make it appear that the U.S. was winning the war. Westmoreland sued. During the trial, some high-ranking military officials agreed with CBS's accusations. Westmoreland dropped the lawsuit.
(1914-1974) Creighton Abrams Jr. assumed command of military operations with the departure of Westmorland from 1968 to 1972 which sas U.S. troop strength in South Vietnam reduced froma peak of 543,000 to 49,000. From 1969, the Vietnam War increasingly became a conventional war between the military forces of South Vietnam and North Vietnam. Following the election of President Richard Nixon, Abrams began implementing the Nixon Administration's Vietnamization policy to decrease U.S. involvement in Vietnam. He was then Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army until his death in 1974.
