Presidential Leadership During the Vietnam War
There was five main presidents in charge during the Vietnam War. The first was Dwight Eisenhower, who founded SEATO, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. This was made to stop communism from influencing Southeast Asia. John F. Kennedy was the second president, and pledged to provide extra aid to the Diem regime. This aid was made up of machinery and advisers. Before he was assassinated, Kennedy planned to overthrow Diem. Lyndon Johnson was the president who basically started the war. He began “Operation Rolling Thunder” which consisted of bombing North Vietnam, and in March 1965, he sent the first troops into Vietnam. He also started the draft, causing a lot of anti-war protests. President Richard Nixon eventually ended the war. He escalated the war into Laos and Cambodia to destroy communist resources. He also ordered the “Christmas Bombing” to get North and South Vietnam to sign the peace treaty, which officially ended the war. The last president, Gerald Ford, officially cut funds and ties with Vietnam, unofficially ending the long and bitter war.