The United States and Johnsons War essays

The United States and Johnson's War essays In the 1950s, the People's Republic of China became a growing source of concern for the United States. China's expansion of power and influence was potentially leading to the spread of communism in the world, especially in Asia. The United States wanted to keep its position in Asia, so they decided to take a lead role in the containment of China. The United States new containment policy focused on South Vietnam. It was here that the revolutionary Vietcong were trying to overthrow the South Vietnamese government, which America supported. The Vietcong, supported by Communist North Vietnam, had ties to China. After the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson inherited the conflict in Vietnam. Johnson came to office convinced that the United States had to respect its commitment to South Vietnam and resist communist control. The President felt that the United States could only encourage and support the development of the political and military programs in South Vietn am. He was convinced that success depended predominantly on the South Vietnamese. As the war dragged on the South Vietnamese became weaker, and the war became increasingly controlled by the United States. Johnson's dilemma was whether he should Americanize the war or not; his resolution was to become involved in the conflict, and his decision crippled his plans to improve the nation. The Johnson Administration's approach to foreign policy was that we would not tolerate aggression, and we would honor our commitment to South Vietnam. The United States learned in World War II, that aggression could not be tolerated because it can lead to such atrocities as World War or a Holocaust. In addition, the United States had a policy that we would limit the spread of communism because, in the eyes of America, democracy should prevail. To prevent communist control of South Vietnam, which already had an American presence, the United States was committed to supporting ...