Fatal Politics: The Nixon Tapes, Vietnam . . . Episode Two: End Date

President Nixon blocked legislation that would have forced him to bring the troops home from Vietnam too soon for his political purposes. He did this by claiming that an earlier pullout would lead to Communist victory, while not admitting that a later pullout would do the same.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Richard
• Nixon
• Henry
• Kissinger
• Vietnam
• POWs
• presidential
• election
• White
• House
• Tapes
• News
• Media
• 1972
• Ted
• Kennedy
• Hubert
• Humphrey

[fatalpolitics]

My Reply (Also from 5 months ago):

By early 1971, the Nixon tapes indicate, the President and the National Security Adviser had formulated their "decent interval" terms -- ones that would keep South Vietnam going for a year or two after Nixon's last troop withdrawal. Kissinger first proposed these terms to the North in May 1971 and they finally accepted them in October 1972.

[fatalpolitics]

I'm reposting this video to correct a mistake in the previous version which, for the record, had

A. 931 views.

B. 13 ratings, about four-and-half stars.

C. One comment, reproduced here:

whitecleats1 (5 months ago)

By 1971, I don't think there is sufficient evidence to conclude that Nixon settled on a decent-interval option. On the tapes, he often went back and forth on a course of action. The opening of China in 1972 made recognizing a communist Vietnam a more viable option.