The War Of The Vietnam War - 1111 Words

The Vietnam War, deploying 2.5 million troops and lasting 10 years made it one of the largest wars in United States history. Allegedly, the war started after two navy ships were fired at off of the banks of Vietnam. The questionable attack would foreshadow a very misunderstood and questioned war to come. The United State’s army would be tested in just how strong they were, some 58,000 men were killed and almost double that were severely disabled. This was humiliating to the United States, a great world power at the time, and tensions grew as the war went on. Robert F. Kennedy mentioned the severity of the war in one of his speeches, â€Å"For years we have been told that the measure of our success and progress in Vietnam was†¦show more content†¦One of the first major events in the escalation of the war was the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, which gave president Lyndon B. Johnson the control and decisive powers once held by the congress. â€Å"Congress approves a nd supports the determination of the president†¦to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack†¦to prevent further aggression†, US Congress, Gulf of Tonkin resolution. This heightened tensions because the incident with the Gulf of Tonkin was already questioned and this was a major shift of power. This shift of power goes directly against the check and balance system our government created. Shortly after, in 1970 congress would repeal it, realizing that they had given over all of their foreign policy powers. Then in 1973 congress would pass the War Powers Act, which further limited the â€Å"unilateral power the president has to commit American troops abroad† (Doc. 8) In January of 1968, a shocking event occurred that forced Johnson to change his position on the war, the destruction of the village Ben Tre would expose the cost of moving the Vietcong out. This would become known as the Tet offensive, and its impact on public opinion was negative. The Tet offensive proved to Americans that this war could not be won, further decreasing the public favor towards the war. As antiwar protests increased, political tensions did as well.