Explain why the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was adopted by the USA in August 1964. (12 marks) Short term reasons; •
Attacks on the American battleship in the Gulf of Tonkin – Explain what happened.
“For all I know, our navy was shooting at whales out there” – Lyndon Johnson Provided the US with a justification for escalating the Vietnam War. National Securuty Memo – 24 th December 1963 – Called for raising the “possibility of North Vietnamese retaliation”. Johnson got retaliation and a blank cheque for the War. “This bill was like Grandma’s nightshirt- It covered everything” Lyndon Johnson – It gives Johnson the permission to do anything he wants.
Johnson also pushed the bill to appear strong in election year. Barry Goldwater was calling him “soft on communism”. The bill allowed Johnson to bomb North Vietnam for the first time (operation Pierce Arrow), and Johnson’s approval rating jumped from 42% to 72%. Gelb and Betts - Johnson knew the prospects were poor, but kept escalating because he feared looking weak (Stalemate Theory)
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“The Middle Course” – Satisfied both sides. He was able to satisfy the right of his party who wanted an aggressive response to Hanoi, and to the left promised;
“We are not going to send American boys away from home to do what Asian boys ought to be doing for themselves” He had privately told the Joint Chiefs of Staff (military) that in December 1963; “Just let me get elected and then you can have your War” “Lyndon Johnson pursued consensus, which is the absence of leadership” (M.R Mcmaster) – This supports the idea of the “Middle Course”
Long term reasons •
Johnson was continuing Kennedy’s administration as he didn’t have a mandate. Kennedy had escalated US involvement and Johnson was continuing this.
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Johnson’s personality – He was a “cold war warrior” and didn’t want to be seen as the first president to lose a war.
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Johnson had the same advisors as Kennedy. They (Mcnamara) believed the war was winnable.
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Schmitz (2005)Johnson was a victim of commitment trap; “All the logic and rationale of the Cold War and containment called for escalation”. The Tonkin resolution was “inevitable”