JFK's 1961 Vietnam Policy: The Escalation of a Commitment

Campbell examines the internal mechanizations of the Kennedy administration\ud in regard to its policies on Vietnam. Utilizing a combination of government\ud documents, newspaper articles, and a synthesis of secondary sources,\ud Campbell provides a narrative detailing the events and attitudes that made\ud the administration’s escalation of American involvement inevitable. Despite\ud their outward presentation of a “new generation,” the administration failed\ud to question prior assumptions about the necessity of an independent,\ud anti-Communist regime in South Vietnam. As a result, the conflict was\ud viewed as a struggle to preserve American prestige; this, combined with a\ud failure to enact long-term strategies for victory, led inevitably to the\ud later escalation American involvement