| A | B |
|---|
| JFK's claims of a missile gap and appearance in the televised debates | JFK was able to overcome his youth and Catholicism to win a narrow victory in the 1960 Election |
| The Cold War shifting to the Third World | Massive retaliation becomes a bit out-dated and JFK implements his policy of "flexible response" |
| Adherence to the policy of containment and fears of losing Southeast Asia like Truman lost China | JFK is committed to stopping communism in Vietnam and there are 16,000 American "military advisers" in Southeast Asia |
| Michael Harrington's book The Other America (1962) and LBJ's love of the New Deal | LBJ's "war on poverty" |
| The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1964 | Ended the quotas enacted in the 1920s and changed immigration with most being non-European |
| The Great Society | A significant increase in the size and role of the federal government such as Medicare/Medicaid, education reform, and a war on poverty |
| The need for the United States to solidify ties and France and Ho Chi Minh being a communist | The U.S. reneges support for a independent Vietnam after World War II and massive support for France between 1945 and 1954 |
| Dien Bien Phu | The end of French colonial rule and a refusal of the U.S. to adhere two years later to elections to unify Vietnam |
| A corrupt and out-of-control Diem regime in South Vietnam | Rise of the Viet Cong and ultimately a CIA-sponsored assassination |
| Gulf of Tonkin Incident | A blank check for the U.S. to use military force in Vietnam |
| A long tradition of fighting against more powerful enemies and overwhelming U.S. firepower | The Viet Conga's reliance on guerilla tactics instead of stand-up fighting |
| Ceasefire to respect the Vietnamese lunar new year | The North Vietnamese and Viet Cong are able to exploit the element of surprise during the Tet Offensive |
| the tenacity demonstrated by the Viet Cong in the Tet Offensive | A turning point in the war, especially of public opinion against the Vietnam War |
| The withdrawal of LBJ in March 1968 and the assassination of Robert Kennedy in June | Wide-open Democratic race with deep divisions within the party over Vietnam |
| The idealistic Baby Boomer generation coming of age in the late 1960s | Increasing college enrollments and student activism |
| Nixon's' invasion of Cambodia | Anti-war protests escalate ultimately resulting in the Kent State shooting |
| Nixon de-escalation U.S. presence in Vietnam | "Vietnamization" |
| Underestimating the Vietnamese will, successful guerilla tactics, and the inability to win the hearts and minds of the Vietnamese people | The U.S. loses the Vietnam War despite having overwhelming advantages |
| Unclear objectives, high drug use, class and racial tensions | Low morale of American soldiers in Vietnam |
| Search and destroy missions, excessive bombing, napalming, incidents such as the My Lai Massacre | Inability to "win the hearts and minds" of the South Vietnamese people |
| ARVN is overwhelmed in 1975 | The U.S. refuses to reenter the war, Saigon falls, Vietnam is unified under a communist regime |
| The United States first losing war, numerous lies, and low morale among the American people | The Vietnam Syndrome and low faith in the federal government |
