Richard Nixon and the Vietnam War: The End of the American
David F. Schmitz. Richard Nixon and the Vietnam War: The End of the American
David F. Schmitz in his book Richard Nixon and the Vietnam War: The End of the American Century wrote about Nixon’s views on the war in Vietnam at the beginning of his presidency. He argues that for the first two years of his administration, Nixon sought a conventional military victory and only moved to de-escalation and withdraw of American troops after this initial effort. Schmitz argues for a new view of Nixon’s approach to the Vietnam conflict, where “[s]tarting in the summer of 1970, in an effort to salvage his policy in Vietnam, Nixon redefined notions of both victory and peace.” (xiv) Additionally, it is worth noting that historians have debated the nature of Nixon’s relationship with National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger, with opinions ranging from Nixon being the thinker that guided Kissinger to Kissinger being the brains and Nixon only the mouthpiece; some historians have even suggested a merged sensibility named “Nixinger” best explains how the two worked together and the nature of their seemingly shared thought processes.
For this paper, you will be using the book as evidence to support your answer to the following question: What role did National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger play in Nixon’s approach to Vietnam? A good paper will explain the nature of Kissinger’s role in Nixon’s thinking during the time covered in Schmitz’s book (obviously any discussion of Kissinger and Nixon outside of the book’s parameters will result in a lower grade). Additionally, a solid essay will consider if/how Kissinger’s role changed over the time covered in the book. Finally, the paper should address the shift away from a conventional military victory and the impact Kissinger made regarding this change in Nixon’s foreign policy thinking and in the president’s approach to Vietnam.
