To begin, Robert McNamara was secretary of Defense for the United States federal government who headed the department of defense under presidents Kennedy and Johnson specifically during the Vietnam War. McNamara worked to shape U.S. policy in Vietnam more than any other leader. McNamara’s disappointment over the war symbolized America’s pain throughout the war and eventually led to his leaving from the Pentagon – where he was the longest-serving Pentagon chief since WWII – emotionally exhausted. As secretary of defense, he supported the decision to increase U.S. involvement in Vietnam but under president Johnson, he observed that the American goals were becoming pointless and urged the president and his advisors to find a peaceful solution to the war.
William Westmoreland was a General and commander of the U.S. army during the Vietnam War. He was very well known among the military community and was recognized by President Johnson and Kennedy for his abilities. He took command in Vietnam in June of 1964 and began to expand the United States’ role in the Vietnam War. He was very optimistic about the position of the United States in the war due to the wearing down of the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong. However, in 1968, the surprise attack by the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong on numerous city served as a turning point for the war and undermined Westmoreland’s assessment of America’s position in the war.
Clark Clifford was an adviser to President Lyndon B. Johnson and was heavily involved with the Vietnam War; specifically, with the Vietnam policy. From the initial combat army commitment through escalation of the war, Clifford’s views changed regarding the war. At some times, he would favor withdrawaling the troops from Vietnam while at others, favoring intensification. After more troops were deployed, Clifford supported the notion that the United States had to take all necessary actions to quickly and efficiently end the war. Eventually after the TET Offensive, Clifford made a consistent effort to withdrawal troops and Vietnamization of the war. With this, he advised Nixon to make sure that all troops were out of Vietnam by 1970.
Vo Nguyen Giap was a general and Commander of the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN) from 1946 to 1972 and also a member of the Vietnam Communist Party. He is most remembered for liberating Vietnam from French rile. He was also responsible for leading armies of North Vietnam against South Vietnam and America. One of the battles he is most well-known for is Dien Bien Phu as he pummeled French forces and brought a brutal end to the Franco Vietnamese-War. Although the war was ended, Giap was still the commander in chief of the People’s Army of Vietnam. He was also responsible for the TET Offensive in 1968 in which he lost thousands of men. In 1973, he stepped down from commander in chief but still remains as the Minster of Defense today.
Nguyen Van Thieu was a military general who served in the French Vietnamese army during the French rule in Indochina. He was also president of South Vietnam in the war against North Vietnam. Thieu’s regime was unpopular because of the suffering that was inflicted upon the people. Specifically, when the Democratic Republic of Vietnam launched the Ho Chi Minh Offensive in 1975 in which each province fell hardly with any fight. At first Thieu commanded his troops to leave Northern areas to “lighten the top and keep the bottom.” He them told his South Vietnamese forces to fight but instead, troops laid down their weapons and surrendered to the North Vietnamese. Ambassador Graham Martin told Thieu that his resignation would be for the good of the country so he flew to the United States and now lives in a Boston suburb as an undisturbed billionaire.
William Calley Jr. is known as second lieutenant of the United States Army. He was the only American soldier convicted of a crime in the My Lai massacre. In March of 1968, Lieutenant Calley led his troops into the mallet of My Lai on a search and destroy operation of the coastal village of Song. He suspected Viet Cong presence and ordered troops to kill all inhabitants resulting in hundreds of innocent civilians being murdered and sometimes raped. A few years later, he was sentences to a live in prison for some of the murders he commanded his soldiers to commit. He appealed the conviction and was able to reduce his sentence to ten years. He received parole in 1974 when he was released.