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The Tumultuous Year of 1968: The Tet Offensive and Its Impact on American Politics

The year 1968 was marked by significant events that changed the course of American history. The Tet Offensive in January initiated widespread attacks by communist forces, shaking public perception of the Vietnam War. Key figures, including Clark Clifford and Robert F. Kennedy, influenced the political landscape as President Lyndon B. Johnson announced his withdrawal from the presidential race. The assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy added to the turmoil, culminating in violent protests during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, ultimately leading to Richard Nixon's election.

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The Tumultuous Year of 1968: The Tet Offensive and Its Impact on American Politics

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  1. VOCABULARY • TET OFFENSIVE • CLARK CLIFFORD • ROBERT F. KENNEDY • EUGENE McCARTHY • HUBERT HUMPHREY • GEORGE WALLACE

  2. IMPORTANT DATES • 1968: • JANUARY: THE TET OFFENSIVE • MARCH: LBJ ANNOUNCES HE WILL NOT SEEK RE-ELECTION • APRIL: MLK ASSASSINATED • JUNE: RFK ASSASSINATED • AUGUST: DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION RIOTS IN CHICAGO • NOVEMBER: NIXON ELECTED PRESIDENT

  3. A TUMULTUOUS YEAR • JAN., ’68: THE TET OFFENSIVE BEGINS • MASSIVE ASSAULT BY COMMUNIST FORCES ON US/ARVN FORCES • 100 CITIES/TOWNS IN S-VNAM ATTACKED • WORST FIGHTING: • SAIGON – U.S. EMBASSY OVERRUN BY VC • HUE CITY • OFFENSIVE LASTS 1 MONTH • RESULTS: • VC LOSSES: 32,000 KIA • US/ARVN LOSSES: 3,000 • EFFECT? • US/ARNV CLAIM MAJOR VICTORY • TET WAS SHOCK TO AMERICAN PUBLIC: WHY? • LBJ/Mc NAMARA HAD STATED WAR WAS NEARLY WON • SO…LBJ’s CREDIBILITY GAP GROWS

  4. Major NVA/VC Assaults, 1968 Tet Offensive, Vietnam

  5. U.S. Marines, Hue City, January, 1968

  6. CHANGES IN PUBLIC OPINION • TET’s EFFECT ON PUBLIC OPINION: • TET CHANGES U.S. PUBLIC OPINION ABOUT THE WAR: • EXAMPLE; MEDIA POLL BEOFRE TET: • 28% DOVES • 56% HAWKS • POLL AFTER TET: • 40% DOVES • 40% HAWKS • MEDIA OPENLY CRITICIZES THE WAR: • EXAMPLE: CBS NEWS ANCHOR WALTER CRONKITE CRITICIZES THE WAR • GOV’T. OFFICIALS QUESTION THE WAR: • EXAMPLE: CLARK CLIFFORD, SEC. OF DEFENSE,BELIEVES WAR IS UNWINNABLE • FEBRUARY, ’68 MEDIA POLL: • 60% DISAPPROVE OF LBJ’s HANDLING OF WAR • 50% FELT U.S INVOLVEMENT IN V-NAM HAD BEEN AMISTAKE

  7. WALTER CRONKITE, CBS NEWS

  8. MOVING TOWARDS ELECTION • MARCH, ’68: • LBJ MAKES TELEVISED SPEECH TO NATION • ANNOUNCES HE WILL BEGIN PEACE NEGOTIATIONS TO END WAR • U.S. ESCALATION OF WAR WOULD END • BOMBING OF N-VNAM WOULD BE REDUCED • WILL FORCE S-VNAM TO TAKE LARGER ROLE IN FIGHTING • LBJ ANNOUNCES HE WILL NOT SEEK RE-ELECTION IN ’68

  9. DEMOCRATS & 1968 • LBJ’s ANNOUNCEMENT OF WITHDRAWAL FROM ’68 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN: WHO’S RUNNING? • SEN. EUGENE McCARTHY, D-MINN. • SEN. RFK, D-N.Y. • VP HUBERT HUMPHREY • WHO SUPPORTS EACH CANDIDATE? • McCARTHY: FAR LEFT • RFK: MINORITIES, POOR • HUMPHREY: REMAINING DEMOS., LBJ SUPPORTERS • OTHER EVENTS: • APRIL: MLK ASSASSINATED IN MEMPHIS, TN. • JUNE: RFK ASSASSINATED IN L.A.

  10. 1968 Democratic Candidates • Eugene McCarthy RFK Hubert Humphrey

  11. CHICAGO • AUGUST, ’68: DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION • PROBLEM? • LEFT-WING GROUPS TARGETED CONVENTION FOR MASSIVE PROTESTS • WHO? • SDS • “YIPPIES” • MAYOR RICHARD J. DALY VOWED TO KEEP ORDER IN CHICAGO • VIOLENCE BETWEEN PROTESTERS, POLICE, & NATIONAL GUARD • RESULTS? • HUNDREDS INJURED, ARRESTED • PUBLIC IMAGE OF DEMOCRATIV PARTY IS DAMAGED • HUBERT HUMPHREY GETS PARTY NOMINATION FOR PRES. • REPUBLICANS ARE STRENGTHENED BY DEMOS. BAD PUBLIC IMAGE

  12. CHICAGO MAYOR RICHARD J. DALY

  13. ELECTION OF 1968 • WHO RUNS? • DEMOCRAT: HUBERT HUMPHREY • REPUBLICAN: RICHARD M. NIXON • AMERICAN INDEPENDENT: GEORGE WALLACE • KEY ISSUES: • VIETNAM • RACE RELATIONS • GOV’T CREDIBILITY – “THE CREDIBILITY GAP” • RESULTS: NIXON WINS • NIXON: 301 ELECTORAL VOTES • HUMPHREY: 191 ELECTORAL VOTES • WALLACE: 46 ELECTORAL VOTES*** • ***WALLACE TOOK WORKING CLASS WHITE VOTES IN NORTH AWAY FROM HUMPHREY DUE TO RACE ISSUES • SO WHAT? • REPUBLICANS IN POWER FOR FIRST TIME SINCE EISENHOWER

  14. RICHARD M. NIXON,PRESIDENT OF U.S., 1968-74

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