A president bound for greatness. A ruinous Vietnam war. How did Lyndon Johnson lose his way?
The North Vietnamese surprise attack on dozens of military sites in South Vietnam, including the US embassy in Saigon, had a seismic impact on the US public. While a military failure for the North, it was a huge propaganda success. Attitudes in the US towards the war and toward President Lyndon Johnson were never the same.
The Vietnam War was a searing event in the history of the US. According to rarely heard audio recordings, President Lyndon Johnson expressed great misgivings about getting deeply involved in the conflict, but at every crucial juncture made the decision to do so. This series examines how and why that happened.