Losing hearts and minds: United States pacification efforts in Vietnam during the Johnson years

During the 1960s and early 1970s, America fought two wars in Vietnam: a military war and a war to win the allegiance of the South Vietnamese people to their government---a battle for hearts and minds. Creating a nation in Southeast Asia where none existed was a logical outgrowth of America's post-World War II ideology to forge a new liberal world order conducive to its own economic health and free from communist threats. Unfortunately, the noble pacification effort designed to bring the people of South Vietnam closer to their government failed for a multitude of reasons. Foremost, the South Vietnamese government was an American dependency with little credibility among its people. Additionally, each successive government that came to power in Saigon was corrupt and unresponsive to the needs of the populace. Americans might support, advise, and encourage South Vietnam's leadership toward democracy, but it could not create a principled government. Similarly, the US military might hold off the siege of the nationalist/communist insurgency, but it could never substitute for a strong viable government.; Continually engaged in political power struggles, South Vietnamese leaders were reluctant to provide adequate support for pacification. Confusion and controversy in the Saigon ministries responsible for pacification mirrored the disorganization and conflict within the different American agencies operating in South Vietnam in support of pacification. Despite reorganization efforts designed to blend pacification more closely with military efforts, the Test Offensive in 1968 clearly illustrated the failure of the US and South Vietnamese governments to extend the influence and control of the Saigon regime.; Moreover, pacification efforts were always damaged by the military's massive use of firepower in South Vietnam. Creating a flood of refugees and disrupting the entire culture of the people, America's military strategy further alienated the populace from their government. In the end, pacification was doomed to fail because of political, economic, and military problems, both in South Vietnam and in America.