How Presidents Test Reality: Decisions on Vietnam, 1954 and 1965

Title Page, Copyright

HOW PRESIDENTS TEST REALITY Decisions on Vietnam~ 1954 and 1965 HOW PRESIDENTS TEST REALITY Decisions on Vietnam, 1954 and 1965 John P. Burke Fred I. Greenstein with the collaboration of Larry Berman and Richard Immerman RUSSELL SAGE FOUNDATION NEW YORK The Russell Sage Foundation The Russell Sage Foundation, one of the oldest of America's general purpose foundations, was established in 1907 by Mrs. Margaret Olivia Sage for "the improvement of social and living conditions in the United States." The Foundation seeks to fulfill this mandate by fostering the development and dissemination of knowledge about the political, social, and economic problems of America. It conducts research in the social sciences and public policy, and publishes books and pamphlets that derive from this research. The Board of Trustees is responsible for oversight and the general policies of the Foundation, while administrative direction of the program and staff is vested in the President, assisted by the officers and staff. The President bears final responsibility for the decision to publish a manuscript as a Russell Sage Foundation book. In reaching a judgment on the competence, accuracy, and objectivity of each study, the President is advised by the staff and selected expert readers. The conclusions and interpretations in Russell Sage Foundation publications are those of the authors and not of the Foundation, its Trustees, or its staff. Publication by the Foundation, therefore, does not imply endorsement of the contents of the study. Robert McCormick Adams Anne Pitts Carter Earl F. Cheit Philip E. Converse Carl Kaysen BOARD OF TRUSTEES Gary MacDougal, Chair Patricia King Gardner Lindzey James G. March Howard Raiffa John S. Reed Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Burke, John P., 1953How presidents test reality. Bibliography: p. Includes index. 1. United States-Foreign relations-Vietnam. 2. Vietnam-Foreign relations-United States. 3. Vietnamese Conflict, 1961-1975-United States. 4. Eisenhower, Dwight D. (Dwight David), 1890-1969. 5. Johnson, Lyndon B. (Lyndon Baines), 1908-1973. I. Greenstein, Fred I. II. Berman, Larry. III. Immerman, Richard H. IV. Title. EI83.8.V5B87 1989 959.704'3373 89-6431 ISBN 978-0-87154-175-8 ISBN 978-0-87154-176-5 (pbk) First Paperback Edition 1991 Madelon Talley Harold Tanner Eric Wanner William Julius Wilson Copyright © 1989 by Russell Sage Foundation. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 ...