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[ 352 ] Chapter 12 The Establishment Holds, 1967–1974 “Follow the money.” —The informant “Deep Throat” in the film All the President’s Men, 1976 “What really hurts is if you try to cover it up.” —President Richard Nixon, 1972 By 1967 the United States was deeply involved in Vietnam. Since the big buildup of forces ordered by President Johnson in 1965, the number of U.S. combat troops had grown to exceed half a million. No longer just advisers, Americans were now fighting the war themselves, and throwing everything they had at it. The press corps was growing, too. From the small handful of correspondents in 1962, the number of journalists of all types—U.S. and foreign, print and broadcast, freelancers and full-timers—was building to a peak in the late 1960s of about 650.1 Some seventy women—including the writers Gloria Emerson and Frances FitzGerald, as well as the photographer Dickey Chapelle—were among the press corps during the war years, taking photos, writing stories, or reporting for TV.2 More and more often , these correspondents were not the optimistic cold warriors of the first wave, impatient for U.S. success. Reporters were starting to arrive in Saigon with questions , sometimes deep questions, not just about the progress of the war but about its fundamental rationale, even its moral basis. Back at home, on the “desks” that made assignments and planned coverage, many of the senior editors still supported the war. And on most editorial pages it was seen as a necessity. President Johnson once observed—even while the reporting was turning critical—that the editorials in the Washington Post still supported his policies, and he considered those editorials worth as much as having another division on the ground in Vietnam.3 It was the reporters, however, especially the ones in the field, who were souring on the war. [ 353 ] THE EsTABlIsHmENT HOlDs, 1967–1974 Among U.S. officials, the can-do attitude certainly prevailed. The top U.S. military commander was now General William Westmoreland, a bolder and more confident leader than his predecessor. Westmoreland’s assignment from Washington was to defeat the communists and keep South Vietnam a “free” country, and he was bound and determined to carry out that policy. In 1967 the coverage reflected Westmoreland’s confidence. Although the general sometimes hedged his predictions and warned that the war could still take a long time, the headlines glossed over any reservations. In May, Westmoreland was the subject of a Time cover story focusing on his appearance before a joint session of Congress. “Backed at home by resolve, confidence, patience, determination and continued support,” he assured the legislators, “we will prevail in Viet Nam over the Communist aggressor!” In the mode of his boss, Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, Westmoreland rattled off statistics: Two years ago, the Republic of Viet Nam had fewer than 30 combatready battalions. Today it has 154. Then, there were three jet-capable runways in South Viet Nam. Today there are 14. In April 1965, there were 15 airfields that could take C-130 transport aircraft. We now have 89. . . . During 1965, the Republic of Viet Nam armed forces and its allies killed 36,000 of the enemy at a cost of approximately 12,000 friendly killed—and 90% of these were Vietnamese. During recent months, this 3-to-1 ratio in favor of the allies has risen significantly, and in some weeks has been as high as 10 or 20 to 1.4 Later that year, the Johnson administration gave the public the impression that the war was nearly won, that there was “light at the end of the tunnel.” As late as November, Westmoreland was saying that the enemy was having trouble finding new recruits and could not feed the V.C. forces in the field. “I have never been more encouraged in my four years in Viet Nam,” declared the general , who, with his wife and daughter, spent the week as a guest at the White House. On November 21, 1967, he gave a major speech at the National Press Club that resulted in this Washington Post headline the next day: “War’s End In View—Westmoreland.” So it came as quite a shock to most Americans when communist forces launched an all-out offensive in late January 1968 at the Vietnamese New Year, known as Tet. In a dramatic shift in tactics, the enemy fought, for the first time, by conventional means—striking in the daytime...

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