"What do you, Buddy McKee, think Kennedy's involvement in Viet Nam was?"
That's a VERY BROAD QUESTION, Scott. Since I don't have time to give you a book report today, I'll try to be brief....
If you are focusing on the level of troop commitment as an example of Presidential policy, then it's clear that President Kennedy initially increased the level of US involvement --- to something like a couple of *hundred* military 'trainers' and 'advisors', if memory serves me correctly. However, members of Kennedy's cabinent (notably Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, and Secretary of State Dean Rusk) have indicated that the Bay of Pigs disaster caused Kennedy to stop and think about military involvements in a bit more depth, and that he had made a decision to *halt* the increase in our commitment of troops to South Vietnam, and begin a draw-down, just a few short weeks before his death.
LBJ, of course, went in exactly the opposite direction, and occasioned a RAPID increase in our troop levels....
"I am going to make a prediction. Buddy McKee will not answer the question."
Looks like your batting average hasn't improved any, Scott. :) |
