Vietnam War Question

[BengalChris]

(09-27-2017, 03:25 PM)BengalHawk62 Wrote: Why on God's Earth did LBJ leave Westmoreland in charge for so long? By late 66 at the latest, it was clear his search and destroy war of attrition tactics were not working. The Marine leadership, the US Army Chief of Staff at the time, and many prominent Army Generals at the time, such as General Abrams, disagreed with Westmoreland's strategy.

So, why didn't LBJ seek out other opinions within the military by late 66 or early 67 at the latest? That certainly would, or should, have led to Westmoreland's dismissal and a new strategy for the war.

I can tell you since I lived through that.

LBJ wanted Westmoreland all the way because the war was being micro-managed out of the White House and Westmoreland was a guy who would accept this.

The war strategy was not Westmoreland's but was a strategy dictated from the White House. Pure politics. Enemy air bases were not allowed to be bombed, neither were railways bringing in equipment from China and the Soviet Union.