Vietnam War Dbq Essay

As the Cold War raged on, the United States continued to try and contain the spread of communism. A popular belief during this time was the domino theory, which stated that if a country fell to communism, the surrounding countries would also fall. Therefore, the United States began sending aid to the South Vietnamese in order to resist the communist North. However, this quickly escalated into more and more troops being supplied, and the Vietnam War began to take shape. The Vietnam War would be marked by failure in both military and political leadership, angering the American public at every turn. The unpopularity of the government’s actions, social unrest marked by movements and protests, and the poor management of the economic side of the

To many Americans, it seemed as though big businesses were profiting off the war as Americans were being killed. One song from the time wrote, “Well, come on Wall Street, don’t move slow / Why man, this war au-go-go / There’s plenty good money to be made / By supplying the Army with the tools of the trade,” (Doc B). The military-industrial complex favored the Vietnam War, allowing the arms trade to profit, which was angering to the public as more coffins returned daily to the United States. Furthermore, as more money was being spent on the war, less was being spent on domestic programs. Before funding was cut from the program and reapportioned to the Vietnam war, Johnson’s War on Poverty had significantly reduced the number of families living in poverty. George McGovern reiterated many of American’s frustrations when warned of the wasteful amount of money being put towards national defense, and described the various ways the government should be conserving money (Doc I). However, as the Vietnam war became the focus of American foreign policy, domestic programs suffered, much to the dislike of the public. It is clear that, economically, domestic issues and foreign affairs could not work hand in hand, creating tension throughout the duration of the Vietnam