1968+-+Turning+Point

Leading up to 1968 -No clear cut winner in the war -Increase in American froces -Viet Cong proved to be the guiding force in South Vietnam -US tries to "pacify" South Vietnam

Lyndon Johnson Remained Determined -Optimistic reports are sent back -McNamara sees "a light at the end of the tunnel" -Overall, the public still supports American in Vietnam

The Tet Offensive -The turning point of the war -An attack on US strongholds throughout Sother Vietnam by the Viet Cong -Tet was the New Years in Vietnam -All of this was shown on live television -Eventually developed into a US victory -Shook the public, who thought the enemy was close to defeate -LBJ struggles - Congress cuts his Great Society budget -US involvement in the war is openly criticized -New Defense Secretary states that the war seems unwinnable -LBJ says he is not going to run again and the nation turns on him -MLK was assasinated which results in riots and violence EVERYWHERE -Democratic leader Robert Kennedy is shot dead after a speech

The 1968 Election -McCarthy, Humphrey, Nixon, Wallace -Close election -Nixon is elected with 43% of the popular vote