Walter Cronkite is why we lost the Vietnam War.
By 1968 we had damaged the NVA/VC badly — the Tet Offensive was a last-ditch, all-out effort. They were expended. All it would have taken was a coup de grace.
Walter Cronkite (the “most trusted man in America”) went to Vietnam in the aftermath, and gave his famous “mired in stalemate” report based on what he saw. What he didn’t see was the overall strategic reality — but that report irreparably shifted public opinion against the war.
Contrary to popular opinion, it wasn’t hippies at protests that turned public opinion — it was Cronkite’s poor read of the situation. He later went on to say that he regretted the report, and its results. But it was too late.
In the moment, it killed public support for Vietnam (fairly high btw) and forced moderation — at a time where the US needed one final offensive to finish the war.
The end result was indeed fighting “for nothing,” because the US essentially gave up.
We didn’t lose Vietnam because of the indomitable fighting spirit of the Vietnamese (lmao) — but rather because the political rearguard faltered when it needed to push.
If anything, Vietnam should serve as a warning against half-measures, and cavorting to public opinion.
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