Withdrawing the Troops from the Vietnam War- Politics in the 1970's

After three years of the Vietnam War’s proceedings President Lynden B. Johnson’s determined to not seek reelection in 1968, allowing the election of Richard Nixon. Serious negotiations began and continued throughout the next five years. 

The United States war movement in Vietnam triggered the largest anti-war movement in the nation’s history. Initiated by the bombing of North Vietnam in 1964 and the introduction of the draft for combat troops, war protest steadily increased for the next ten years. Students, government officials, labor unions, church groups and middle class families increasingly opposed the war as it climaxed in 1968, forcing a gradual withdrawal of U.S. forces. Some opposition was merely vocal at the start; however, it continued to escalate as the war progressed. Several examples led to violence such as the Kent State shooting in 1970.
Many factors played into this war’s great unpopularity with the people. The length of the war, the high number of U.S. casualties, and the exposure of U.S. involvement in war crimes such as the massacre at My Lai, helped to turn many in the United States against the war.

In September of 1969, Nixon attempted a new tactic to slowly begin the withdrawal of troops. His idea was proceed in force and intensify bombings directly of the communist sanctuaries in Cambodia. Lack of internal support made Nixon’s popularity difficult, though progress continued.
A battalion of the U.S. 9th Infantry Division left Saigon in the initial withdrawal of U.S. troops. These soldiers were the first of 25,000 troops that were withdrawn in the first stage of the U.S. disengagement from the war. There would be 14 more stages in the withdrawal, but the last U.S. troops did not leave until after the Paris Peace Accords were signed in January 1973.

In January of 1973 the United States, North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the Vietnam Congress all signed a peace treaty that would withdraw the rest of the American troops with in a time frame of sixty days. This also created a political process and a transition into a peaceful ending and the resolving of the conflict in South Korea. This agreement did not end the fighting, however. 

The main goal if the US withdrawal of troops was called ‘Vietnamization’. This term was simply the idea in which South Vietnam would need to take on larger role in this fight against communism. The United States government simply wanted to enable to South Vietnamese to be able and take full control of their country.

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The Watergate Scandal- Politics in the 1970's

            In the high tide of the Vietnam War, Republican President, Richard Nixon was up for reelection. However, the nation was divided internally. In the midst of such a harsh political campaign, Nixon’s advisors (known as CREEP) felt the need to use forceful tactics, leading to the illegal espionage known as the Watergate scandal. Several unidentified burglars broke into the Democratic National Committee (DNC) office, located in the Watergate building in Washington D.C. The burglars stole top-secret documents as well as proceeding to wire tap the phones.

On June 17, 1972, the wiretapped phones were malfunctioning, leading to another break in. However, this time a security guard noticed the locks on the doors being taped and called the police, who arrived in time to catch the burglars red handed inside the Watergate building. However, unfortunately to the credit of the President, this was no ordinary robbery. The burglars were caught in possession of top-secret documents and though it could not be directly linked to Nixon, suspicions were raised as they were in possession of the white houses campaign phone number.

In August of 1972, Nixon made a speech denying any knowledge of the scandal. Most voters believed Him, leading to his reelection in November. After the election, it still could not be proven that Nixon knew exactly about the events, which occurred. His actions in the aftermath may have been even more severe.

It is no secret that he did do what he could to try and cover up the scandal. First it came to light that he was attempting to raise millions of dollars in “hush money” for the burglars trying to cover up their actions. Secondly, and perhaps even more severe than the scandal itself, Nixon tried to initiate a plan for instructing the CIA to secretly impede the FBI’s progress of the investigation. This was an obvious abuse of presidential power as well as a clear obstruction to justice.

Nixon continued to be backed into a corner as many of his aids began to be arrested in the wake of the prosecutor’s pursuit of justice, with some even testifying to his guilt. It became known that Nixon taped every conversation held in the oval office. After it became clear that the president could no longer hide the tapes and keep his role in the scandal under wraps, he resigned. Following this, his successor Gerald Ford made a bold move by pardoning Nixon on all accounts. Nixon never actually admitted to his guilt, but his reputation was certainly tainted for the rest of history.

Kent State Shooting- Politics in the 1970's

On April 30, 1970, in the midst of the Vietnam War, President Richard Nixon went on national television to make a monumental announcement. In this announcement He addressed the United States recent invasion of Cambodia and the need for 150,000 additional draftees. News of the draft demands provoked rioting all across the nation, particularly on collegiate campuses. Most notable being at Kent State University in Ohio, where protesters got out of hand leading to the engagement of the entire Kent police force, as well as well the surrounding communities.

On May 2, the governor of Ohio felt the need to dispatch 900 members of the National Guard, in hopes of striking fear into the uncontrolled hooligans. However, the riots continued to escalade. As the National Guard arrived, they were witnesses to a scene of the ROTC building being set ablaze.

May third was about the last attempt for peace for peace by the overseeing officials. Ohio Governor, James Rhoades prepared a statement that was anything but calm. He noted that they would use whatever force necessary to subdue the crowd, which he called the worst people in America.

On May 4, an anti-war rally was scheduled to be held; however, the government officials did their best to ban this rally from occurring. As a result of guard’s attempts to disperse the crowd, it only resulted in thrown rocks, and shouts of protest. The police were forced backwards, provoking twenty-eight guardsmen to open fire on a crowd of protestors. Approximately sixty shots were fired in thirteen seconds. Most of them aiming in the air or at the ground; though, unfortunately a few shot directly into the crowd wounding nine and killing four. If were not for University faculty marshals, further tragedy would have surely occurred. They pleaded with the students to not risk their lives any further by continuing on in protest.

Following the shooting, disturbance across the nation increased dramatically, leading to the shutdown of 500 college campuses. Despite the public outrage, the Justice Department initially ignored the need to instigate a grand jury investigation of the shooting. Though the president’s commission did release a statement acknowledging that the action of the guardsmen had been "unnecessary, unwarranted, and inexcusable." Eventually, a grand jury indicted eight of the guardsmen, but the charges were dismissed for lack of evidence. Some forty years later, this event is still remembered as a tragedy, with love and support still going out to those families who lost loved ones.

Roe v. Wade - Politics in the 1970's

            On December 17, 1971, a pregnant, single woman named Norma L. McCorvey (Jane Roe) challenged the constitutionality of Texas abortion laws, which proscribe procuring or attempting an abortion except on medical advice for the purpose of saving the mother’s life ("Roe v. wade," ). She argued that the law was unconstitutional and that she could not afford to go out of state of Texas to have an abortion. The lawsuit was filed against the Dallas County District Attorney, Henry Wade. This case was filed in a Texas federal court, which ruled the law was a violation of the Constitution. Wade took this case to the Supreme Court.

Throughout the next two years, the Supreme Court reviewed this case. In 1973 the court ruled that the law was unconstitutional. Justice Harry Blackmun, who had previously been a counsel to Mayo Clinic, ruled that it violated Jan Roe’s privacy that is protected by the First, Fourth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendments. Marriage, contraception, and child rearing activities are all protected by an individual’s zone of privacy. This zone of privacy also covers a women’s, in this case Jan Roe’s decision, to decide if she wants to terminate her pregnancy due to physical, psychological, and economic issues pregnancy causes for the mother. It forbade states from restricting any aspect of abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy. It only gave the, the ability to regulate anything related to maternal health during the last two trimesters. It also gave them the ability to protect the fetus in the third trimester by setting abortion laws during that period. Prior to the court’s ruling, the majority of the states banned or regulated abortion. The zone of privacy is protected by the Constitution, not the states regulation. This makes it difficult to regulate any form of abortion law.

Roe v. Wade is one of the most recognizable of Supreme Court decisions because it split the nation politically. It caused what is known as the culture wars, violence, and political debates even today. It created more controversy than any other recent Court case before it, and the controversy has continued throughout the years, even now. You can see this in politics today, such as the Presidential debates today. This court case has had a lasting impact on America, and continues to be challenged. It is still intensely debated because no other Court case has dealt with ethics, religion, and biology all in one case. Critics say that the Court legalized the murder of human life, they also argue that Roe had poor reasoning and caused repercussion dealing with abortion rights. People who are in defense of the Court’s decision of this case agree that she was right in defending her personal freedoms and privacy rights.