Chapter 18

JFK and RFK Meet about Vietnam

Summary
      In this chapter, the author invents some conversations that he imagined would have taken place between the two Kennedy's at a very important time in American history. John and Robert Kennedy had been brothers and "political collaborators" since 1952, and they definitely "conferred privately" about the dangerous issue of Vietnam as "questions about instability in South Vietnam mounted and advisers urged JFK to use American power to ensure the survival of an anti-Communist government," but the situation was not that simple at all (292). Some background information for these imagined conversations is necessary, including JFK's "reluctance to involve American troops in overseas conflicts," especially after the Bay of Pigs incident, and the fact that his military advisers were all for "the use of land and air forces to prevent a Communist takeover in Laos" (293). He and his brother definitely discussed their "dual concern" - wanting to save Vietnam from Communism without using U.S. forces (295).
      They came up with a solution where they trained the South Vietnamese instead of directly fighting, but Kennedy was nervous because it might lead to pressure to become more involved. His fears were understandable; it quickly did lead to that. Another fear he probably talked to Bobby about was his determination to keep the government's actions out of the press (they were a "dangerous adversary") (295). Their strategy seemed to be working until they found out that it really wasn't. JFK knew that he needed a "stronger commitment to Saigon," and that came in the form of an order to get rid of the government in Vietnam and "stabilize the damn place," went the imagined conversation (297). But then, Diem was assassinated instead; JFK felt responsible for the bad results of the coup. He most likely shared with his brother some wise words about how bad it was to get involved with such an unstable place, and how they should have known that they wouldn't have been able to "compel an outcome [they] would prefer" (299). How would it have been different if Kennedy had had a second term to handle things in Vietnam?

Reflection
      The brothers' personalities seemed to work very well together. They balanced each other out - JFK with his wit, charm, and passive tendencies, and Bobby, with his seriousness and aggressive outlook. Jack had the "wisdom to act wisely in the most difficult moments" (the sign of a great leader, as we saw with Lincoln), and Robert was full of "loyalty to his brother and capacity to grow in understanding," making them a great duo (300). Together they were able to handle the Vietnam situation well, and if they had been allowed to keep it up, things probably would have ended very differently.
      Finally, a good quote from this chapter was JFK's statement during the missile crisis about how if they listened to the "brass hats," "none of [them would] be alive later to tell them that they were wrong" (292). He was right that the Defense Department had only "cojones," but not brains!