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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where does Halberstam say McNamara found people to work under him as Secretary of Defense?

2. Where was the war going well, at the time when the White House was losing faith in Diem, according to Halberstam?

3. What does Halberstam say happened that threatened the relationship between Diem and the Buddhists?

4. What does Halberstam say marked the end of the generals' faith in Diem?

5. What had Robert Lovett been before entering government?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did the White House eventually try to limit the military?

2. What was the Kennedy administration's image with the American people?

3. How did the situation in Vietnam unfold?

4. Describe the atmosphere in America when Kennedy took office.

5. How did the fall of China and the Cold War affect the Kennedy administration?

6. What was McNamara's stance with regard to nuclear weapons?

7. Who was Kennedy, and how did he become well known?

8. What was the American government's relationship with Diem in 1961?

9. What was the Kennedy administration's stance with regard to Russia?

10. Who was Dean Rusk, and what was his role and place in the Kennedy administration?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How did American support influence Diem and Khanh? Did it make them more or less legitimate in the eyes of the Vietnamese? If there were problems caused by overt American support, say also what roles were played by Vietnamese society and by the personalities of Diem and Khanh.

Essay Topic 2

What must McGeorge Bundy or Robert McNamara or President Johnson have thought about the Vietnam war? Write a journal entry as if you were them.

Essay Topic 3

What kind of administrative or bureaucratic changes could have helped the war effort in Vietnam? Specifically, how could U.S. commanders have ensured that accurate information flowed unimpeded from troops and analysts in Vietnam to military planners in the U.S.? What factors in the military or political establishment created this problem?

(see the answer keys)

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