Campaigning in a Quagmire

This chapter tackles the politics of image-making that shaped the life cycle of the Vietnam War. It examines the case studies of the 1964, 1968, and 1972 presidential campaigns where no presidential nominees attempted to win public support by making proposals for handling the war that voters supported on their merits. The chapter details how Lyndon Johnson, and his election opponent Republican senator Barry Goldwater, recommended escalating the Vietnam War to shape their personal images.

Meanwhile, throughout the 1968 presidential campaign, Richard Nixon promised to deliver peace with honor in Vietnam but he never explained how he would do so. The chapter cites that the politics of image-making enable open-ended military interventions and influence electoral strategy in a manner that conventional notions of democratic politics do not capture.