Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Drafting

At the time, Morse was one of the few critics of Johnson's Vietnam policy. In a speech in April 1964, Morse called the war "McNamara's War", claiming: "Not one voice has yet answered my contention that the United States, under the leadership of Defense Secretary McNamara, is fighting an illegal and unwise war in Vietnam." Morse remained outspoken in his criticism of Johnson's Vietnam policy, accusing him of violating international law. On 13 May 1964, Bundy called a meeting to discuss how best to deal with Morse. Jonathan Moore, an aide to Bundy advised him that Morse was correct that the administration was "on pretty thin ice" when it came to advocating escalation on the basis of international law. As it was felt that Morse was strong on the legalistic arguments, Moore recommended that the administration "shift gears rapidly into a general (practical and political) rationale" and ignore Morse as much as possible. Bundy believed the resolution would give Johnson "the full support of the school of thought headed by Senator Mansfield and Senator Aiken and leave ourselves with die-hard opposition only from Senator Morse and his very few cohorts."
language:response_language[Italian], length_constraints:number_paragraphs[3]