Legacy of Tet

The Tet Offensive left a very complex legacy on one hand it was a stunning
military victory for the U.S. and South Vietnam. On the other it was also a huge
reason for the U.S ultimately losing the war. The repercussions of Tet are felt even
today.
The offensive itself was a decisive military victory for the U.S. and South
Vietnam. Allied troops soundly beat NVA and Viet Cong troops at every corner,
inflicting severe casualties and even leading to the Viet Cong ceasing to exist as an
effective combat force. Massacres attributed to North Vietnamese troops turned
much of the population against North Vietnam, and hurt the chances for the popular
uprisings in the South the North hoped for. Indeed for any close observers the
battle seemed the death knell for North Vietnam however, the opposite proved true.
Popular opinion for the war Vietnam before Tet was largely positive, but after
it public opinion forced the U.S. to withdraw. General William Westmoreland stated
to the public many times the U.S. was winning in Vietnam, and it seemed he was
telling the truth. American troops never lost a major engagement in Vietnam before
or after Tet, however Tet seemed to signal that Vietnamese insurgency was not only
surviving, but actually winning. The public began to see the war as a waste of
American lives against an opponent that would never give in, and by 1972 the last
U.S. combat troops left Vietnam.
Tet, and The Vietnam War have changed U.S. foreign policy in drastic ways.
Before Vietnam the U.S. liberally deployed troops to protect its interests. After
Vietnam the deployment of troops became a last resort. American culture also
changed drastically prior to Vietnam the nation beamed with pride stemming from
World War 2, after Vietnam Americans and especially American youth began to
distrust the government and many of its institutions. Since Vietnam the U.S military
has only used large scale deployment of ground, air, and Naval power twice during
the First Gulf War, and the initial phase of Iraqi Freedom in 2003.