Book contents
- “I Made Mistakes”
- Cambridge Studies in US Foreign Relations
- “I Made Mistakes”
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 The History of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, 1947–1961
- 2 Civilian Control
- 3 Continuity and Change
- 4 Taking Charge of Vietnam Policy
- 5 When Military Problems Become Economic Problems
- 6 The Fall of 1963
- 7 McNamara’s Transition into the Johnson Administration
- 8 Decisions, Indecisions, Visions and Revisions
- 9 McNamara in Crisis, 1966–1968
- Conclusion
- Appendix: Cast of Characters
- Endnotes
- Bibliography
- Index
Conclusion
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 February 2019
Book contents
- “I Made Mistakes”
- Cambridge Studies in US Foreign Relations
- “I Made Mistakes”
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 The History of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, 1947–1961
- 2 Civilian Control
- 3 Continuity and Change
- 4 Taking Charge of Vietnam Policy
- 5 When Military Problems Become Economic Problems
- 6 The Fall of 1963
- 7 McNamara’s Transition into the Johnson Administration
- 8 Decisions, Indecisions, Visions and Revisions
- 9 McNamara in Crisis, 1966–1968
- Conclusion
- Appendix: Cast of Characters
- Endnotes
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
In many respects, as he confessed later in life, McNamara’s mistakes were mistakes of omission not commission. They were mistakes nonetheless. His mistakes raise important counterfactual questions. What if McNamara had inherited another model for civil-military relations? What if the State Department had been stronger? Could a counterinsurgency strategy have worked in South Vietnam? Could different funding arrangements in Washington have produced different outcomes? What if Johnson had been less of a New Dealer? What if McNamara had defined “loyalty” differently? What would President Kennedy have done?
Keywords
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- Information
- ‘I Made Mistakes’Robert McNamara's Vietnam War Policy, 1960–1968, pp. 207 - 224Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2019