Lyndon Johnson at the University of Michigan May 22, 1964
PRENOTE: need something really positive to add to your day? This, about teacher and students in Red Wing MN on CBS evening news last night: here.
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Heather Cox Richardson’s column overnight was specifically and totally devoted to the Commencement Address by President Lyndon Johnson at the University of Michigan, May 22, 1964. The link is here. At the end of the post is the link to the total address.
I hesitate to add much to this. At the same time, I was 24 years old then, and thus able to be fully aware of the impact of the JFK/Lyndon Johnson era. President Kennedy had been assassinated 5 months earlier, and Johnson, an astute and long time political leader in the U.S. Congress and as Vice-President was ready to take charge.
Both of my brothers are Vietnam vets, and I was two years in the Army, 1962-63, considered Vietnam era. So I was involved too.
Of course, I was just one of the citizens as I am today. So I can claim no first hand knowledge, any more than most anyone else can.
In 1983, with my Dad, I visited the small town where LBJ grew up – Johnson City TX – and saw the small house in which he grew up.
In later years, I have come to learn that his first post college years were as a teacher in a school in Texas where his students all spoke Spanish as their first language.
In short, in my opinion, his roots played a big part in his view of the ordinary person, even though he became one of the all-time power brokers in the rough and tumble place which is Washington. He was the right man at the right time, which was a crucial time in American history, as today is an equally crucial time for very different reasons.
Of course, the meat grinder that was Vietnam swallowed him.
I will leave it at that
POSTNOTE: in anticipation of Memorial Day, here is a newsletter from American Experience (PBS).
And an update on the matter of Cuba, here.
I plan to do a post on Memorial Day about Amable Guion. This is a ‘war story’ from before the revolution ary war that formed the United States.
COMMENTS
from Larry: Larry also commented below, and sent on this interesting video from personal history from about 1964. KSTP was and is a major TV channel in the Twin Cities.
Excellent piece on LBJ. I am benefiting today from the battles he won. Medicare is an example. What I didn’t like was his continuing the Viet Nam war. When Defense Secretary McNamara told him that the war was “unwinnable,” the US had lost 8,000 military lives at that time. However, LBJ continued American involvement, and our nation went on to put 60,000 more names of young Americans on what would become The Wall in Washington. I liked his roots that you described and his Presidency was based on common sense and helping the American people. But I wished he had used his generally good thinking when McNamara told him about the huge problem with our involvement in Viet Nam.
Re Vietnam, the entire succession of Presidents, from Truman through Nixon, were sucked into its vortex, one way or another, always from outside advice, always because being against war is almost anti-American. It is still that way, in my opinion. It is apparently important to be able to show you have an enemy and only the president can protect, and always it doesn’t work out as advertised. We’re suckers. My two brothers were Vietnam vets, and I was in the Army when our division was being prepared for Vietnam duty. So my service was considered Vietnam era, even though I never left the states. But my entire two years was in the 5th Infantry Division Mech in 1962-63. Our close call was the Cuban Missile Crisis in October, 1962.