of the viet cong in south vietnam. american women are saved in the south. some of them are stationed in thank god. others were stationed at bases throughout south vietnam. one of the major u.s. bases was one thing so there was quite a number of american -- women's army corps personnel who served. american nurses stared at hospitals throughout south vietnam. the red cross civilian volunteers served anywhere that the right crust needed them to be pasted they could be in saigon, and other major city in south vietnam where they could be a small military installations out and remote areas out of the jungle, out in rural areas. american women were serving all throughout south vietnam. american women who served in vietnam found that the way they were treated be painted in part on who they were and are teammates. many of the women i interviewed beyond combat that the enlisted men treated them much better than the officers. that there were some officers who assumed that even though these are american women activists in the milit

but in south vietnam and most other countries, you live in a war zone. so your fathers and uncles are fighting a war and raising a family. in 2004 when i was turning 40, i remember my late father. it was in 1975 when he was turning 40, that he had to make that decision on april 22 19 75, eveningears ago this when your president had left office and the president of , south vietnam had left the country, and the north vietnamese army was encroaching on your city, and the war is coming to an end, and the americans are about to pull the evacuation. what do you do? do you stay and fight until the end even though your leader has already left? do you send your family away and sneak out, which quite a few people did? or do you just stay and do your duty? i think those are the decisions that, as an american looking back, those were extremely difficult decisions. later in his life, my father would say that he stood his ground and did his duty, and that he would not do anything different despite having to spend 12 years in the prison camps that the north vietnamese

he was the first president of the republic of south vietnam from 1955. kennedy's speech talks about vietnam being the cornerstone of democracy in asia. and laos and thailand and cambodia and even japan and the philippines were really at risk if south vietnam didn't hold fast. he was all for it. tom: president nixon and president johnson were very much together on that. president nixon's positions in 1968 were far more aligned with johnson then at times with the positions of vice president hubert humphrey. there are many examples of that with speeches that brought tension between humphrey and johnson. when nixon took office continued to confer with president johnson. he had a jet star sent to bergstrom every friday with a packet of materials from kissinger and general haig, briefing papers for president johnson to read. just as president johnson conferred secretly with dwight eisenhower. there was a continuity there. you can argue it one way or the other. we do not want to go with the massive b-52s. those sanctuaries contained significant numbers of north

it the midst of all of the fighting in south vietnam, we have had five elections in a.in the midst of war when the grenades are popping like you,rackers all around that two thirds or three fourths of the people would register and go vote and have five elections in months. through the democratic process, select people at the local level, the constituent assembly, a house of representatives, the senate, president, and vice president. that is encouraging. we have a lot to do yet, a great many mistakes have been made. we take two steps forward and we slipped back one. it is not all perfect by any means. there are a good many days when we get a c minus instead of an a plus. but we are satisfied with the progress. our allies are pleased with the progress, and every country that i know in that area that is familiar with what is happening thinks it is essential that uncle sam keep her word and stay there until we can find an honorable peace. if they have any doubts about it, mr. ho chi minh, who listens to our radio and reads our papers, if he has any doubts about it and want t

so american women who served in vietnam all served in the south. ome were stationed in saigon, the capital of vietnam. others were stationed at bases throughout south vietnam. one of the major u.s. bases in south vietnam was longden. there's a quite a number of women's army corps personnel who served at longden. american nurses served at hospitals throughout south vietnam. then the red cross, civilian volunteers observed anywhere the red cross need them to be. they could be in saigon, they could be in quake, another major another major city in south vietnam, or they could be a military installations often remote areas in the jungle, out in rural areas. so really, really american women were serving all throughout south vietnam. american women who served in vietnam found the way that they were treated depended in part on they were interacting with. many of the women i interviewed with witt for "beyond combat" said that the listed men treated them better than the officers. there are some officers who assumed that even though these were american women w

amidst the pleased fires of war, and more people have been killed trying to vote in south vietnam thateen killed by bombs in north vietnam according to north vietnam's own figure. in the midst of all the horrors of war and guerrilla fighting in south vietnam, we have had five period of over four months. there is little doubt we can have any. it took us from 1776, 1789, not 13 months but 13 years to get a constitution with our anglo-saxon backward -- background and all the training we had. and to think here in the midst of war when the grenades are popping left and right, firecrackers all around us, two thirds of three fourths of the people would register and vote and have five elections in 13 months, and through the democratic process, select people at the local level, a consistent with assembly, a house of representatives, senate , that is encouraging. population under free control at the cost of [indiscernible] and that under communist control has constantly come down as a very encouraging sign. the improvement made by the south vietnamese themselves is putting in reform and announci

we are very pleased amidst the fires of war, and more people have been killed trying to vote in south vietnam that has been killed by bombs in north vietnam according to north vietnam's own figure. in the midst of all the horrors of war and guerrilla fighting in south vietnam, we have had five elections in a period of over 14 months. there was great doubt as to whether we can have any. it took us from 1776, 1789, not 13 months but 13 years to get a constitution with our anglo-saxon background and all the training we had. and to think here in the midst of war when the grenades are popping like firecrackers all around you, that two thirds or three fourths of the people would register and go vote and have five elections in 13 months, and through the democratic process, select people at the local level, a constituent assembly, a house of representatives, senate, that is encouraging. except those -- the population under free control at the cost control--- control has constantly risen and that under communist control has constantly come down as a very encouraging sign. the improvement made by the s

station inour was a south vietnam.ix days before my discharge, my --p of four american teenss americans got hit. had the go to go to saigon like they did in 1968. we just happen to be in their way. .e held that camp three days they literally overran the camp and i lost two men on my five-man team. we wouldn't let the helicopters land because it was too hot. we went into hiding and you start smelling the gasoline. and that i a couple people in this program that have fought against the enemy and lived with the enemy. i'm not saying this boast fully, i am -- a very unique experience. we learned what communism was all about from the enemies perspective so it literally changed my life because i went to vietnam because i was supposed to but what changed my mind and even to this day, i was agnostic when i went and on the second day of the three-day battle when i realized -- and i can remember that day as i am sitting here today -- i started praying and we have all heard no atheistthere is in foxholes. you are looking at a con

nor is it our desire to abandon the hope of a free and democratic south vietnam. you and mrs. johnson are in my prayers and thoughts today. and every day. love, pat. ps, i enjoyed talking to everyone last night. thank you. >> tonight, it is a tremendous honor for me to speak to you, as we come together to honor our vietnam veterans, in particularly those brave men and women who sacrificed their lives by fighting for freedom and democracy in vietnam. each year around this time on the vietnamese american april 30, communities commemorate and honor the fallen soldiers. we also remember and mourn the loss of millions of lives in vietnam, who died seeking freedom. today, on behalf of the vietnamese community -- american community, i would like to express my deepest gratitude's for the sacrifices made by america during the vietnam war. 58,000 brave american soldiers and their families made the ultimate sacrifice. we should allow vietnamese american communities to survive and migrate to this great country. 50 years ago, south vietnam was -- stood as a fortress of freedom and democrac

war with conventional weapons and bring the american servicemen home and turn the security of south vietnam over strictly to the south vietnamese armed forces. >> wall as has the courage to stand up for america. give him your support.a as has stand up for america. give him your support.c as has stand up for america. give him your support.e as has o stand up for america. give him your support.as has th stand up for america. give him your support.s has the stand up for america. give him your support. has the stand up for america. give him your support. >> all robert kennedy knows of farms he has known of conviction. never milked a could you in his life but he has sponsored legislation it help the family farmer. a man of the city in the suburbs. he can sense the common interest of all-americans. >> some of that money for education. problems faced in the local communities. >> he is a man of the city who reached his own conclusions about the importance of our farmers. >> this stuff happens to you as farmers is important to those of us who live elsewhere in the country and that you can have an ad

troops were all in south vietnam. they were fighting with the vietnam army against the national liberation front in south vietnam. so american women who served in vietnam served in the south. some were stationed in saigon, the capital, and others were stationed at bases throughout vietnam. one of the major bases was long bend so there were quite a number of american women army core personal who served at long bend. american nurses served at hospitals throughout south vietnam served whsh they needed to be. they could be at mall, military instillations out in remote areas, out in the jungle, out in rural areas and so really american women were serving all throughout south vietnam. american women who served in vietnam found the way they were treated depended in part on who they were interacting with. many of the women i interviewed for "beyond combat" said the enlisted men treated them better than officers. there were some officers that assumed even though these are american women but assumed they were there to be availab

it rules vietnam and has since the war, since north vietnam concord south vietnam, and they have a monopolyn power and there are criminal laws, which basically make it impossible to criticize the government legally , and they can put someone imprisoned for any kind of criticism they make publicly about the government, even if they write a letter criticizing local officials about local issues. that person or blogger will be thrown in jail, so they have an undemocratic system, but they are also very anxious about china, and they have seen the u.s. as an important friend at the moment because they are very upset about how china has been asserting its territorial claims all over the south china sea. host: the scars in vietnam can be seen in those who served in this country in vietnam but also over there. the war was on the front doorsteps. but is it like today? -- what is it like today? guest: a very young population and many of the people do not remember the war can do not hold animosity to the united states, so it is interesting when you talk about enemies and adversaries in vietnam that the

in december of the army private was killed in a porter attack during operation yellow stone in south vietnamtoday for the fits time leaving mow men toes, letters including one theresa martin wrote to here dad when she was just four year old. airy and january got to meet the president at the white house jan was able to take part in rolling thunder she was absolute thrill shewa was sitting and the back f a motorcycle as she came down constitution avenue seeing all l the people and flags teaser wers streaming down her face live atf the wall paul wagner fox 5 local news. >> volunteers help pay tribute to fallen. >> the memorial day flowers foundation hands out 130 thousand roses to families ofo the fallen troops visiting loved once grave sites. this has been an annual tradition since 2011. it's pretty cool when you see that. when you see enormous amount oft flowers they go out and place a them on all the grave sites. >> not just that regardless r where you go just to see knewus generations connecting with the histor of those who gave their w live before us.s. >> controversy growing over thei dea

the south vietnam meez capital of saigon said he is not singl singling out the country when talking about human right and nations are more successful when they uphold universal right. the president also says the u.s. is not trying to impose its form of government on vietnam. >> now, for a look at newspaper headlines from across the region. >> state lawmakers struck a deal that gave the city time for a state takeover and allows budget cuts. they have 150 days to draft a five year fiscal plan and will receive a state bridge loan to cover shaky finances in the meantime. >> from intelligenceer 40,000 gallons of water a day proceeded to doylestown to supplement the supply to the cross keys area. cross keys well was closed after an unregulated chemical was found in water making it unsafe to drink. >> on front page of the times herald hundreds of athletes and volunteers turned out to participate in special olympic events at souder town an hat borough horsh am high schools they ranged in age from 8 to 21. >> that's a look at newspaper headlines around the delaware valley. >> another big air bag r

war with conventional weapons and bring the american servicemen home and turn the security of south vietnamstrictly to the south vietnamese armed forces. >> wall as has the courage to stand up for america. give him your support.a as has stand up for america. give him your support.c as has stand up for america. give him your support.e as has o stand up for america. give him your support.as has th stand up for america. give him your support.s has the stand up for america. give him your support. has the stand up for america. give him your support. >> all robert kennedy knows of farms he has known of conviction. never milked a could you in his life but he has sponsored legislation it help the family farmer. a man of the city in the suburbs. he can sense the common interest of all-americans. >> some of that money for education. problems faced in the local communities. >> he is a man of the city who reached his own conclusions about the importance of our farmers. >> this stuff happens to you as farmers is important to those of us who live elsewhere in the country and that you can have an adequate

i get vietnam, here's what happened, we betrayed the south vietnamese government.e just let them die. it is more complicated than that. mark: you to have spent lots of time with commanders in chief abraham lincoln, theodore , roosevelt, a lesser degree harry truman. talk about the commanders of in chief of vietnam and your impressions after having done this film. ken: you have to understand that this is a story that begins with harry truman and proceeds through eisenhower and kennedy and johnson and richard nixon and to gerald ford as well. we are meeting a lot of people, and maybe we can focus the attention on just a couple of the two most important, lyndon b. johnson and richard milhouse nixon. but it is very clear in retrospect that nearly all the decisions that were made were informed in some way by domestic political considerations, from harry truman to dwight eisenhower to john f. kennedy to nixon to ford. that is an interesting thing to understand, in a situation in which you feel that on the other side of the world you've got certain military exigencies, a

it used to be called saigon, the capital of south vietnam during the war. before he traveled south, the president took in the night life of hanoi, had dinner at a noodle shop with celebrity chef no word of what was on the menu. a huge crowd waited outside to catch a glimpse of the president. wasn't all fun and games. mr. obama met with vietnam's president as well as communist party leaders. and announced he was ending the ban on arms sales. margaret brennan is traveling with the president. >> reporter: president obama is here to build stronger economic and security ties with vietnam. that decision to lift the arms embargo is aimed at sending a message to china that the u.s. will not let it militarily dominate asia. with a warm welcome from vietnam's communist government, president obama tried to put to rest the ghosts of the brutal war with the u.s. that killed tens of thousands of people from both countries. >> just a generation ago we were adversaries now. we are friends. should give us hope. >> reporter: vietnamese are eager to build ties with their cold

and strategically much more important than south vietnam, which is a modest-sized country. indonesia also is one of the great sources of world oil outside of the middle east. indonesia has oil in both sumatra and borneo. and the americans under eisenhower had tried to topple sukarno in 1957. cia operation linked to opposition. the cia had backed operation in sumatra. and it used aircraft, similar things that we used in the bay of pigs. that did not work out. it reflected eisenhower's belief that it was powerful -- possible along a nuclear examinee to use means in order to foster and further a world order that was more acceptable. another thing that eisenhower does is he expends the security architecture of the world is containment. iraq was under a pro-western government in 1958. the airfields were to be used to bomb the soviet union in the event of war. iran is a western ally. pakistan is a western ally. big disappointment when the government is overthrown in iraq in 1958. and that is an overthrow by nationalist army officers to which the soviet union is closely linked. he

know the civilians and all three sectors of the united states, north, and self vietnam -- and south vietnam. iss is where civil discourse eroded and it has metastasized back then and perhaps by unpacking it as difficult as it will be, we can at least have, and i believe history is a table in which we can have a civil discourse, engage in the thing that we are having, which is such a difficult thing it we have today doing, which is breaking it down into arguments or factions. -- when we were putting together this conference toe knew we were going court controversy. raw after so wrong -- so many years? going tom probably not be able to explain all of it here, but one of the reasons, i think, for the generations who really lived through it and were i think, one of the people that we spoke with, she was a young woman in college, and she said our passions are so high about the subject and we were teens and just thick about how heightened your feelings are and it is a black and white way of looking at the world and we and we aged we accumulated wisdom and at this moment, it is like we are 18 agai

in mind the need for the american people to have the fullest possible factual information from south vietnam, no matter what anyone may think is right or wrong about the situation there. this letter not only represented the full support of the mainstream media, but open reporting vietnam at that time. it remains the views of editors and tv producers at home who supported the work of journalists in the field for the entirety of the war. hope people in the audience have been taking notes as well because we will open it up for comments at the end. dan, you went back and forth between vietnam and new york. i'm interested in hearing, how different was it the first time you arrived? what type of reception did you get for your reporting, and how much did your network support you in telling what you felt was the complete story? 1965, it hader been the better part of a year. when i went to vietnam it was clear to me, and it remained clear throughout the time i was there, that i had the complete unmitigated support of not just cbs news as a division of cbs, inc., but the full support of the corporate

we thought that the south vietnam ease forces could withstand all attacks and we would have enforced them if there was an all-out attack. then watergate destroyed that possibility. and then congress legislated against any attempt. so, we will not know what might have happened, but you are right . by the time these agreements were made in 1972, the american -- had disintegrated, to a point and it goes back to a point i made earlier -- if we and -- the wars, we must make sure that part of the responsibility of the administration is sustaining the domestic side. and opponents must understand, if they achieve objectives by undermining government, then of course, no strategy can sustain. mark: yes? audience member: i am with the vietnamese americans, it is widely agreed that you wanted to take over the -- islands in 1974. even the south china sea situation and into pacific ocean, what advice would you give president obama and secretary kerry? dr. kissinger: i am not sure i understood the question. it was a situation where we agreed in 1974 that -- mark: can you restate the question? audie

vietnam as the american defense attache-- the u.s. military's chief representative for our new defense agreements with the vietnamese to counter china's expansion efforts in the south sea. >> when i left vietnam, i never thought i would return here. because the image that imprint in my head was so deep, i pretty much looking forward to what america had to offer and america definitely had offer a lot. and not until a few years ago when i started working on vietnam issue from washington d.c., i realize that it's an opportunity for me to serve here in my new capacity. >> reporter: he and his vietnamese-american wife thu ah live in this four story villa the u.s. maintains for its defense attaches. this is pretty nice living for army life. >> it's the best we've ever lived in the army. >> reporter: living better here than in the army or anywhere. >> because we host a lot of foreign guests here. >> reporter: many of them recognize the south vietnamese military insignias of their parents' former units. >> i display that proudly and my vietnamese counterparts see it and we just talk about history. >> reporter: it has taken some time for the local vietnamese to fully embrac

had said itd states was going to defend south vietnam and chooses not to or fails to do that, what are the germans going to think? what are americans other allies going to think? allies more important to the united states. those promises were made by harry truman and by dwight eisenhower and followed up by john kennedy. he was the inheritor of those promises but because this premises had been eight he did not think he could ignore them. it would've been politically impossible for johnson to say, this is a bad place to american to be involved we have to pull them. >> do you all agree with that? impossibilityical just to say very early on, we're going to pull out and let this remain a local issue essentially? a civil war? >> that is clearly the way president johnson saw it. that is the way most of those who trusted the most in congress and around him in his cabinet felt in the early stages. i should emphasize, however, that as the situation escalated, as the casualties mounted, as hey,houts of "hey, l.b.j., how many kids digital today? -- kids did you kill today?" could be heard in the w

this is fidel castro of cuba, lamumba of the congo, and dominican republic, south vietnam, and renee schneider of chilli. they had received evidence about a couple of other plots. indonesia and haiti, but they didn't take those on. to its credit, unlike many other congressional investigations, they were dogged in pursuit of the fact of these five cases. we learned a great deal about the genesis of the plots, who was involved with them, and the command and patrol or lack thereof many some cases. the church committee reached in some areas and solid conclusions in other areas the full truth was quite elusive, and they were willing to admit that in their report. >> they fought deadly poisons and four or five people on this list are dead. only castro survived. the committee itself ab solved the cia and u.s. authorities of direct responsibility in all four of those deaths. >> the cia did dispatch poifbs to congo, and he was killed instead by congolese rivals. the dominican enemies were supplied with pistols and car bombs by diplomatic, but the committee said there's conflicting evidence co

if the united states had said it is going to defend south vietnam and chooses not to or fails to, what are the germans going to think? what are america's other allies going to inc., allies that are more important to the united states? think, allies that are more important to the united states? because the promises have been made, he did not engage in some we ignore them. it was politically impossible for johnson to say this is a bad place for america to be involved, militarily, we will pull the troops home. >> do you agree with that? was it a political impossibility to just say we are going to pull out and let us remain a local issue, a civil war? that is clearly the way that president johnson saw it and that is the way that most of those that he trusted the most in the congress and around him in his cabinet built in the early stages. as thed emphasize that situation escalated, as the casualties mounted, as the shelves of how many kids do killed today could even be heard in the white house by his daughters, who were there and i will never forget driving out one evening with him as a pr

vietnamese and grew up in post war south vietnam and wanted to do something for hisy. >>reporter: the marin county group we traveled with raised more than 100,000 dollars to help fund programs like this through a roots of peace initiative called peace builder. they were overwhelmed after moteling the farmers. and seeing the pride they had in getting new legs. >> this gentleman had a hoof, horse hoof as leg and as of this week he ka can walk again and supply an income for his family. >>reporter: prosthetic in the state's can cost thousands of dollars. this doctor has gotten the cost did you know to 250 dollars. the prosthetic are free to the farmers. >> people spend this much money for a bolt of wine and for 250 dollars you have a leg. it just made, it just were the tears to my eye. >>reporter: many field where the farmer work still have explosive left over from war. u.s. department of state has provided millions to remove unexploded bombs. land mines. and teach land mine awareness education. money is used to hire company like the mine advisory group or mag for short

mind the needs of the american people that have the fullest possible factual information from south vietnam, no matter what anyone may think is right or wrong about the situation there." this letter not only represented the full support of the main stream media about open reporting from vietnam at that time, but remained the view of editors and tv producers at home who supported the war in the work of journalists in the field for the entirety of the war. mr. sherry: i hope people in the audience were taking notes as well. we will open it up for questions and comments at the end. that was an interesting insight about the importance of -- from the mainstream media. dan, i'm interested in hearing this. he went back and forth between vietnam and new york. how different was it the first time you arrived? what type of reception did you get for your reporting and how much did your network support you in telling what you thought was the complete story? mr. rather: i went the first 1965 andctober of state the better part of a year. i was back three times after that but never for that long. to answer

lbj also wanted peace as , and honorabled peace that would stop the war and permit the people of south vietnam to remain free from communism. and from totalitarian rule. how do i know? i know because i was there. i know because i took the nose of their conversations. i read the transcripts of their telephone calls, sometimes without dr. kissing her. i served as a link until president johnson died. they both wanted an honorable peace. dr. kissinger won the nobel prize. it after you see presentation, a video after he negotiated that peace treaty with reagan i will introduce him to you. thank you. >> the united states is seeking -- we had many armistice peace that we have loss. therefore it is our firm intention in our relationship to the democratic republic of to move from a hostility to normal sanctions, but -- hostility to normalization. and to cooperation. we believe under conditions of , we can contribute throughout into china to a realization of the humane aspirations of all the people of china. and we will perform our traditional roles of helping people realize these aspirations >> ladies

troops in south vietnam were by a major military offensive by the vietcong and north vietnam. the trade in the u.s. media, especially by walter cronkite, one would think that if you polled americans today, they would think it was a major military defeat. but it was not. it was a major american victory, but you would not know that by having watched american television. shortly thereafter, the u.s.s. pueblo was hijacked and -- was hijacked, and intelligent curry -- and intelligence ship was hijacked by north korea. so you had 2 things going on. the war in vietnam and suddenly north korea makes an appearance again. one of the things president in terms of overall military strategy compared to dwight eisenhower's velocity -- eisenhower's philosophy was massive retaliation. if we have many nuclear weapons and arms so nobody will mess with america. jfk did not particularly like that, he wanted a flexible approach. when the uss pueblo hijacking occurred and the united states did nothing ronald reagan was , very upset. listen to what he says. >> this, beginning with the bay of pigs, an

the united states begins withdrawing troops from north vietnam or south vietnam rather and they began wondering is america going to leave us? the war is not over. what's going to happen to us? 1971, 1972, the pows did not come home until 1973. bob schumacher if you are still imagining you are bob schumacher that meant that you were in prison for eight years. eight years were you didn't know if you are going to get home ever but you made it through that and you were there with a bunch of other guys in 1965. these guys who you are with were state wrestling champions. the air force guys will appreciate one of the guys was they former air force thunderbird pilot. they were fathers, they were husbands, they were sons and they all ended up in the prison. wherever anyone was shot down they would take him to hanoi and some of the pows here can tell you it wasn't a very pleasant journey. they all came together in while the prison built in 1800's by the french. the french have been in north vietnam for decades and the country was basically a colony. so for decades this prison held vietnamese ca

a strategic agreement the two vietnam and the united china that counter poses based on the transpacific partnership, which uses japanese funding, taiwanese funding and south korean funding? host: thank you for the call. guest: i think the u.s. and vietnam are moving toward this strategic partnership you are talking about. i do not know whether there is one particular piece of that where we can say it is clinched, but there is no question that through a series of steps and a series of moves, statements, that the u.s. and vietnam have shared interests in countering china, and yes, china and vietnam have fought before, and most recently in 1979 with a brief fight over the border because china was alarmed at the vietnam invasion of cambodia. ,espite china's huge advantages it did not come out well for china and vietnam beat them back, so that has not been forgotten. host: four dan de luce, our next call is linda from georgia -- glenda from georgia. caller: have you been to vietnam? the new market you keep talking make a quarter in our and they will only be able to shop at the dollar store, and they will be buying from american residing -- companies residing i

while crossing the former demilitarized zone, once separating north from south vietnam, a local womanered a rare but indelible vietnamese perspective on what they call here "the american war." >> and i asked her in "so why are there so many ponds right here?" and she said "well, that's where the americans dropped bombs." and she said-- she went on to say, "they dropped bombs on my village, they dropped bombs and i lost family members." and i said "well, i need you to know, i'm american and i work for the u.s. embassy." and she said "well... ( speaking vietnamese ) "today-- today you and i are brother and sister." >> reporter: save for the war museum for tourists, it's almost impossible to find any traces or mention of the war, let alone get anyone wanting to talk about it, especially the younger vietnamese who have little knowledge of the war. >> so they've known a lot of war. i think in some ways, it more seared into our consciousness than into theirs. yes, it was very painful for both sides, yes, they lost a huge number of people, but they in many ways have been quicker to move on a

vietnam. rebalancing of the northwest asia and south asia. etnam we have had for the last years an increasingly close relationship. this takes it, as the president said, to a new level. and really pointed towards being , fully engaged in a normalized relationship. i was in vietnam in the summer of 1995 on the trip where we reestablished relations. we raised the flag over the embassy in hanoi. it has been a long process. president obama is the third president to go there. president clinton was there in 2000. president bush, number 43, when there in 2006. president obama is there today, trying to fully normalized relationship and take advantage of the fact that they have indicated their rate to engage in the deepest partnership with the united states. charlie: we are giving arms. what are they giving to us? it is a fully engaged relationship. let me talk about that. vietnam is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and an important place for , investments, like the united states. they've engaged in a much closer security relationship

vietnam war. >> the move is part of an effort to keep china from seizing more territory in the east and south china seas. vietnam has access to the equipment it needs to defend itself. >> an exchange vietnam will give u.s. ships more access to its ports. >>> the next stop on president obama's asia trip will be the annual group of seven economic summit in japan. while there he will be the first sitting president to visit hiroshima since the u.s. dropped an adom mick -- atomic bomb on the city in world war ii. president obama says he will deliver the message that the u.s. has responsibility to make sure a nuclear weapon is never used again. >>> new polls out tonight show donald trump has eliminated nearly all of hillary clinton's commanding lead over here in a potential general election match-up, they are now almost deadlocked in the polls. tonight donald trump is facing new questions about his finances and the amount of money he claims to have raised for the country's veterans while hillary clinton still faces a persistent challenge from bernie sanders. mark albert reports. >> reporter: hillary clin

to what extent do you see a need to build up vietnam's military deterrent against china's behavior in the south china sea? could it include expanded u.s. access to vietnam ports? and directly to president obama how will the u.s. decide on weapon sales based on human rights violations and for president quang how do you respond to the u.s. push for improved human rights situation in vietnam? >> well matt, the decision to lift the ban was not based on china or any other considerations it was based on our desire to complete what has been a lengthy process towards moving towards normalization with vietnam. a process that began with some difficult conversations decades ago including those led by our current secretary of state john kerry and john mccain and a bunch of other vietnam veterans as well as their counterparts in the government. over time what we have seen is that a progressive deepening and broadening of the relationship. what became apparent to me and my administration at this point is that given all of the work that we do together across the spectrum of economicic trade and humanitarian e

also received the vietnamese military merit medal, the highest military declaration bestowed by south vietnam during the vietnam war. clearly private first class felton roger fussell is a hero who is serving -- deserving, of course, of having his hometown post office in elfers, florida, dedicated in his honor. i worked closely with roger's mily and the entire elfers community on this legislation. to help solidify the memory of private fussell's bravery, american spirit and optimism. his actions served as inspiration for his brother, timothy, who has gone on to serve his community as chief of the port richie fire department. honoring private fussell with the elfers post office designation also honors the work of his sister, mya. myra served -- his sister, myra. myra served her community in this post office for 20 years. let's honor this american hero and his family by passing h.r. 3953 and designating the elfers post office the private first class felton roger fussell memorial post office. thank you very much, mr. speaker, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the g

vietnam war. the president announced the u.s. will lift its embargo from arm south to vietnam.e attended a signing ceremony sending billions of dollars of trade deals, 16 billions between the country. later this week, president obama travels to japan visiting to hiroshima. >>> coming up, officials are urging calm after a baltimore policeman was found not guilty on all charges. this is the first freddie gray trial to reach a verdict. joining me next on "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. it's a drone you control with your brain, which controls your thumbs, which control this joystick. no, i'm actually over at the ge booth. we're creating the operating system for industry. it's called predix. it's gonna change the way the world works. ok, i'm telling my brain to tell the drone to get you a copy of my resume. umm, maybe keep your hands on the controller. look out!! ohhhhhhhhhh... you know what, i'm just gonna email it to you. yeah that's probably safer. ok, cool. shoshow me more like this.e. show me "previously watched." what's recommended for me. x1 makes it easy to find what you