he studied very carefully what they would do in south vietnam. he believed we were running he was really well-liked by a few people. he was a bit of a curmudgeon. he was a man of high principles and if you did have the same level of principles and integrity as he did, he stood his ground, he wouldn't compromise. i think at times, people were trying to move them along and became frustrated in dealing with him. in the end, i think he is so long known for his integrity. the to killing his very long and vocal dissent against the war. he learned about u.s. foreign-policy by setting of the foreign affairs committee and watch the u.s. and latin america where we were really not always on the right side. they would take the side of the dictator. he was very aware that this was a tendency that they had. he studied very carefully what they would do in south vietnam. he believed we were running against communism and ignoring the fact that we were supporting a dictator. it is a very complicated story. basically, there were shots fired at one of our patrol boa

it really gave him the ability to do whatever was needed to support and protect south vietnam. it was the beginning of the escalation of the vietnam war. he believes it was not a true declaration of war. it was a needless and reckless and ultimately damaging resolution. he was correct, it led to changing our country in ways that are not completely understood and calculated. that is a major event in the history of our country and it created a lot of concern about our trust in government. he was correct. at the time, he was the fiercest critic of the and not want. at the same time, he was lbj's person in the senate who helped pass all of the great society education programs. the support to public education, the first ever in our country. infrastructure development or education, the g.i. bill, student loans, there was a huge number of society education programs for which he is rightly famous. they did all the negotiations. they were the experts in the process. it was a very delicate and complicated relationship. it ultimately brought down lbj during the height of the vietnam war. i

had and so he studied very carefully what we were doing in south vietnam. sobelieved we were running running so hard against communism and ignoring the fact we were supporting a dictator. it is a very complicated story. basically, there were shots fired at one of our patrol boat. it was a question of were they intentional or were they really fired. president lyndon b. johnson rushed through congress, a resolution in 1968. called the golf -- golf of tonkin resolution which gave him carte blanche to do what was to support and protect south vietnam. it was the beginning of the escalation of the vietnam war. he believes it was not a true declaration of war that it was a needless and reckless and ultimately damaging resolution. towas correct, and led changing our country in ways that are still not completely understood and calculated. that is a major event in the history of our country which created a lot of concern about our trust in government. thousands and thousands of people dead. we were in a country where we didn't along and ultimately had to leave. rippl

you know, i found that most vietnamese civilians in south vietnam, anyway, were trapped. they had a violent independence communist movement on one side that would take retribution against those who joined up or served or accepted the saigon government, the american-backed government and most of these, especially people living in the countryside, people with no education, they just wanted to be left alone to live their lives and they would have ultimately viet cong cadres would come into their villages and they would be people who would be executed or young men who would be taken to serve with them, or there would be arvn south vietnamese troops or sometimes american troops, and we had pictures of american marines torching homes and villages. one of the efforts was to clean people out of their ancesteral villages and herd them into what was called safe villages, which were essentially compounds, surrounded by barbed wire and fencing and i think anyone who understood the nature of vietnam's culture, you know, you're making enemies of the very people who you're trying to hel

and launch smument attacks on 100 cities in south vietnam. >> goldberg: they weren't listened to. >> of whey, the city was taken almost with very minor resistance. general westmoreland denied it had been taken even though hehead a c.i.a. report which told him that it had been. >> goldberg: ultimately the united states won the battle but this convinced the american people that there was no winning this war? >> and not just the american people. the south vietnamese people. i mean, the south vietnamese all through the vietnam war or what they call the american war were trying to align themselves with the victor. they don't want to be on the wrong side when the power game is over, so the attacks all over south vietnam, the taking of whey, i think eroded a great deal of confidence the south vietnamese people had in the government. >> goldberg: mark bowden, pleasure to have you. >> thank you. >> goldberg: we continue now with foreign policy. for the first time in quite a while, our country and its leaders are questioning the underlying assumptions that governed foreign policy making since

the goal was to protect and build a democratic society in south vietnam.nd again, the united states tries to use in military force took comp which sweeping goals afghanistan and iraq. number one, it came at a time, i do not know if it would be the same today, when racism and arrogance led us to deeply underestimate the capability of the viet cong. nowhere is that more evident than in this battle, which took united states command completely by surprise. jeffrey: the united states won the battle but the moment where you and walter cronkite thought that we lost the war, give us one minute if you could boil down 600 pages 21 minute, give one minute on why this was pivotal beyond the military meaning of what happened? mark: in large part because in the united states, president johnson had been selling this war to the american public of something that could be easily one. westmoreland came back to washington at the end of 1967 and gave a speech at the national press come -- press club where he said the war is a most over and we are moving into the final phase an

. >> our activities in south vietnam -- >> reporter: years later in 1966 the vietnam hearings exposedtunning admission. >> i think our military involvement in vietnam has to be recognized as unfortunate, as something we would not choose deliberately if the choice were ours to make all over again today. >> reporter: the u.s. was stuck in a war it was unlikely to win. >> it raised questions about what was the purpose of it, why were we fighting there. >> reporter: from the iran-contra affair -- >> i came here to tell you the truth. >> reporter: -- to the infamous she said -- >> i could not keep silent. >> reporter: -- he said. >> it is a high-tech lynching. >> reporter: of the clarence thomas-anita hill scandal. public hearings have become part politics, part theater. americans watched as bill clinton became the second president in u.s. history to undergo an impeachment trial. >> it depends upon what the meaning of the word "is" is. >> that's exactly what we did. >> reporter: and then watched again when hillary clinton endured an 11-hour grilling from the house benghazi committee. >> i

legend by leaking documents about the administration's in theow -- involvement overthrow of the south vietnamresident, and everything he could get his hands on from the , which was a disaster, as well as the fbi. they were not involved with anything in the kennedy assassination. with regard to the vietnam war, there's a great deal of deception in the way that all of the presidents who involved us in vietnam presented the facts, but the gulf of tonkin wasn't a false flag operation. it was one where some of the information that was made public was truthful. some of it was iffy but believed in by various officials, and some of it turned out to be false. host: jack is calling from michigan, a republican. caller: it is the timeliness of this presentation this morning. why are we commemorating the 45th anniversary of the watergate break-in? why the timeliness of this? other than what i am hearing on my public television last night where they are actually calling president trump a witness. this is another part of the witchhunt, c-span. what is the timeliness of the 45th anniversary of the break-in?

, the tet holiday, usually there was a cessation of hostilities, more than 100 cities all over south vietnamuickly fell. you have seen these images. it was footage like this that turned finally a great part of the american public against the war. ♪ the u.s. marines fought house to house to retake the city. a vicious 3 1/2-week-long battle. eventually, artillery and air support were called in. the city was saved. and, of course, largely destroyed in the saving. the civilian population caught in theross fire were equally devastated. the north vietnamese to their enduring shame had while controlling the city rounded up anyone seen as a potential enemy and either disappeared them away to unknown prisons or killed them outright. most notoriously when they massacred almost 3,000 people, rolling them, many of them still alive in mass graves in and around hue. duk knows full well the horrors and heartbreak of that time. in his memoir, "where the ashes are: the odyssey of an american family," he captures the terror of a nine-year-old boy, the son of a high ranking south vietnamese civil servant caugh

there was an active uprising in south vietnam which included three months of setting themselves on fire, images which were broadcast into america's living room in the us understood and officials understood american intervention in opposition to it was rising, but they did not understand why there was opposition and why there was opposition into the us backed south vietnamese-- south vietnamese regime, but they thought scientists could up them understand, so slope was one of the people that was sent to vietnam. he was using the warsaw test which was a time to help understand psychotherapist. so far at least in this happy with the vietcong fighter that ink blocks veiled to release any insights into the fighter. he asked the viacom fighter to go through the parts and identify something sexual. nothing. than he has the fighter to find anything that reminded him of a person. nothing again. slope seemed puzzled that an imprisoned vietcong fighter being interviewed by a man interviewed-- interviewing him about his life-- the man was elected to even touch the card. speaking of archives i found

after 20 years of heavy combat in south vietnam, u.s.ary casualties represented only one-third of the death toll from 10 years of opioid overdoses. meanwhile, counties and municipalities around the country have filed lawsuits to hold drug companies accountable for the public health crisis. ohio attorney general mike dewine filed a lawsuit against purdue pharma, the maker of oxycontin, as well as teva pharmaceuticals and johnson & johnson, accusing the companies of spending millions on marketing campaigns that "trivialize the risks of opioids while overstatating the benefits of using them for chronic pain." similar lawsuits have been filed in washington, new york, illinois, mississippi, california. for more on the epidemic, we're joined by dr. andrew kolodny, co-director of opioid policy research at the heller school for social policy and management at brandeis university. he is also co-founder and director of f physicians for responsible opioid prescribing. welcome to democracy now! can you respond to both the epidemic and opioid use and

was going on in china, percent who did many stories behind the lines in the liberated areas of south vietnam these journalists felt it was necessary for the american people to see the other side. i'm wondering why this one, this time around they have been really blasting you? >> listen, you go back in american history, we talked about t this bias against russsa since 191917. we did not even recognize red russia until 1933 with roosevelt. he was the first one. he believed in an alliance, a grand alliance with the russia, u.s., england, and china. if he had lived a few more months, i think it would have been a completely different framework for the world. we talked about this, too. russia, the bias against russia, he goes to james bond, the feeling that schmerber should is behind it are mr. putin has been recognized in a cartoonish way as a doctor no figure. you don't go there. i'm surprised because americans should really, if they think of him as this threat to america. our generals say they're the number one existential threat to the u.s. if you believe that, we should know more about them a

vietnam? here we are adrift in the south china sea when a u.s. navy ship came upon our vessel, -- a -- they refueled and helped us get to a refugee camp. a church answered our family and relocated us to virginia. they helped my parents get jobs, and they work multiple jobs to ensure that they could make ends meet and help my brother and i focus on our education. it is that moment of -- whether it is earned a pity, or just -- serendipity or providence. the u.s. navy was patrolling and ensuring freedom of navigation in the south china sea when they came upon us, and they extended their grace to stranded strangers. strangers. reporter: you bring up military influence on your life, you worked in national security intelligence. briefly, what did you do? >> i worked worked in national security at f defense -- both rumsfeld, and gait. i worked on counterterrorism, and strategic planning. reporter: so now you work -- you serve in the armed services committee. what do you think you will bring to the committee? >> you now serve on the armed services commit

it is finally important for vietnam to make sure the principle of navigation and overflight in the south china sea in accordance with international law, including the 1982 clause, we appreciate the value of cooperation for peace and shared prosperity in compliance with international law. we believe that geopolitically speaking, vietnam and the united states share the values and principles that can lay the foundation for peace and cooperation in the asia-pacific region. p.m. xuan phuc: [speaking vietnamese] translator: on trade, our economies are more complementary than competitive. american boeing planes, electric engines, high-tech medical equipment, pharmaceuticals. imported nearly 1.5 tons of corn, soybeans, wheat, and half a million tons -- we export shrimp, catfish, fruits, vegetables, wood furniture, garments, footwear which have become favorite products for american consumers. last year, our bilateral state grew to 50 billion u.s. dollars. p.m. xuan phuc: [speaking vietnamese] translator: i would like to say that the growth of american exports to vietnam has seen a steady but rapi

and it was eleven different nations many in asia including australia singapore japan vietnam and then in south america to peru cheveley maybe bolivia much for libya and then mexico the u.s. and canada so huge deal and what we're trying to do the u.s. two goals one was to sort of wean the rest of these countries off of china a little bit and have them go once on the u.s. right particularly troublesome now that china is sort of acting like a leader with their built in road initiative the moon but bottom the second reason it would be a good deal is that these trading partners have relied on china for so long that we want to give them some comfort to raise their standards as opposed to lowering their standards so both with labor rights and environmental rights and sustainable development so that's what we were pushing is the united states that's changed a lot in this administration and interestingly the other eleven nations that are part of the pacific partnership they're going to go it alone they're going to do it without the united states so it's so ironic that we in the u.s. had this pushed it

a very high rating in vietnam, philippines, south korea. australians if you look at the bottom of the screen you can see it essentially is divided right now in terms of viewing in the us with australia being a longtime ally of the us. in the middle east consistently high ratings for the us in virtually all of our surveys in israel. even if users us president fluctuated a bit over time. negative ratings mostly in the middle east. something lived seen consistently over time. when president obama came to office he hoped to turn around america's image in the region. having a famous speech in cairo in 2009. to kick off the efforts. we do not see a real change during the obama presidency in terms of views of the us and it is certainly very negative this year especially in turkey and jordan. africa is a region where we have typically seen mostly positive views towards the united states. that was true during the bush era when it was anti-americanism. in many regions. he was pretty popular there, his policies were relatively popular there and leader

very high ratings in vietnam, philippines, south korea, australians you look down at the bottom of the screen if can you see it, essentially divided right now in terms of views of the u.s. of course, australia a long timal yi timal yi of the unit-- long tim long time al yi of the united states. negative ratings in the middle east. something we've seen consistently over time. of course, president obama came into office hoping to turn around america's image in the region, give a famous speech in cairo and june 2009 sort of to kick off the efforts. we didn't see a real sea change during the obama presidency in terms of views of the u.s. and certainly very negative in this year's survey specially in turkey and jordan. africa is a region we've seen a positive views towards the united states. that was true during the buescher are a when there was a rise in anti-americanism in many regions. he was pretty popular there. his policies were relatively popular there and the u.s. continued to get good rate tlgz. same is true or maybe even more so than the obama era. even though there are declines i

very high ratings in vietnam, philippines, south korea. australians look down at the bottom of the screen, you can see, essentially divided right now in terms of viewses of the u.s. australia a longtime ally of the united states. in the middle east, consistently high ratings for the u.s. in vir call chally all our surveys and israel, even if views of the u.s. president fluctuated a bit over time. negative ratings in the middle east something we've seen consistently. president obama came into office hoping to turn around america's image in the region, gave a famous speech in cairo in 2000 to kick off those efforts. didn't see a sea change in the obama presidency in terms of views of the u.s., it's certainly very negative in this year's survey especially in turkey and junior dan. africa is a region where we've typically seen mostly positive views toward the united states. that was true during the bush era when there was a rise in anti-americanism in many regions. he was pretty popular there. his policies were relatively popular there. the u.

very high ratings in vietnam, philippines, south korea, australia and at the bottom of the screen essentially divided right now in terms of the u.s. and australia a longtime ally of the united states. in the middle east consistently high ratings from the u.s. and virtually all of our surveys in israel have fluctuated a little little bit over time. negative ratings mostly in the middle east consistently over time since president obama came into office hoping to turn around america's image in the region and give his famous speech in cairo to kick off his efforts. we didn't see a real sea change here in the obama presidency in terms of the u.s. and this year survey especially in turkey and jordan. africa is a region where we typically have seen mostly positive views for the united states.wh that was true during the bush era when we survived anti-americanism. he was pretty popular there. his policies were relatively popular there. the same is true or maybe even more so during the obama era and even though they had been these declines in africa in their survey on balance the countries we surveyed

very high ratings in vietnam, philippines, south korea. australians look down at the bottom of the screen, you can see, essentially divided right now in terms of viewses of the u.s. australia a longtime ally of the united states. in the middle east, consistently high ratings for the u.s. in vir call chally all our surveys and israel, even if views of the u.s. president fluctuated a bit over time. negative ratings in the middle east something we've seen consistently. president obama came into office hoping to turn around america's image in the region, gave a famous speech in cairo in 2000 to kick off those efforts. didn't see a sea change in the obama presidency in terms of views of the u.s., it's certainly very negative in this year's survey especially in turkey and junior dan. africa is a region where we've typically seen mostly positive views toward the united states. that was true during the bush era when there was a rise in anti-americanism in many regions. he was pretty popular there. his policies were relatively popular there. the u.

1900 and 1950 that really set the stage for a lot of what was to come, including south korea, the korean war and the vietnam war. ats a period he's looking the started with american involvement in conjunction with the boxer rebellion of 1900. this of course was before xi jinping is even a twinkle in or maybeump's eye, it's vice versa, i'm not sure. the event continues. i think our favorite and most successful programming partnership with the command and general staff college, they are specialists in a sure many of you have been to their presentations before. they do not fail. are engaging, they are enlightening, and they are entertaining. they are terrific to have here. firstk this is geoff's time here. he's overdue. he's taught there since 1991. he's a retired u.s. army's daschle versus officer. he was lieutenant colonel. as as trained by the army china for an area officer, which is one of the military branch he served the region on the joint staff. he was in the defense intelligence agency, so he has an intelligence background. he was a senior china analyst and deputy director of current intelligence with

conduct of parties in the south china sea and the work towards early conclusion of a code of conduct. [ speaking vietnamese ] >> translator: second, about the growth of vietnam/u.s. comprehensive partnership. it is vietnam's policy to develop mutually comprehensive, and lasting cooperation with the united states on basis of respect for each other's independence and sovereignty. [ speaking vietnamese ] >> translator: as an asia pacific nation, vietnam shares maritime boundaries with six asean countries and china. for vietnam is vitally important to ensure the freedom of navigation in accordance with the international law including the 1982 clause. more than probably anyone, we appreciate the value of cooperation for peace and shared prosperity in compliance with international law. we believe that strategically speaking vietnam and the united states share the values and principles that can lay the foundations for peace and cooperation in the asia pacific region. [ speaking vietnamese ] >> translator: on trade, our two economies are more complementary than competitive. electric engines, high-tech medical equipments, and pharmaceuticals. in 2016 alone, vietnam r

vietnam. >> a lot of people expect a measure on steel imports south korea would be a big player in that, and believe the president has not held a press conference after the last few foreign leaders visits >>> now to the senate's healthcare bill. the senate majority leader mitch mcconnell is reworking the measure to get the 50 votes necessary to pass it mcconnell is trying to appease both sides reports say republican leaders plan to reduce insurance mandates and raise tax deductions for health savings accounts >>> coming up, today's trending stories. overnight, jay-z dropping hits latest album why one of his tracks is a full-on apology to his wife, beyonce. >>> and why the internet is going crazy over this. >>> as we head to break, here's the national weather forecast from nbc's bill karins >>> good friday morning to you time to get into our getaway day forecast thunderstorms in missouri and oklahoma, areas of kansas. some of those storms could be strong wind damage is the biggest threat airport delays possible in detroit, buffalo, albany, louisville, indianapolis and oklahoma city. maybe eve

south carolina, line for independents. morning. caller: yeah, good morning. yeah, i would like to agree with that called from maryland as far as draft goes. you think back during vietnam, you didn't see a lot of attention paid to getting out of until the college kids were getting drafted in large numbers. started, then you had biff and lance's mom and dad scared their little boy was going to get shot over there and they put an end to it. to remind ike everybody that in 1942, on this we were in battle of midway and a lot of decent, people died so that we could call on the phone and it.e devil about host: john, did you serve in the military, john? was in the 17th calvary, during the age of nixon, long ago. it wasn't real popular then, but that everybody can serve. if you don't want to carry a gun, you can drive an ambulance, truck, you can assist in all kinds of ways for support. don't have to be on the front line. i think everybody should have skin in the game, i really that.e host: how long were you deployed, john? deployed, i was lucky enough that i fought the of fayetteville, i didn't go overseas. creek, south oose carolina. oan rochester, line for democrats. caller

things look at the free south africa movement some of you were involved in. things like the anti-vietnam war movement, which we thought we lost, and i not only was in the movement as a student at the university of michigan, i pretend i was a correspondent and went to vietnam and actually covered the war one summer. but we thought we had lost. we found out later that richard nixon stopped the peace process that was about to go forward. the point is, theres movements during the time of the presidents since then. sometimes friendly presidents you have to oppose. they've start doing stuff you don't like. look at the indians and obama in south dakota. we all love obama but he had to be pressured to get him to do something about the treaty, and now look what trump has done with it. pressure has to be brought. the point is that there have been movements of people who are willing to not just march, because marching is important, and not just to come to rallies but to put their bodies on the line in civil disobedience and other ways in order to get things to change itch don't think we're at that

of ten soldiers during a battle in vietnam will be the first persona warded the medal of honor by president trump. the army says 71-year-old james mclieu en from southill be given the nation's highest military offer. he repeatedly brave gun fire to rescue men during a 19 a969ba a normally it is awarded within five years of the heroic actions. >>ngress waived the time limit . isin h technology could soon he you move faster on your next flight. the pilot program that could make boarding passesthe a past. >> plus wild weather e, mother retunaghau c >> there is nothing wild about ours. it's going to be getting hot. as you seeerkie oo lis nt ngo f >>> storm chasers, this week captured incredible footage showing the rawower lofok at this thing up close. my goodness, this is incredible video of a twister just ripping a shreds. storm chaser captured it near harrisburg, nebraska. multiple were in the western part of the state. in wyoming, a string of damage was accuweather forecast with spencer christian. >> too stormy for me. leerz' a look at live doppler 7 where we have calm conditions nnssyroac skies now, a little bf a heat wave coming later in the week.

south korea, australia, new zealand. we're developing stronger relationships with vietnam. a little in and out with philippines.on. >> do any of them have navy. >> they v all have navy. japanese operates superb vessels like our ballistic missile system. best diesel submarines in the world which we don't operate. we fit together nicely with the japanese and south koreans and we need them as well to solve the north korea problem. >> the president has taken up the call. we have the bigger navy. budget doesn't quite do that. do you think he's right fundamentally the navy is not up to the challenge of global protection. >> i absolutely do. and that's not just admiral talking. every responsible analyst would agree that we need about 350 ships. today we have about 275. granted they're very capable, but quantity does not -- you can't overcome quality without quantity at some point. so over time we're going to need to increase those numbers of ships. this budget hasn't got and it's one area wherele i think the trump administration has said t the. >> the water wars. are those also a major threat in the perspective of the