What was "The Easter Offensive", what was US government response, and how did US public react?

Answer 1

I was there.

I had just left the 101st Airborne Division in I Corps -which went home by December- (northern part of South Vietnam) and was at Can Tho in the Mekong Delta. My previous unit to that the 196th LIB was around Da Nang, they got the first action with their small CAV unit, and that famous BAT-21 pilot rescue incident.

The NVA was just rolling down Highway 1 and taking all the cities in the north, whilst our aviation assets were supporting the ARVN's. Places like Dong Ha, Quang Tri, fell quickly, and I had literaly handed over the keys to that place just weeks earlier.

We lost many helicopters each day. The ARVN's at times put up substantial Resistance.

All across Vietnam, NVA and VC "sapper" units hit firebases and facilities. The nearly closed base at Binh Thuy had an ammo dump that was attacked, they were say 5 miles north of where I was, I was one of the last Advisors in country, but had been quickly reassigned to the 164th CAG, a chopper unit.

Having lived in Texas, in San Antonio, I knew that the "Alamo" was about what was going on, but unlike Colonel Travis we had air support, This was the biggest offensive push of the war, greater in magnitude than either the 1968 Tet offensive and I knew that if we survied the nights well air power would save the day.

An Loc was the big news, yes we got papers and had radio, it was good were were bombing the North as 'we" the ARVN's and what little Army remained were in deep stuff. Most US losses were aviation and a few small teams of Advisors caught with the ARVN's in the north. I lost a few old comrades that first week but it was certain that after a week that the NVA was getting blown to pieces.

I recall that ARVN units way north fell aprt and even surrendered, suspect that was "planned", it was notable to me that the attacks in the Delta were against ARVN's and not us. That ammo dump was blown and I had to get a medical team inside the compound, at night and it seemed that it was a "great battle" all the noise was just the ammo exploding and there were few US casualties:
The NVA knew that we were Americans and I know that they just let us pass that night.

Any fool that believed that the ARVN's, however brave at times, could hold without air power was in a dream world. The military and Nixon fed the American people lies as to what a victory it was: manu US "MIA" flight crews, but even while the ARVN's were finishing up at An Loc, we started pulling out our avaition units in the Delta, I had 'no job', the "resources" that we turned over, as I had done at Quang Tri, were just empty buildings and such as medical supplies.

So Nixon made it look good, we had spent over a decade training the ARVN's and 'oops" we left them no real air power, the NVA tanks came back in 1975. But everyone voted for Nixon. I did not vote as for the last seven years I did not live anywhere in the States long enough to establish residency.

Answer 2

The Easter Offensive was an attack by the communist forces in 1972 of North Vietnam and the Viet Cong in hopes of defeating the South Vietnamese forces before Ho Chi Minh died. The offensive failed mainly because of poor planning on part of the North and US and South Vietnamese air power. The US had withdrawn a large number of their ground combat forces by then, so the communists thought it would be an easy victory. The American public greeted this development with the strong support that they'd shown throughout the war, but the protesters were out in force. Though the protest movement was losing steam, as a cessation of the draft was being discussed in Congress. It would pass in 1973.

Answer 3

Was it something to do with the arab israeli war?