Lyndon Baines Johnson - Thesis Example

LBJ – Lyndon Baines Johnson The era of 1950s marked the initiation of a decades-long war, ly the Cold War, between the capitalistic United States and the communist Soviet Union. The war was characterized by a conflict of ideologies that clashed to result in a war that was to change the world politics for quite a few decades ahead. By the time President John F. Kennedy was elected as the President, both countries, the US and the USSR had started forming blocs of their own – capitalist bloc and the communist bloc.

A sort of domino effect followed where gradually but progressively, states in Eastern Europe and South East Asia overthrew their governments to replace with a communist regime. This clash between the two states, rather ideologies threatened the start of a nuclear war. After President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, Lyndon Baines Johnson, also known LBJ, became the president. Following the stance over the domino theory in the South East Asian region, the US believed that communism was a necessary evil that would spread from one country to another much as dominos fall one by one inline.

Also, the Cuban Missile Crisis had also not proved to be favorable for the Americans thereby escalating the US need to intervene in the world stage. This intervention was seen in the light of America’s involvement in the Vietnam War following its communist takeover in South Vietnam by the Viet Cong. The event has been the most important one during the term of LBJ as the president, an incident for which he will be remembered for his failure at the war (Schwartz, 1-2). LBJ had adopted many of Kennedy’s policies and the American foreign policy during the Cold War era, particularly under LBJ’s regime, has been the center of much scholarly work.

His policy on Latin America is of vital importance as it advocated an anti-communist stand, particularly when countries such as Cuba were holding anti-US sentiments at the time resulting in aid from the Soviets. This form of special interest in the Latin American region resulted in the mobilization of US soldiers in Santo Domingo. Another important matter to consider during the LBJ era is America’s friendly relationship with Israel. LBJ’s decision during the Six Days War made him the consolidator of America’s relations with Israel (Johnson, n.pag.).

America having faced failure in Vietnam only a while back, the US did not want to engage itself in yet another war. In his article, Quandt mentions that LBJ endeavored to prevent the hostilities by telling Israel not to resort to force but things did not go that well (198). The United States found itself to be involved in the region’s strategically important conflict where the US interest in the Middle East and its relations with Israel. The American response was important as it determined the resolution of conflict between the two parties.

Thus, Johnson’s era was marked by conflicts and events that shaped many of the present day international affairs. Works Cited Quandt, William B. Lyndon Johnson And The June 1967 War: What Color Was The Light?. The Middle East Journal (1992): 198--228. Print. Johnson, Robert David. Lyndon Johnson and Israel. 1st ed. Tel Aviv: S. Daniel Abraham Center for International and Regional Studies, Tel Aviv University, 2008. Print. Schwartz, Thomas A. NATO, Europe, And The Johnson Administration: Alliance Politics, Political Economy, And The Beginning Of Detente, 1963-1969".

North Atlantic Treaty Organization. N. p., 2009. Web.