ABSTRACT
General Ky managed to survive in office, and the chronic instability that had plagued South Vietnamese politics since the anti-Diemist coup of November 1963 subsided. The June 1965 coup that brought Ky to power proved to South Vietnam's last. Assisted by General Westmoreland, Ky moved against the Buddhists. The suppression of the Buddhist uprising signaled the end of the Buddhists as a major factor in South Vietnamese politics. As the Vietnam War expanded in 1966 and 1967, the size of monthly draft calls grew larger, and the number of young conscripts being sent to fight in Vietnam increased. On December 23, 1967, President Johnson made a quick trip to Vietnam. At Cam Rahn Bay, addressing a gathering of US military commanders, including General Westmoreland, Johnson vowed that Americans would fight until they accomplished their mission. On January 17, Johnson told his fellow Americans that the United States will persevere. He declared 1968 "would be the year of victory in Vietnam.
