ABSTRACT
Richard Nixon thought a secret, worldwide nuclear alert would remain unknown to the American public, and he was right. Nixon hoped that the nuclear alert would cause the Soviets and North Vietnamese to think it was a lead-up to Duck Hook, thus jarring them into making the diplomatic compromises demanded by the United States. In contrast to skeptical anti-war critics, Nixon, Kissinger, and other policy-makers believed that achieving their goals in Indochina would have a critical bearing on the global influence of the United States. On the military front, Nixon continued to carry out the ground operations in South Vietnam begun by the last administration, including "pacification" and big-unit sweeps—and he envisioned adding more ground and air options. Nixon viewed the different elements of his evolving Vietnam plan as an interrelated whole. In a meeting with Republican senators on September 27, Nixon staged simultaneous ploys with the senators and Ambassador Dobrynin.
