Trump claims he could've won Vietnam War in a week — SkimNews
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- Trump claimed he could have won the Vietnam War in a week during a rally, asserting flawed military strategy by past administrations cost the U.S. a quick victory.
- Trump criticized the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam, suggesting bombing Ho Chi Minh City instead would have ended the war faster, not recognizing it was then Saigon and the capital of U.S.-aligned South Vietnam.
- Critics pointed out that Hanoi, not Saigon, was the capital of North Vietnam and the actual enemy target, noting the U.S. had already conducted major bombing campaigns like Operation Rolling Thunder against the North.
- Internet users mocked Trump’s remarks, highlighting the contradiction of proposing to bomb Saigon, where U.S. troops were stationed and which served as the South Vietnamese capital.
- Trump previously claimed he could have won the Vietnam War in three to four months, reinforcing a pattern of asserting decisive military solutions to protracted U.S. conflicts.
Why it matters: Trump’s claim undermines widely accepted military history and risks misinforming the public, while reinforcing concerns about his grasp of foreign conflicts—potentially influencing voter perception ahead of the midterms, where national security credibility is at stake.
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