“Are you talking about Project Phoenix (SETI) dealing with the search for extraterrestrial intelligence?”
No. The Viet Cong operated like the mafia, in that they had a man in every village. He wanted nothing, and asked nothing, but if anything happened to him, the entire village would be made to pay.
Maybe once a year or so, the villagers would be required to provide labor/taxes/support for the Viet Cong. A hundred men
might have to haul weapons, dig tunnels, etc. — had to. No excuses for failure.
Everybody was afraid to report on these men for the same reason nobody tells on the mafia guy.
The Phoenix program was designed to take these men out.
It did so, but whether it killed a lot of other extraneous people or personal enemies, is debatable.
Oh you are talking about Operation Phoenix A.K.A. Phoenix Program. gotcha. If Mueller was working as a CAI operative in Vietnam then he probably was involved, but as far as I know he was A Marine only.