Today even the New York Times has had to concede that Tet was an overwhelming American victory. But, like many others, it still refuses to acknowledge the implications. Tet not only destroyed the Vietcong as an effective political and military force; together with the siege of Khe Sanh, it also crippled the NVA. Like the Somme or Verdun in World War I, these big battles exacted a price in “a lost generation” of North Vietnamese youth. Small wonder that in mid-1968 General Giap made the fateful decision to scale back NVA operations to hit-and-run raids while relying more heavily than ever on the sanctuaries in Laos and Cambodia.
The Tet template was used against President Bush by the Drive-Bys. But he was made of sterner stuff than Flop Ears (Lyndon Johnson). Had Johnson told Cronkite to go to hell, we would have prevailed in Vietnam. Many Cambodians would have live a bit longer.
It took them several years after Tet to get up the strength for their next big offensive up in the DMZ area.
The Communists were hurt bad in 1968, but the spirit of the American people was broken by the mainstream media bias and sensationalism.