The VietCong did not defeat the U.S. military. The VC and NVA were decimated after the ‘68 Tet offensive but General Giap was convinced (correctly) that the war could be won in the UnitedStates public arena.
“General Giap was convinced (correctly) that the war could be won in the UnitedStates public arena.”
IIRC, this is the same General who, many years afterward, admitted Tet was their “last hurrah”; that if the court of public opinion hadn’t ended U.S. military involvement, if we had, instead, regrouped and launched a counter offensive, they’d have folded like a house of cards, because they had nearly nothing left after Tet.
But it never was 100% public opinion; it was Deep State Washington that ended ‘Nam LONG before we left. When your General asks for 400,000 men and only gets 40,000 because politics... yeah, everybody in theater figures out damned quick, their fekking toast.
It’s not much consolation, but Hannibal was shafted the same way by partisan “Deep State” pols in Carthage.
SS.DD.