Whether he liked it or not, Johnson was compelled to slow down while another painful effort was made to paste together a new puppet government which could be presented as "stable and "popular" and ®anti-Communist™ and well worth the risk of a nuclear holocaust.
Meanwhile the crisis in Washington deepened. Precious time had been given the American people to begin registering their deep opposition to Johnson's war adventure. One senator reported that his mail was running fifteen to one in favor of negotiations. _
Socialists and members of the peace. movement were mobilizing their forces for demonstrations...
The sector of the capitalist class that considers the risks altogether too high was putting on heavy pressure for reconsideration and some kind of negotiations, utilizing the French government as.a go-between. The New York Times was even campaigning with strong arguments for such a course.
‘The world could thank the power of the revolution in South Vietnam for bringing at least temporary relief from Johnson's fit of . "brinkmanship."”