The version of the Congressional Record that is usually found on the shelves of libraries is in very large hardcover volumes. But it takes time to publish those. So there is also a version that has a separate softcover volume for each day's record; this can be published much more quickly. The two versions have very different page numbering systems. Page numbers in the daily softcover volumes are prefixed "S" for Senate or "H" for House of Representatives. In some of the cases listed below, I have been able to give links to the text, online in the Virtual Vietnam Archive of the Vietnam Project, at Texas Tech University.
Senator Thomas Dodd [Democrat of Connecticut, and a prominent hawk], "Vietnam and the Far East," June 10, 1965, pp. 12616-12630, described the importance of Vietnam in fairly strong terms, saying that "If we fail to hold the line in Vietnam, it would require an effort tenfold greater to hold the line elsewhere in Asia." (p. 12616). He criticized the press coverage of Vietnam at some length. This was followed by discussion among several senators (pp. 12630-12635). The text.
Interesting information on Tonkin Gulf was inserted by Wayne Morse into the Congressional Record, on the following dates in 1968: Feb. 21, pp. 3813-28; Feb. 28, pp. 4578-83; Feb. 29, pp. 4691-97.
April 21, 1971: John G. Schmitz of CA, "The Second Front of the Vietnam War': Communist Subversion in the Peace Movement." pp. 11156-11201.
Senator Thomas Dodd entered into the Congressional Record on December 3, 1970, pp. S19305-S19327, two reports on drug abuse in the military, both written by or for the military and obtained by Dodd from the Pentagon, one by a team headed by Jerome A. Vasek USMC, and the other by Morris D. Stanton, Ph.D. The text (slightly incomplete).
On April 5, 1971, Senator Mark Hatfield (R-OR) asked unanimous consent for the transcripts of the "Winter Soldier" hearings of January 31 to February 2, 1971, sponsored by Vietnam Veterans Against the War and held in Detroit (see The Antiwar Movement). At these hearings, former military personnel denounced U.S. atrocities in Vietnam. The transcripts were published in the "Extensions of Remarks" section of the Congressional Record April 6, 1971. E2825-E2840, E2841-E2857, E2858-E2874, E2875-E2890, E2891-E2902 (the Winter Soldier transcripts end on page E2900; there is a separate item on pages E2901-E2902, entered into the Congressional Record by Representative Philip M. Crane, about radicals' plans for anti-war protests in Washington, D.C.
April 21, 1971: John G. Schmitz of CA, "The Second Front of the Vietnam War': Communist Subversion in the Peace Movement." pp. 11156-11201.
May 19, 1971: John G. Schmitz of CA predicted Communist reprisals in South Vietnam after a Communist victory, with long quotes from P.J. Honey and Anita Lauve Nutt. pp. 15994-15998.
Figures on the numbers of ships of non-Communist nations visiting North Vietnamese ports (recently declining: visits by British-flag vessels dropped from 114 in 1968, to 74 in 1969, to 40 in 1970; Italian vessels 1 in 1968, none in 1969 or 1970; Japanese vessels 1 in 1968, 3 in 1969, none in 1970) were printed in the Congressional Record January 25, 1971, p. 456. Further information on this subject was printed March 3, 1971, p. 4950; June 14, 1971, p. 19717; January 24, 1972, pp. 789-90; May 9, 1972, p. 16338.
Figures (from Arthur H. Westing) on surface munitions use (mostly artillery shells) 1966 to 1970: March 23, 1972, p. 9816.
On May 10, 1972, Ronald Dellums (D-CA) entered into the Congressional Record a massive body of documentation, probably coming from Daniel Ellsberg, relating to NSSM 1 of early 1969, printed on pp. 16749-16836. Issues include: disputes over Order of Battle (pp. 16751, 16763); disputes over the significance of Sihanoukville (pp. 16752, 16763); the domino Theory (p. 16760); PAVN withdrawal from South Vietnam in summer and fall of 1968 (p. 16762); Chinese and Soviet aid to the DRV 1965-68 (p. 16773).
On January 23, 1973, Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) placed in the record a number of articles on the air war in Indochina. pp. S1211-S1218.
Senate discussion of H.R. 16593, Department of Defense Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1973, October 2, 1972, pp. S16517-S16534. Includes discussion of an amendment by Senator Proxmire, proposing a cutoff of all U.S. bombing in all of Indochina. Proxmire made the interesting point that if the United States was worried about Chinese expansion into Southeast Asia, North Vietnam would be a useful bulwark against such expansion, if the United States did not weaken North Vietnam too much. The amendment was defeated overwhelmingly. Confusingly, pages are out of order, so that a vote on an unrelated amendment also by Senator Proxmire (dealing with KP for soldiers) is put into the middle of the discussion of the amendment on bombing.
There was an extended debate on halting U.S. bombing of Cambodia and other issues (including brief comments on the 1970 shootings at Kent State, by Rep. Seiberling of Ohio [pp. H3516-H3517]), in the House of Representatives, on May 10, 1973: pp. H3548-H3597, pp. H3598-H3618.
On July 10, 1974, Senator Barry Goldwater (R-AZ) placed in the record (pp. 22519-22525) "Report from Vietnam" by Goldwater's legal assistant, J. Terry Emerson.
The rate of actual delivery of US military aid to Saigon, from the $700 million appropriated for FY 1975: a short statement of March 24, 1975 by Eric F. von Marbod of DOD, and a longer analysis by Guy Gran. Both in the record for March 26, 1975, pp. 8825-28.
On February 19, 1975, Senator George McGovern denounced the idea that Communist victory in South Vietnam would lead to a "bloodbath," and entered into the record an article by D. Gareth Porter arguing that the Hue massacre of 1968 had been exaggerated. pp. S2189-S2194.
A Rep. Ashbrook (I presume this was John M. Ashbrook, R-Ohio) discussed the bloodbath issue on May 6, 1975, pp. H3703-H3710, citing and quoting interesting sources, both those saying a bloodbath would not occur (notably two articles in the New York Times, one by Sydney Schanberg that he said was 4/18/75, and which I believe was actually 4/13/75, and one by Fox Butterfield 4/27/75) and those saying one was occurring. The text has been placed on-line in the Virtual Vietnam Archive of the Vietnam Project at Texas Tech University.
Senator Barry Goldwater provided texts of US military rules of engagement in South Vietnam, dated 1968 and 1971, on June 6, 1975, pp. 17551-58.
In 1985, Senator Goldwater provided a number of documents relating to the rules of engagement, most of which had originally been classified, including substantial portions of some CHECO reports (Air Force internal histories--see under U.S. Air Force Publications). These have been gathered together in a composite .pdf file and placed on-line in the Virtual Vietnam Archive of the Vietnam Project at Texas Tech University.
L.E. Patterson, Evolution of the Rules of Engagement for Southeast Asia, 1960-1965, CHECO Report, in the Congressional Record for March 6, 1985, pp. 4636-46 (S2632-41).
Major John Schlight, Rules of Engagement, 1 January 1966-1 November 1969, CHECO Report, in the Congressional Record for March 14, 1985, pp. 5248-56 (S2982-90).
Captain Paul W. Elder and Captain Peter J. Melly, Rules of Engagement, November 1969-September 1972, CHECO Report, in the Congressional Record for March 18, 1985, pp. 5278-85 (S3011-18).
An assortment of documents on rules of engagement for air and ground forces within South Vietnam, issued between 1966 and 1971, in the Congressional Record for March 26, 1985, pp. 6262-70 (S3512-20).
A JCS paper recommending less restriction on bombing, given to Secretary of Defense Clifford in 1968, in the Congressional Record for March 26, 1985, pp. 6261-62 (S3511-12).
A paper "Vietnam Rules of Engagement," by J. Terry Emerson, Goldwater's legal counsel, in the Congressional Record for May 6, 1985, pp. 10553-55 (S5431-32).
The U.S. Senate Historical Office does oral histories, not only
of senators, but also of staff members. Some of the oral histories
are now becoming available, in full, on the web site of the
Senate
Oral History Project.
Among those relevant to the Vietnam War are the oral histories of
Carl M. Marcy (Chief of Staff of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee 1955-1973 except when on leave) and
Pat M. Holt (who would be acting
Chief of Staff when Marcy was on leave, and became the regular Chief of
Staff at the beginning of 1974).
Legislation
United States Statutes at Large contains the text of every
piece of legislation that passes the Congress, is signed by the
president, and becomes law. It has one or two fat volumes per year,
and a pretty good subject index each year. You can read it online
if you are browsing the Internet through an institution
that has paid the subscription for HeinOnline. If you
prefer to read a bound volume, I believe the ones in the Clemson Library have recently been
moved from the non-circulating reference section (level 4) down to the bottom floor, call number
Ref KF50 .U5
Legislation on Foreign Relations through 1998.
Joint committee print, House Committee on International Relations and
Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, 1999. Volume I-A, containing
current legislation and related executive orders on foreign assistance,
over 800 pages total, is available in full, on-line, at a
GPO
web site. A number of the laws and executive orders dealing with
Indochina passed during the war are in this, some because they were
never repealed, other listed as having been repealed at such-and-such
a date. The on-line version is computer searchable, and thus easier
to use than a paper copy would be.
Next section:
Congressional Committee Documentation: Main List
Copyright © 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2018, Edwin E. Moise. This document may be reproduced only by permission. Revised April 20, 2018.