The Presidency: Protecting the Flank

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jacket aboard Air Force One (he omitted the cowboy boots and Stetson). Above the presidential plane, four Phantom jets flew cover; below, Navy ships were on alert in the South China Sea.

One for Texas. The site chosen, above six others originally under consideration, was Cam Ranh Bay, on the grounds that 1) it could be approached from the sea, eliminating possible sniper fire; 2) the nearest fighting was 50 miles away; and 3) the base is precisely what Lyndon Johnson has in mind when he says the facilities now abuilding in Viet Nam will some day be turned to the purposes of peace. One of the world's great natural harbors, it has been converted into a sprawling, 75-sq.-mi. complex whose port facilities already handle as much tonnage as Saigon.

On the ground, an honor guard of 1,000 Army, Navy, Marine, Air Force and Coast Guard men had been assembled; one Marine company had been flown down from Danang for the visit in jungle fatigues and camouflaged steel helmets. Forty U.S. flags fluttered along with unit flags for such fighting outfits as the 1st Air Cav, the 1st Marine and the 101st Airborne Brigade.

In a special Jeep fitted with a hand rail, Johnson and Westmoreland reviewed the troops, then proceeded to a flat-bed truck draped with blue-and-white bunting and fitted out as a speakers' stand. On the stand were Ky, Thieu and Lodge, who had arrived earlier. Before he began to speak, Johnson handed out three Distinguished Service Crosses, a Navy Cross (the nation's second highest decorations, after the Medal of Honor) and a Silver Star to five men.

"Thank You." Johnson, squinting at the rows of lean, weatherbeaten men who crowded around the makeshift stand, told them: "I came here today for one good reason: simply because I could not come to this part of the world and not come to see you." Added the President: "I give you my pledge: We shall never let you down, or your fighting comrades, or the 15 million people of South Viet Nam, or the hundreds of millions of Asians who are counting on us to show here—here in Viet Nam-that aggression doesn't pay, and that aggression can't succeed."

Sweating heavily, with both temperature and humidity in the 80s, Johnson peeled off his jacket, self-consciously patted his paunch, then sprang another surprise. He presented Westmoreland with a Distinguished Service Medal "for his courage, for his leadership, for his determination, and for his great ability as a soldier and as a patriot." Like the good soldier he is, the general betrayed no surprise, did not even turn his head when he heard the news. "American fighting men," concluded the President, "you have the respect, you have the support, you have the prayers of a grateful President and of a grateful nation."

Plunging into the olive-drab crowd, the President heard an Army corporal say "Thank you for coming." "Thank you," he replied, "for being here." He reached for outthrust hands. "How about one for Texas?" shouted one soldier. The President gave him a hearty handshake and a big grin. In the air-conditioned Quonsets of the base hospital, the President gave out two dozen Purple Hearts, signed "L.B.J." on casts and fatigue caps, shook hands with nurses in baggy fatigues.

"Keep Safe." At the