英语演讲：-The Great Silent Majority-.doc

演讲稿 英语演讲：the great silent majority richardm.nixon:thegreatsilentmajoritygoodevening,myfellowamericans.tonightiwanttotalktoyouonasubjectofdeepconcerntoallamericansandtomanypeopleinallpartsoftheworld,thewarinvietnam.ibelievethatoneofthereasonsforthedeepdivisionaboutvietnamisthatmanyamericanshavelostconfidenceinwhattheirgovernmenthastoldthemaboutourpolicy.theamericanpeoplecannotandshouldnotbeaskedtosupportapolicywhichinvolvestheoverridingissuesofwarandpeaceunlesstheyknowthetruthaboutthatpolicy.tonight,therefore,iwouldliketoanswersomeofthequestionsthatiknowareonthemindsofmanyofyoulisteningtome. howandwhydidamericagetinvolvedinvietnaminthefirstplace? howhasthisadministrationchangedthepolicyofthepreviousadministration? whathasreallyhappenedinthenegotiationsinparisandthebattlefrontinvietnam? whatchoicesdowehaveifwearetoendthewar? whataretheprospectsforpeace? nowletmebeginbydescribingthesituationifoundwheniwasinauguratedonjan.20th:thewarhadbeengoingonforfouryears.thirty-onethousandamericanshadbeenkilledinaction.thetrainingprogramforthesouthvietnamesewasbehindschedule.fivehundredforty-thousandamericanswereinvietnamwithnoplanstoreducethenumber.noprogresshadbeenmadeatthenegotiationsinparisandtheunitedstateshadnotputforthaprehensivepeaceproposal. thewarwascausingdeepdivisionathomeandcriticismfrommanyofourfriend,aswellasourenemies,abroad. inviewofthesecircumstances,thereweresomewhourgedwithdrawalofallamericanforces.fromapoliticalstandpoint,thiswouldhavebeenapopularandeasycoursetofollow.afterall,webecameinvolvedinthewarwhilemypredecessorwasinoffice.icouldblamethedefeat,whichwouldbetheresultofmyaction,onhim-andeoutasthepeacemaker.someputittomequitebluntly:thiswastheonlywaytoavoidallowingjohnsonswartobeenixonswar. butihadagreaterobligationthantothinkonlyoftheyearsofmyadministration,andofthenextelection.ihadtothinkoftheeffectofmydecisiononthenextgeneration,andonthefutureofpeaceandfreedominamerica,andintheworld. letusallunderstandthatthequestionbeforeusisnotwhethersomeamericansareforpeaceandsomeamericansareagainstpeace.thequestionatissueisnotwhetherjohnsonswarbeesnixonswar.thegreatquestionis:howcanwewinamericaspeace? well,letusturnnowtothefundamentalissue:whyandhowdidtheunitedstatesbeeinvolvedinvietnaminthefirstplace?fifteenyearsagonorthvietnam,withthelogisticalsupportofcommunistchinaandthesovietunion,launchedacampaigntoimposeacommunistgovernmentonsouthvietnambyinstigatingandsupportingarevolution. inresponsetotherequestofthegovernmentofsouthvietnam,presidenteisenhowersenteconomicaidandmilitaryequipmenttoassistthepeopleofsouthvietnamintheireffortsofpreventacommunisttakeover.sevenyearsago,presidentkennedysent16,000militarypersonneltovietnamasbatadvisers.fouryearsago,presidentjohnsonsentamericanbatforcestosouthvietnam. nowmanybelievethatpresidentjohnsonsdecisiontosendamericanbatforcestosouthvietnamwaswrong.andmanyothers,iamongthem,havebeenstronglycriticalofthewaythewarhasbeenconducted. butthequestionfacingustodayis-nowthatweareinthewar,whatisthebestwaytoendit? injanuaryicouldonlyconcludethattheprecipitatewithdrawalofallamericanforcesfromvietnamwouldbeadisasternotonlyforsouthvietnambutfortheunitedstatesandforthecauseofpeace. forthesouthvietnamese,ourprecipitatewithdrawalwouldinevitablyallowthecommuniststorepeatthemassacreswhichfollowedtheirtakeoverinthenorth15yearsbefore.theythenmurderedmorethan50,000peopleandhundredsofthousandsmorediedinslavelaborcamps. wesawapreludeofwhatwouldhappeninsouthvietnamwhenthecommunistsenteredthecityofhuelastyear.duringtheirbriefrulethere,therewasabloodyreignofterrorinwhich3,000civilianswereclubbed,shottodeath,andburiedinmassgraves. withthesuddencollapseofoursupport,theseatrocitiesathuewouldbeethenightmareoftheentirenationandparticularlyforthemillion-and-ahalfcatholicrefugeeswhofledtosouthvietnamwhenthecommuniststookoverinthenorth. fortheunitedstatesthisfirstdefeatinournationshistorywouldresultinacollapseofconfidenceinamericanleadershipnotonlyinasiabutthroughouttheworld. threeamericanpresidentshaverecognizedthegreatstakesinvolvedinvietnamandunderstoodwhathadtobedone. in1963presidentkennedywithhischaracteristiceloquenceandclaritysaidwewanttoseeastablegovernmentthere,carryingonthestruggletomaintainitsnationalindependence. webelievestronglyinthat.wearenotgoingtowithdrawfromthateffort.inmyopinion,forustowithdrawfromthateffortwouldmeanacollapsenotonlyofsouthvietnambutsoutheastasia.soweregoingtostaythere. presidenteisenhowerandpresidentjohnsonexpressedthesameconclusionduringtheirtermsofoffice. forthefutureofpeace,precipitatewithdrawalwouldbeadisasterofimmensemagnitude.anationcannotremaingreatifitbetraysitsalliesandletsdownitsfriends.ourdefeatandhumiliationinsouthvietnamwithoutquestionwouldpromoterecklessnessinthecouncilsofthosegreatpowerswhohavenotyetabandonedtheirgoalsofworldconquest.thiswouldsparkviolencewhereverourmitmentshelpmaintainthepeace-inthemiddleeast,inberlin,eventuallyeveninthewesternhemisphere.ultimately,thiswouldcostmorelives.itwouldnotbringpeace.itwouldbringmorewar. forthesereasonsirejectedtheremendationishouldendthewarbyimmediatelywithdrawingallofourforces.ichoseinsteadtochangeamericanpolicyonboththenegotiatingfrontandthebattlefrontinordertoendthewaronmanyfronts.iinitiatedapursuitforpeaceonmanyfronts.inatelevisionspeechonmay14,inaspeechbeforetheunitednations,onanumberofotheroccasions,isetforthourpeaceproposalsingreatdetail. wehaveofferedthepletewithdrawalofalloutsideforceswithinoneyear.wehaveproposedtoceasefireunderinternationalsupervision.wehaveofferedfreeelectionsunderinternationalsupervisionwiththecommunistsparticipatingintheorganizationandconductoftheelectionsasanorganizedpoliticalforce. andthesaigongovernmenthaspledgedtoaccepttheresultoftheelection. wehavenotputforthourproposalsonatake-it-or-leave-itbasis.wehaveindicatedthatwerewillingtodiscusstheproposalsthathavebeenputforthbytheotherside.wehavedeclaredthatanythingisnegotiable,excepttherightofthepeopleofsouthvietnamtodeterminetheirownfuture. attheparispeaceconferenceambassadorlodgehasdemonstratedourflexibilityandgoodfaithin40publicmeetings.hanoihasrefusedeventodiscussourproposals.theydemandourunconditionalacceptanceoftheirtermswhicharethatwewithdrawallamericanforcesimmediatelyandunconditionallyandthatweoverthrowthegovernmentofsouthvietnamasweleave. wehavenotlimitedourpeaceinitiativestopublicforumsandpublicstatements.irecognizedinjanuarythatalongandbitterwarlikethisusuallycannotbesettledinapublicforum. thatiswhyinadditiontothepublicstatementsandnegotiations,ihaveexploredeverypossibleprivateavenuethatmightleadtoasettlement. tonight,iamtakingtheunprecedentedstepofdisclosingtoyousomeofourotherinitiativesforpeace,initiativesweundertookprivatelyandsecretlybecausewethoughtwetherebymightopenadoorwhichpubliclywouldbeclosed. ididnotwaitformyinaugurationtobeginmyquestforpeace.soonaftermyelection,throughanindividualwhowasdirectlyincontactonapersonalbasiswiththeleadersofnorthvietnam,imadetwoprivateoffersforarapid,prehensivesettlement. hanoisrepliescalledineffectforoursurrenderbeforenegotiations.sincethesovietunionfurnishesmostofthemilitaryequipmentfornorthvietnam,secretaryofstarerogers,myassistantfornationalsecurityaffairs,dr.kissinger;ambassadorlodgeandipersonallyhavemetonanumberofoccasionswithrepresentativesofthesovietgovernmenttoenlisttheirassistanceingettingmeaningfulnegotiationsstarted. inaddition,wehavehadextendeddiscussionsdirectedtowardthatsameendwithrepresentativesofothergovernmentswhichhavediplomaticrelationswithnorthvietnam. noneoftheseinitiativeshavetodateproducedresults.inmid-julyibecameconvincedthatitwasnecessarytomakeamajormovetobreakthedeadlockintheparistalks. ispokedirectlyinthisoffice,whereimnowsitting,withanindividualwhohadknownhochiminhonapersonalbasisfor25years.throughhimisentalettertohochiminh. ididthisoutsidetheusualdiplomaticchannelswiththehopethatwiththenecessityofmakingstatementsforpropagandaremoved,theremightbeconstructiveprogresstowardbringingthewartoanend. “dearmr.president: “irealizethatitisdifficulttomunicatemeaningfullyacrossthegulfoffouryearsofwar.butpreciselybecauseofthisgulfiwantedtotakethisopportunitytoreaffirminallsolemnitymydesiretoworkforajustpeace.ideeplybelievethatthewarinvietnamhasgoneontoolonganddelayinbringingittoanendcanbenefitnoone,leastofallthepeopleofvietnam.thetimehasetomoveforwardattheconferencetabletowardanearlyresolutionofthistragicwar.youwillfindusforthingandopen-mindedinamonefforttobringtheblessingsofpeacetothebravepeopleofvietnam.lethistoryrecordthatatthiscriticaljuncturebothsidesturnedtheirfacetowardspeaceratherthantowardconflictandwar. ireceivedhochiminhsreplyonaug.30,threedaysbeforehisdeath.itsimplyreiteratedthepublicpositionnorthvietnamhadtakenatparisandflatlyrejectedmyinitiative.thefulltextofbothlettersisbeingreleasedtothepress. inadditiontothepublicmeetingsthativereferredto,ambassadorlodgehasmetwithvietnamschiefnegotiatorinparisin11privatesessions. andwehavetakenothersignificantinitiativeswhichmustremainsecrettokeepopensomechannelsofmunicationswhichmaystillprovetobeproductive. buttheeffectofallthepublic,privateandsecretnegotiationswhichhavebeenundertakensincethebombinghaltayearago,andsincethisadministrationcameintoofficeonjan.20,canbesummedupinonesentence:noprogresswhateverhasbeenmadeexceptagreementontheshapeofthebargainingtable. well,now,whosatfault?itsbeingclearthattheobstacleinnegotiatinganendtothewarisnotthepresidentoftheunitedstates.itisnotthesouthvietnamesegovernment.theobstacleistheothersidesabsoluterefusaltoshowtheleastwillingnesstojoinusinseekingajustpeace. anditwillnotdosowhileitisconvincedthatallithastodoistowaitforournextconcession,andournextconcessionafterthatone,untilitgetseverythingitwants. therecannowbenolongeranyquestionthatprogressinnegotiationdependsonlyonhanoisdecidingtonegotiate-tonegotiateseriously. irealizethatthisreportonoureffortsonthediplomaticfrontisdiscouragingtotheamericanpeople,buttheamericanpeopleareentitledtoknowthetruth-thebadnewsaswellasthegoodnews-wherethelivesofouryoungmenareinvolved. nowletmeturn,however,toamoreencouragingreportonanotherfront.atthetimewelaunchedoursearchforpeace,irecognizedwemightnotsucceedinbringinganendtothewarthroughnegotiations.ithereforeputintoeffectanotherplantobringpeace-aplanwhichwillbringthewartoanendregardlessofwhathappensonthenegotiatingfront. itisinlinewiththemajorshiftinu.s.foreignpolicywhichidescribedinmypressconferenceatguamonjuly25. letmebrieflyexplainwhathasbeendescribedasthenixondoctrine-apolicywhichnotonlywillhelpendthewarinvietnambutwhichisanessentialelementofourprogramtopreventfuturevietnams. weamericansareado-it-yourselfpeople-wereanimpatientpeople.insteadofteachingsomeoneelsetodoajob,weliketodoitourselves.andthistraithasbeencarriedoverintoourforeignpolicy. inkorea,andagaininvietnam,theunitedstatesfurnishedmostofthemoney,mostofthearmamentandmostofthementohelpthepeopleofthosecountriesdefendtheirfreedomagainstcommunistaggressions. beforeanyamericantroopsweremittedtovietnam,aleaderofanotherasiancountryexpressedthisopiniontomewheniwastravelinginasiaasaprivatecitizen. hesaid:“whenyouaretryingtoassistanothernationdefenditsfreedom,unitedstatespolicyshouldbetohelpthemfightthewar,butnottofightthewarforthem.” wellinaccordancewiththiswisecounsel,ilaiddowninguamthreeprinciplesofguidelinesforfutureamericanpolicytowardasia. first,theunitedstateswilldeepallofitstreatymitments. second,weshallprovideashieldifanuclearpowerthreatensthefreedomofanationalliedwithus,orofanationwhosesurvivalweconsidervitaltooursecurity. third,incasesinvolvingothertypesofaggressionweshallfurnishmilitaryandeconomicassistancewhenrequestedinaccordancewithourtreatymitments.butweshalllooktothenationdirectlythreatenedtoassumetheprimaryresponsibilityofprovidingthemanpowerforitsdefense. afteriannouncedthispolicy,ifoundthattheleadersofthephilippines,thailand,vietnam,southkoreaandothernationswhichmightbethreatenedbycommunistaggression,weledthisnewdirectioninamericanforeignpolicy. thedefenseoffreedomiseverybodysbusiness-notjustamericasbusiness.anditisparticularlytheresponsibilityofthepeoplewhosefreedomisthreatened.inthepreviousadministration,weamericanizedthewarinvietnam.inthisadministration,wearevietnamizingthesearchforpeace. thepolicyofthepreviousadministrationnotonlyresultedinourassumingtheprimaryresponsibilityforfightingthewar,butevenmoresignificantdidnotadequatelystressthegoalofstrengtheningthesouthvietnamesesothattheycoulddefendthemselveswhenweleft. thevietnamizationplanwaslaunchedfollowingsecretarylairdsvisittovietnaminmarch.undertheplan,iorderedfirstasubstantialincreaseinthetrainingandequipmentofsouthvietnameseforces. injuly,onmyvisittovietnam,ichangedgeneralabramssorderssothattheywereconsistentwiththeobjectivesofournewpolicies. undertheneworders,theprimarymissionofourtroopsistoenablethesouthvietnameseforcestoassumethefullresponsibilityforthesecurityofsouthvietnam.ourairoperationshavebeenreducedbyover20percent. andnowwehavebeguntoseetheresultsofthislong-overduechangeinamericanpolicyinvietnam. afterfiveyearsofamericansgoingintovietnamwearefinallybringingamericanmenhome.bydec.15over60,000menwillhavebeenwithdrawnfromsouthvietnam,including20percentofallofourbatforces. thesouthvietnamesehavecontinuedtogaininstrength.asaresult,theyhavebeenabletotakeoverbatresponsibilitiesfromouramericantroops. twoothersignificantdevelopmentshaveoccurredsincethisadministrationtookoffice.enemyinfiltration,infiltrationwhichisessentialiftheyaretolaunchamajorattackoverthelastthreemonths,islessthan20percentofwhatitwasoverthesameperiodlastyear. andmostimportant,unitedstatescasualtieshavedeclinedduringthelasttwomonthstothelowestpointinthreeyears. letmenowturntoourprogramforthefuture.wehaveadoptedaplanwhichwehaveworkedoutincooperationwiththesouthvietnameseforthepletewithdrawalofallunitedstatesbatgroundforcesandtheirreplacementbysouthvietnameseforcesonanorderlyscheduledtimetable. thiswithdrawalwillbemadefromstrengthandnotfromweakness.assouthvietnameseforcesbeestronger,therateofamericanwithdrawalcanbeegreater. ihavenot,anddonot,intendtoannouncethetimetableforourprogram,andthereareobviousreasonsforthisdecisionwhichimsureyouwillunderstand.asiveindicatedonseveraloccasions,therateofwithdrawalwilldependondevelopmentsonthreefronts.oneoftheseistheprogresswhichcanbe,ormightbe,madeintheparistalks. anannouncementofafixedtimetableforourwithdrawalwouldpletelyremoveanyincentivefortheenemytonegotiateanagreement.theywouldsimplywaituntilourforceshadwithdrawnandthenmovein. theothertwofactorsonwhichwewillbaseourwithdrawaldecisionsarethelevelofenemyactivityandtheprogressofthetrainingprogramsofthesouthvietnameseforces. andimgladtobeabletoreporttonightprogressonbothofthesefrontshasbeengreaterthanweanticipatedwhenwestartedtheprograminjuneforwithdrawal. asaresult,ourtimetableforwithdrawalismoreoptimisticnowthanwhenwemadeourfirstestimatesinjune. nowthisclearlydemonstrateswhyitisnotwisetobefrozeninonafixedtimetable.wemustretaintheflexibilitytobaseeachwithdrawaldecisiononthesituationasitisatthattime,ratherthanonestimatesthatarenolongervalid. alongwiththisoptimisticestimate,imustinallcandorleaveonenoteofcaution.ifthelevelofenemyactivitysignificantlyincreases,wemighthavetoadjustourtimetableaccordingly.however,iwanttherecordtobepletelyclearononepoint. atthetimeofthebombinghaltjustayearagotherewassomeconfusionastowhethertherewasanunderstandingonthepartoftheenemythatifwestoppedthebombingofnorthvietnam,theywouldstoptheshellingofcitiesinsouthvietnam. iwanttobesurethatthereisnomisunderstandingonthepartoftheenemywithregardtoourwithdrawalprogram.wehavenotedthereducedlevelofinfiltration,thereductionofourcasualtiesandarebasingourwithdrawaldecisionspartiallyonthosefactors. ifthelevelofinfiltrationorourcasualtiesincreasewhilewearetryingtoscaledownthefighting,itwillbetheresultofaconsciousdecisionbytheenemy.hanoicouldmakenogreatermistakethantoassumethatanincreaseinviolencewillbetoitsadvantage. ificoncludethatincreasedenemyactionjeopardizesourremainingforcesinvietnam,ishallnothesitatetotakestrongandeffectivemeasurestodealwiththatsituation. thisisnotathreat.thisisastatementofpolicywhichasmanderinchiefofourarmedforcesiammakingandmeetingmyresponsibilityfortheprotectionofamericanfightingmenwherevertheymaybe. myfellowamericans,iamsureyoucanrecognizefromwhatihavesaidthatwereallyhaveonlytwochoicesopentousifwewanttoendthiswar. icanorderanimmediateprecipitatewithdrawalofallamericansfromvietnamwithoutregardtotheeffectsofthataction. orwecanpersistinoursearchforajustpeacethroughanegotiatedsettlement,ifpossible,orthroughcontinuedimplementationofourplanforvietnamization,ifnecessary.aplaninwhichwewillwithdrawallofourforcesfromvietnamonascheduleinaccordancewithourprogramasthesouthvietnamesebeestrongenoughtodefendtheirownfreedom. ihavechosenthissecondcourse.itisnottheeasyway.itistherightway.itisaplanwhichwillendthewarandservethecauseofpeace,notjustinvietnambutinthepacificandtheworld. inspeakingoftheconsequencesofaprecipitouswithdrawal,imentionedthatourallieswouldloseconfidenceinamerica.formoredangerous,wewouldloseconfidenceinourselves.oh,theimmediatereactionwouldbeasenseofreliefthatourmenwereinghome.butaswesawtheconsequencesofwhatwehaddone,inevitableremorseanddivisiverecriminationwouldscarourspiritasapeople. wehavefacedothercrisesinourhistoryandwehavebeestrongerbyrejectingtheeasywayoutandtakingtherightwayinmeetingourchallenges.ourgreatnessasanationhasbeenourcapacitytodowhathastobedonewhenweknewourcoursewasright. irecognizethatsomeofmyfellowamericanshavereacheddifferentconclusionsastohowpeaceshouldbeachieved.honestandpatrioticcitizensdisagreewiththeplanforpeaceihavechosen. insanfranciscoafewweeksago,isawdemonstratorscarryingsignsreading,“lostinvietnam,bringtheboyshome.” well,oneofthestrengthsofourfreesocietyisthatanyamericanhasasrighttoreachthatconclusionandtoadvocatethatpointofview. butaspresidentoftheunitedstates,iwouldbeuntruetomyoathofofficetobedictatedbytheminoritywhoholdthatpointofviewandwhotrytoimposeitonthenationbymountingdemonstrationsinthestreet. foralmost200years,thepolicyofthisnationhasbeenunderourconstitutionbythoselead