The Road Not Taken: Edward Lansdale and the American Tragedy in Vietnam

by Max Boot

Just days after the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis, George McManus, an aide to Richard Helms, wrote on November 5, 1962, “With a political solution to the Cuban problem in hand reflecting great credit on the part of the President, the A.G. [attorney general] will drop Lansdale like a hot brick.” He professed himself delighted that Task Force W would no longer be “available to Lansdale as a ‘whipping boy’ ” and would instead become “a normal part of our monolithic Agency structure.” His only concern: “Lansdale’s reaction to any reassignment is apt to be a violent one. He undoubtedly realizes that he never again will be in the position of a special adviser to the most powerful men in the country. Therefore . . . he might be able to inflict serious damage to CIA’s standing before his eventual demise.” Psychologists would call this a case of projection. In reality, there was no evidence that the easygoing Lansdale ever displayed such vindictiveness—in contrast to his bureaucratic foes, who pursued their vendetta against him with increasing success.104 Having failed to achieve the Kennedys’ most cherished desire, Lansdale lost their favor. He was left naked before his bureaucratic enemies, including his own boss, Robert McNamara. It was probably no coincidence that his military career ended less than a year after Mongoose did. “I think the thing that hurt me the most in the long run was the task that Kennedy gave me on Cuba,” he reflected decades later. “I’m sorry I eve...