Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Becoming A Dove: Senator Claiborne Pell's Opposition To The Vietnam War, Kevin C. Klyberg

Master's Theses

This study examines the opposition of Senator Claiborne de Borda Pell to the Vietnam War and his role as a member of the United States Senate’s anti-war movement. Pell’s speeches, Senate statements, and correspondence reveal his criticism of the Vietnam policies of Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon and his attempts to alter them. Also, this study traces the influences which shaped Pell’s decisions, including his own experience in the United States Foreign Service, his theory about the forming of foreign policy, the opinions of his Rhode Island constituents, and his relationship with other Senate "Doves" who opposed the war.