Technology invades the modern world

Chapter 319 What?! Oh my god?!

"Professor, I hope you will go to Geneva as the White House's plenipotentiary representative to conduct private talks with the Soviet Union regarding the Vietnam War."

Lin Ran was still resting in New York when the White House started making a series of calls.

They kept urging Lin Ran to return to Washington, saying that the president had something extremely urgent to discuss with him.

Lin Ran could guess what it was about; it was nothing more than the Vietnam War and the election.

What could make Lyndon Johnson so anxious was this: he could feel a strong anti-war atmosphere in New York, with almost everyone feeling that the war was unjust and should not continue.

This strong public support, coupled with the fact that this is an election year, puts real pressure on the White House.

Lin Ran never expected that Lyndon Johnson's first words would be this.

Go to Geneva for negotiations? This really baffled Lin Ran.

No, putting aside the fact that Lin Ran's past work had absolutely nothing to do with diplomacy, sending Lin Ran to conduct diplomatic negotiations with the Soviet Union was simply an amateur doing the work of an expert.

What's worse is that you're asking someone who'd love for this Vietnam War to drag on forever to talk about a ceasefire? It's like asking a mouse to guard a granary—no wonder things aren't going to get done.

When Lin Ran heard this, he felt that the world was going a bit too crazy. It would be a shame if Lyndon Johnson didn't step down after all his crazy actions.

"What, me?" Lin Ran wasn't feigning surprise; he was genuinely astonished. "Mr. President, this is probably inappropriate."

“No, Professor, Dobrynin privately said that you are the only official in the entire White House whom the Kremlin can trust.” Lyndon Johnson’s eyes were bloodless, but his dark circles were very obvious. He looked completely different from when he was sworn in on the presidential plane five years ago.

After thinking for a moment, Lin Ran said, "You want me to play a role similar to Robert Kennedy?"

This is a story from the past. When the Cuban Missile Crisis was brought to a close, the person in charge of the private negotiations was President Kennedy's brother, then Attorney General Robert Kennedy. The two brothers bypassed Congress, the White House, and the military, with Robert Kennedy acting as a special envoy to talk with Dobrynin in a hotel in Washington, D.C.

Dobrynin was the Soviet ambassador.

As for why Lin Ran knew this, it was because the emergence of V led to an exceptionally high level of attention from the American public regarding Kennedy's death, with various revelations emerging one after another. Before the 1980s, the private negotiations between Kennedy and the Soviet Union had already been revealed to the media by "insiders," exposing most of the details.

It would be strange if Lin Ran, who has a good relationship with the Hearst Corporation and has spent many years in Washington, didn't know this.

Lyndon Johnson shook his head: "No, of course not. I don't want to end up like President Kennedy. Your negotiations with the Soviet Union will be completely open, and the White House will grant you the position of plenipotentiary ambassador."

The Soviet Union trusts you, and so do I. Besides your loyalty to America, I have even more faith in your abilities. No one but you can stop this war.

Lyndon Johnson's tone was full of emotion. He had also read "The Apprentice," written by Fred's son, a political rival. Johnson even complained to his wife that "The Apprentice" would be more suitable as "Interviews with the Joker," and that the red on Big T's clothes should not appear on his tie, but on his nose.

A barrage of sarcastic remarks.

But despite the sarcasm and ridicule, Lyndon Johnson watched the entire show very attentively.

He originally thought that Lin Ran went on Fred's son's show to mock him and join forces with Big T to criticize the White House's poor decisions on the Vietnam War. However, he did not expect that Lin Ran would try his best to defend him and McNamara on the show. Of course, Lyndon Johnson felt that defending him was enough, as McNamara really could not get rid of the blame.

In short, Lyndon Johnson felt that he had been too petty in the past, and that the professor was a good person, loyal and honest!
This was also one of the reasons why he felt it was indeed possible for Lin Ran to go to Geneva to conduct negotiations. If others couldn't reach an agreement, perhaps the professor could?
This is also a ripple effect of Kosygin's failure to hold the Gettysburg talks with Lyndon Johnson, as the agreed Gettysburg negotiations failed to take place, and Rusk's visit to Yanjing further fueled the Kremlin's distrust of Washington.

Later, his wife's words woke him up: "If even the professor can't reach an agreement, then it's even less likely that anyone else will."

This made Lyndon Johnson make up his mind.

Since Lin Ran's job responsibilities did not include this aspect of the work, he could only approach it with a consultative attitude.

"Professor, you're no newcomer to diplomacy. You came up with the concept of the hotline. Back in the Berlin crisis negotiations at the Palais des Nations, you gave me the idea of ​​folding paper airplanes. You keenly grasped the Soviet Union's desire to ease the Berlin crisis." Lyndon Johnson recalled the past when he was Vice President.

Lin Ran said quietly, "Mr. President, so what you need is a complete resolution to this war, or just a temporary ceasefire?"

Lyndon Johnson stood up, leaned forward and looked down at Lin Ran, maintaining this posture for two minutes before returning to his chair.

"I hope the Vietnam War can end in a dignified manner," Lyndon Johnson said, and then said nothing more.

Lin Ran understood what the other party meant. What did "a dignified end" mean? Obviously, it meant they wanted to continue fighting. If it was just a ceasefire and ended without a clear conclusion, it had nothing to do with being dignified.

First, a ceasefire will be declared. After the presidential election, fighting will resume until America wins.

After some thought, Lin Ran gained a more accurate understanding of Lyndon Johnson's ideas. To put it simply, there were only two things he spearheaded during his term: the Great Society and the Vietnam War. Later, Lin Ran added Star Wars to the mix.

The Great Society was nearing bankruptcy, and the federal budget, burdened by the Vietnam War and Star Wars, was simply insufficient to expand welfare coverage for the people; even Lyndon Johnson himself rarely mentioned it anymore.

Star Wars will certainly not have a result in the short term; at least, there will be no results to show when the vote is held at the end of this year.

Doesn't that leave only the Vietnam War?

Lyndon Johnson would not allow the Vietnam War to fail easily, because if it did, his term would be almost entirely fruitless.

This is something that someone like Lyndon Johnson cannot accept.

When Lin Ran realized that the truce was a prelude to a better war, he decided to agree: "Okay, Mr. President, I'm willing to go to Geneva."

Lyndon Johnson thought that Lin Ran would refuse after hearing his answer because he only wanted temporary peace.

Lin Ran continued, "Mr. President, do you know what I saw when I was on the moon?"

This time, Lyndon Johnson was completely baffled. "Professor, when did you go to the moon?"

“When I gazed at Earth from the Moon, I felt the fragility of life and the vastness of the universe. The existence of Earth itself is a miracle. It is humanity that needs Earth, not the other way around.” Lin Ran did not answer Lyndon Johnson’s question, but answered it himself.

He concluded by saying, "So, Mr. President, what are my bargaining chips? What conditions can you agree to for the Soviet Union?"
Nuclear disarmament, arms control, or economic concessions?

These are the things Lin Ran offered, which, according to media reports, the Soviet Union hoped to obtain.

“Mr. President, as you know, the longer you want a ceasefire, the greater the price we may have to pay,” Lin Ran said.

In negotiations, you must know the bottom line, and you must know what the White House's bottom line is.

Upon hearing Lin Ran's question, Lyndon Johnson no longer had time to ponder what Lin Ran meant by standing on the moon. Lin Ran had never been to the moon; he could only interpret it as watching footage brought back by astronauts. Lyndon Johnson said, "We can cease fire."

Lin Ran waved his hand, "This is obviously not enough. We have already sent ceasefire proposals to the Kremlin through London, but Hanoi has rejected them."

I have my doubts about this condition.

"Sign a nuclear nonproliferation agreement?" Lyndon Johnson said after a moment's hesitation.

At this time, Soviet Russia was eager to advance strategic arms limitation negotiations (the predecessor of SALT).

"I'm not optimistic," Lin Ran said quietly.

Lyndon Johnson asked, "Professor, what conditions do you want?"

Lin Ran said, "We can create cards out of thin air."

Lyndon Johnson repeated, "Creating cards out of thin air?"

“That’s right, creating bargaining chips out of thin air,” Lin Ran said. “For example, we could order B-52 bombers to approach the Soviet-Russian border, implying that we might end the war at all costs.”

After hearing this, Lyndon Johnson waved his hands repeatedly: "Isn't this too crazy?"

Historically, the Nixon administration created the "madman theory," which, simply put, aimed to make the rival Soviet Union believe that Nixon was irrational and unstable. This would prevent Soviet leaders from angering America out of fear of unpredictable reactions.

In 1517, Machiavelli argued that sometimes “simulating madness is a very wise thing to do.”

Nixon independently developed this strategy during the Vietnam War, which observers consider to be the product of a combination of practical experience and observations of Dwight Eisenhower's handling of the Korean War.

Does this sound familiar? The White House president later used the same tactic.

However, the madman theory has two difficulties. One difficulty is to convince others that you are really mad. The other difficulty is that a madman cannot assure others that even if they give in to a certain demand, they will not go back on their word.

Take Big T for example; given his image, it's hard to believe he'll keep his promises.

Nixon did exactly what Lin Ran suggested: sending B-52 bombers close to the Soviet-Russian border.

Lin Ran first introduced the Madman Theory, and then said, "Mr. President, in my opinion, this strategy is just right for you at this time."

Lyndon Johnson squinted, signaling him to continue.

Lin Ran said, "Because of your current situation, sir, your competitors within the party have begun to besiege you, and polls show that you may not even be able to get the Democratic nomination."

The imminent threat of being ousted is certainly a bad thing, but if we are to implement the madman's theory, then this is a good thing, and this is your advantage!
Since you have nothing left to lose, and you're going to lose the presidency anyway, why not go all out and make a big move? Let the Soviets think you've gone mad, because when faced with defeat, you'll do anything.

They sent B-52 bombers close to their border, conducted simulated nuclear alert exercises, and even hinted in public speeches that Washington would escalate to unimaginable levels if Hanoi did not back down.

Let them think you've gone completely mad and could trigger World War III at any moment.

"I'm waiting for a turning point, and I believe it will happen. Once Hanoi backs down, the war will come to an end. Mr. President, I think the opportunity you've been waiting for has arrived!"

Lin Ran's tone was calm, but Lyndon Johnson sensed an immense temptation within it.

He leaned back in his chair, staring at the snowy landscape outside the window, his mind churning like a storm: Unbridled? It sounded absurd, but it was also cathartic. For years, he had been bound by Congress, the media, and those hippie anti-war activists. Now, with his resignation imminent, why not give it a try? Perhaps this would force Soviet Russia to pressure North Vietnam into a ceasefire, allowing him to remain in the White House as a hero, instead of slinking away as a loser.

After a moment, Lyndon Johnson murmured, "Professor, you mean... you want me to play the fool?"

"No, Mr. President, it's strategic madness."

The Russians fear uncertainty the most.

They'll be afraid, and they'll make those guys in Hanoi sit down and talk.

To put it simply, the Soviets absolutely did not want a direct war with America, much less a nuclear war; I am absolutely certain of that.

In the Oval Office of the White House, the wall clock ticked. Lyndon Johnson was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded, a long-lost ruthlessness rising in his heart: Well, why not? I have nothing left anyway.

“Professor, I will discuss it with the White House staff as soon as possible, and then I will trouble you to make a trip to Geneva,” Lyndon Johnson said.

Lin Ran nodded: "Mr. President, whether my negotiations in Geneva will be successful depends on whether your crazy performance will work."

If you convince the Soviet Union that we might actually overturn the table, then both nuclear disarmament and a ceasefire will work. If you can't convince the Soviets, then neither of these conditions will be effective.

"Gentlemen, let's hear your thoughts on the professor's proposal," Lyndon Johnson said.

In the White House Cabinet Room, classified documents and long-cooled coffee were laid out on a long oak table, with a map marking the war zone and the Soviet-Russian border in the center.

President Lyndon Johnson sat at the head of the table, looking tired and grim. His approval rating had fallen to around 35%, and the challenge from Donald Party leader Eugene McCarthy was spreading from Minnesota, while the shadow of the New Hampshire primary further dimmed his prospects for re-election.

The costs of the Vietnam War had exceeded expectations. The aid from the Soviet Union and China emboldened North Vietnam to resist fiercely. The realist logic of the Cold War told him that he had to find a breakthrough within the framework of reciprocal deterrence, otherwise America's global credibility would be damaged.

However, Lin Ran's proposal to use the "madman theory" to create nuclear uncertainty sounds bold and dangerous, but it is indeed feasible to some extent. He needs to listen to the opinions of the core team in order to avoid putting all his eggs in one basket.

Johnson looked around the room as the advisors he had summoned took their seats: Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, National Security Advisor Walter Rostow, holding thick memos and with an optimistic realism in his eyes; and Foreign Affairs Advisor Clark Clifford.

Clark was also a longtime advisor to Lyndon Johnson, and he could offer both legal and diplomatic perspectives.

If Lin Ran hadn't dissuaded McNamara, McNamara would have already submitted his resignation and was about to take a position at the World Bank, and Clark Clifford would have been the one to replace him.

McNamara spoke first: "I agree with the professor's proposal!"

He was practically in favor of it; even disregarding his personal relationship with Lin Ran, he was a staunch opponent of nuclear disarmament.

(Lydon Johnson, Dean Rusk, and Robert McNamara)
　There will be another chapter later

　　
　
(End of this chapter)