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National Security Agency2001, declassified 2005NSA Center for Cryptologic History
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Gulf of Tonkin NSA history: full transcription

Gulf of TonkinNSATranscriptionVietnam War
The following is a direct transcription of key passages from Robert J. Hanyok's declassified NSA history of the Gulf of Tonkin incident.

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The overwhelming body of reports, if used, would have told the story that no attack occurred.

Only information that supported the claim that the communists had attacked the two destroyers was given to Johnson administration officials, in such a manner as to preclude responsible decision makers in the Johnson administration from having the complete and objective narrative of events.

As much as anything else, it was an awareness that President Johnson would brook no uncertainty that could undermine his position.

This transcription covers the study's central conclusion and its account of how intelligence was selectively presented. The full declassified release includes nearly 200 documents and Johnson Library tape transcripts, released by the NSA in installments beginning November 30, 2005.

Study: "Skunks, Bogies, Silent Hounds, and the Flying Fish." Robert J. Hanyok, NSA. Declassified November 30, 2005.

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