The Pentagon Papers | Birth of a Radical | 2
American Scandal
Audible
4.5 • 19.6K Ratings
🗓️ 14 December 2021
⏱️ 44 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Daniel Ellsberg begins meeting with anti-war activists. With his beliefs shifting, Ellsberg considers whether to take more decisive action.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey, prime members, you can listen to American Scandal add free on Amazon music. |
| 0:05.6 | Download the app today. |
| 0:10.7 | It's March, 1968 in New York City. |
| 0:23.4 | A pair of elevator doors open as Daniel Ellsberg steps into a bustling office. |
| 0:28.5 | The newsroom of the New York Times appears to be a frenzied chaotic mess, but Ellsberg |
| 0:43.6 | didn't come here expecting peace and quiet. |
| 0:46.4 | As a government consultant Ellsberg answers to some of the highest ranking members of |
| 0:50.4 | the United States military. |
| 0:52.5 | Just by stepping foot in the newsroom of the New York Times, Ellsberg could get himself |
| 0:57.0 | fired. |
| 0:58.0 | He knows this visit is risky. |
| 1:00.4 | But at this point Ellsberg is out of options. |
| 1:03.2 | For years he's warned officials in the military about the failures in the Vietnam War. |
| 1:07.7 | He's explained why the current strategy isn't working. |
| 1:10.7 | That sending in more and more troops isn't a solution to the problem. |
| 1:14.6 | Sheer manpower won't defeat the Viet Cong. |
| 1:17.2 | The guerrilla forces waging war in South Vietnam with support from the communists in the north. |
| 1:22.6 | And an increase in troops won't somehow strengthen America's allies in South Vietnam. |
| 1:27.9 | It's not that Ellsberg is anti-war or some kind of pacifist. |
| 1:31.5 | He wants to see the US come away victorious in the Cold War. |
| 1:35.4 | But so far, every time he's raised concerns about strategy in Vietnam, officials have brushed |
| 1:40.1 | him aside. |
... |
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