The Case–Church Amendment was
legislation attached to a bill funding the
U.S. State Department. it was approved by the U.S. Congress in June 1973 that prohibited further U.S. military activity in
Vietnam,
Laos and
Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...
unless the president secured Congressional approval in advance. This ended direct U.S. military involvement in the
Vietnam War, although the U.S. continued to provide military equipment and economic support to the
South Vietnamese government. It is named for its principal co-sponsors, Senators
Clifford P. Case (R-NJ) and
Frank Church
Frank Forrester Church III (July 25, 1924 – April 7, 1984) was an American politician and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States senator from Idaho from 1957 until his defeat in 1981. As of 2022, he is the longe ...
(D-ID). The Amendment was defeated 48–42 in the U.S. Senate in August 1972, but revived after the 1972 election. It was reintroduced on January 26, 1973 and approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on May 13. When it became apparent that the Amendment would pass, President
Richard Nixon and Secretary of State
Henry Kissinger, lobbied frantically to have the deadline extended. However, under pressure from the extreme scrutiny of
Watergate
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...
, Republicans relented on support for South Vietnam and the amendment passed the
United States Congress in June 1973 by a margin of 325–86 in the House, 73–16 in the Senate.
Both of these margins for the amendment's passage were greater than the two-thirds majority required to override a presidential veto,
and Nixon signed it on July 1, 1973. Although U.S. forces had been withdrawn from South Vietnam in March 1973 pursuant to the
Paris Peace Accords
The Paris Peace Accords, () officially titled the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Viet Nam (''Hiệp định về chấm dứt chiến tranh, lập lại hòa bình ở Việt Nam''), was a peace treaty signed on January 27, 1 ...
, air support and monetary support for Cambodia and Laos continued until August 15, 1973, the deadline set by the Amendment.
See also
*
Fall of Saigon
*
Opposition to the Vietnam War
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Case-Church Amendment
Congressional opposition to the Vietnam War
Political history of the United States
Vietnam War