McGovern-Hatfield Amendment Fails in the Senate

September 1, 1970

Senators Mark Hatfield (R-OR) and George McGovern (D-SD)

Overview

The controversial McGovern-Hatfield Amendment—known as an amendment to end the war—fails to pass the Senate.

Sponsored by Senators George McGovern (D-SD) and Mark Hatfield (R-OR), the amendment calls for the removal of U.S. troops from Vietnam by the end of 1971, the release of POWs, and protection for any Southeast Asians endangered by an American withdrawal. The Nixon administration strongly opposes it.¹

Spencer C. Tucker, ed., The Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History (2nd edition; Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2011), 464–65, 719–20; Amy Belasco, Lynn J. Cunningham, Hannah Fischer, Larry A. Niksch, “Congressional Restrictions on U.S. Military Operations in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Somalia, and Kosovo: Funding and Non-Funding Approaches,” (Washington, Congressional Research Service, 2007) CRS-10, CRS-11, Congressional Research Service Report, http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL33803.pdf , (accessed 12/4/2014 (link is external)); William H. Rehnquist, “Constitutionality of the McGovern-Hatfield Amendment” (June 2, 1970), in Leon Ulman, ed., Opinions of the Office of Legal Counsel of the United States Department of Justice… Volume I (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1980), 339–42, http://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/olc/opinions/1970/06/31/op-olc-supp-v001-p0339.pdf (accessed 12/4/2014).