This document provides a summary of the origins and escalation of US involvement in the Vietnam War from 1945 to 1968. It describes how the US initially supported France's colonial rule over Vietnam but later backed Ngo Dinh Diem after the French defeat in 1954. It then discusses the escalating US military involvement and troop deployments under presidents Kennedy and Johnson due to fears of communism and the domino theory. By 1965, the US was conducting extensive bombing campaigns and had implemented the draft, but mounting protests and the Tet Offensive in 1968 turned public opinion against the war.