Eugene McCarthy was a United States senator in the 1950s and 1960s. He ran for president in the American presidential election of 1968. McCarthy strongly opposed the Vietnam War and America's involvement in it. McCarthy challenged President Johnson for the Democratic nomination, gaining the support of many Democratic Americans. McCarthy also encouraged Robert Kennedy to enter the presidential race.
McCarthy was very popular due to his opinions and the policies he wanted to spread, and he gained popularity with prominent figures such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This surge in popularity led to a split in the Democratic party with only half of the party supporting McCarthy and the other half supporting Johnson. McCarthy was committed to the young people.
Many of Johnson's values lay on the fact that American moral values were deteriorating, which was a sentiment that many Democratic Americans could agree with. McCarthy accused the Johnson administration of being unwilling to negotiate with the North Vietnamese and criticized their efforts, gaining major support from Americans who believed that America shouldn't be involved in the war at all.
