The quickest way to change Lyndon Johnson's mind about a high-level appointment is to predict who the man will be. In the case of a successor to Robert McNamara, newsmen and Washington officials alike were doubly leary of trying to read the President's mind. Even so, more than a few observers were warilyand hopefullyraising the name of Cyrus Roberts Vance, the former Deputy Defense Secretary whom Johnson had drafted for an arduous diplomatic assignment in Cyprus (see THE WORLD) well after Mc-Namara's departure was decided.
Despite the vexed outcome of the latest Vance mission,...