Joseph Alexander McChristian (October 12, 1914[1] – May 13, 2005) was a United States Army Major General and the assistant chief of staff for intelligence, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (J-2, MACV) (then commanded by General William Westmoreland) from July 13, 1965, to June 1, 1967.

[2] As J-2, MACV, he supported an increase in the official estimates of Viet Cong personnel strength in South Vietnam.

His view was unpopular because the official policy was optimism, claiming that US and South Vietnamese forces were winning the war.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Miami, Florida,[3][4] McChristian enlisted in the Army on July 2, 1933.

[5][6][7] During World War II, McChristian served with the 10th Armored Division in Europe, participating in the Battle of the Bulge and Western Allied invasion of Germany.

In 1967, officers under McChristian decided that in MACV's estimates of enemy personnel strength in South Vietnam the figures for the "Irregular" and "Political" categories were far too low.

By May they had persuaded McChristian that their evidence was solid, and he told General Westmoreland he intended to increase the estimates.