CHAPTER 15The Kennedy and Johnson Years

SIMILARITIES…

Both Nixon and JFK were born in the 20th century

Both had served in the Navy in WWIIBoth had served in Congress & SenateBoth were passionate about foreign

affairs and supported the Cold War fight against the Communists

Both were young, energetic, intelligent and hard-working

DIFFERENCES…

JFK was born into wealth, attended Harvard, and was Catholic

Nixon had not been born into a wealthy family with many political connections, had to work and go to school at the same time to help support his family.

Nixon was respected by many for his time as VP under Eisenhower

KENNEDY V. NIXON….. Sept 26, 1960 – first televised national

debate – John Fitzgerald Kennedy (D) v. Richard M. Nixon (R)

JFK looked polished and relaxed – Nixon looked old and tired – he had just been released from the hospital from a knee infection and had campaigned hard

JFK had hired people to help him with hair, makeup and clothes

Those who had listened on the radio believed that Nixon had won – it was all about appearance for TV watchers

4 debates took place and had a major impact on the outcome of the election

ELECTION OF 1960….

JFK – Former US Representative and Senator – only 43 years old, many questioned whether he had the experience needed to be President

He was also Roman Catholic – no President before him had been a Catholic

JFK put an end to the religion issue when he easily won the primary in Protestant West Virginia - he campaigned hard after that with promises to spur the sluggish economy

The GNP was sluggish and there had been several recessions

MLK had been arrested and JFK helped him out of jail – gained the AA vote

JFK won narrowly – 303 to 219 electoral votes but only 120,000 popular votes out of 34 million votes cast – Illinois or Texas could have changed the outcome completely – largest voter turn out ever

JFK took office without a mandate W/O the mandate of the people – he would

have a difficult time pushing his controversial measures through Congress

In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shirk from this responsibility - I welcome it. I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it -- and the glow from that fire can truly light the world. 

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country. 

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. 

Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.

JACQUELINE BOUVIER KENNEDY….

Jackie – JFK’s wife young, attractive, enthusiastic

CAMELOT…

Administration was filled with idealism, youth, and energy was nicknamed Camelot – legendary kingdom of King Arthur

King Arthur dreams of a country from which “Might makes Right” turns into a country that uses power to achieve right

PEACE CORPS…

Established in 1961 – program would send volunteers abroad as educators, health workers, and technicians to help developing third world countries around the world

JFK felt that if a country was economically and politically stable – it would not succumb to Communism

THE ALLIANCE FOR PROGRESS…

Set up in 1961 to encourage developing countries to ally themselves with democratic nations

JFK wanted to help countries in Latin America to avoid Communism – the best way to help was to set up modern transportation and communication systems as well as stable governments

People questioned what the real motive was behind this program…

CUBA…

Cuba – 90 miles off of the US coastFidel Castro had overthrown US backed

dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959Cubans supported Castro because he

had sworn to help the poorCastro said that the people were being

used by wealthy Cubans and American companies operating in Cuba

Today – Raul Castro – brother of Fidel – is the Dictator of Cuba

Castro took control of all private property including businesses owned by American companies

US broke diplomatic ties with Cuba and refused to accept Castro as the legitimate leader of Cuba

Castro started diplomatic relations with the USSR – the US began to worry that Cuba would be a model for revolutionary unrest in Latin America

When JFK became President – he learned of a plan that former Pres. Eisenhower had put together – the CIA was training opponents of Castro in Guatemala. At the end of the training – they planned to invade Cuba and overthrow Castro with the help of the Cuban people

JFK pushed ahead with the planApril 17, 1961 - Bay of Pigs Invasion

BAY OF PIGS INVASION…

Total disaster…an air strike failed to destroy Cuba’s air power

Castro’s troops were able to stop the US backed troops from coming ashore

Advisers urged JFK to provide air cover for the 1500 Cuban soldiers – he refused

It was a total defeat

The invasion was clumsy and poorly executed

The world learned of the US’s plan to overthrow another countries leader

Other Latin American countries were angered that the US was getting involved in Western Hemisphere politics

European leaders who had been hopeful when JFK took office were now concerned about the decision he made

THE BERLIN CRISIS…

JFK upset by the Cuba failure – is now even more determined to fight Communism

Germany - divided in 4 zones – after WWII – should have been temporary – 3 zones combined – western regions became West Germany – Soviet zone became East Germany

Berlin was also divided into 4 zones – Truman’s airlift had kept the city supplied during the Soviets blockade

The Soviets demanded a peace treaty with the other countries in order to permanently divide the city – then they could control the large number of East Germans who were escaping through Berlin to West Germany

JFK feared that this was a Soviet effort to take over other European countries

Khruschev & JFK met in Vienna in 1961 – it went poorly – JFK felt bullied by Khruschev

JFK asked Congress for $3 billion for defense

He doubled the # of draftees and called up the reserves for active duty

Sought $200 million to build fall-out shelters in the US – the US needed to be prepared in case of nuclear war

Kennedy spoke to the American people via the TV – explaining the situation in Berlin and that it may come down to a fight…

The Soviets responded by building a wall in Berlin – tensions eased but did not go away.

3.5 million people defected from East Berlin – prior to the building of the wall – 600 would die/be killed escaping to the west. 15 feet tall – 103 miles long.

THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS…

After the failed Bay of Pigs invasion - the Soviets vowed to aid Cuba

Oct. 16, 1962 pictures taken from a U2 spy plane showed that the Soviets were building missile bases in Cuba – only 90 miles from the US

JFK was convinced that these new missiles posed an immediate threat from the Russians – even though the Soviets already had missiles in their own country that could reach the US

JFK called together his advisors and held several secret meetings

Bobby Kennedy – US Attorney General advised against an air strike to blow up the bases in Cuba – saying that it was too much like Pearl Harbor

Kennedy ordered the US military on full alert – bombers and missiles were armed with nuclear weapons – the Naval fleet was ready to move – soldiers were prepared to invade Cuba at a moments notice

Nuclear warheads from both the US and USSR were pointed at each other

Kennedy goes on TV to tell the people what is happening – he demands that the Soviets remove their missiles from Cuba – stating that the US would not back down from a nuclear war – then he announces a naval quarantine (not blockade – act of war) around Cuba to keep the Soviets from bringing more nuclear missiles to Cuba

For two days – the US and USSR stood eye to eye waiting for the other to blink…

Soviet ships carrying missiles to Cuba got closer as the US enforced their quarantine

At the last moment the Soviet ships turned away from Cuba and headed back to the USSR – work on the missile bases still continued in Cuba

Khrushchev sent a long letter to JFK – if Kennedy promised to stay out of Cuban affairs and end the quarantine – Khrushchev would remove all missiles and bases from Cuba

In a “next day” second letter – if the US removed its missiles from Turkey as well– the Soviets would remove its missiles from Cuba

The US complied with the request in the first letter and ignored the second letter completely

Kennedy emerged from the confrontation as a hero in the eyes of many – he stood up to the Soviets and showed the world that the US would not be pushed around

It earned the Democratic party a much needed boost just before the mid-term elections

EFFORTS TO REDUCE NUCLEAR RISK… A “hot line” was set up between the US

and USSR for immediate talks if future issues arose

Limited Test Ban Treaty was signed – banned all nuclear testing above ground – eliminating nuclear fall out that could contaminate the planet

Underground testing was still permissible and bombs were getting bigger

However – it was a good first step in the right direction.

NEW FRONTIER….

Improve the economy, help the poor, end racial discrimination and breath life back into the space program – JFK’s goals called the “New Frontier”

KENNEDY STYLE…

Charisma, fashion sense, quick and easy smile, and a sense of humor – energetic (but suffered from back pain)

Surrounded himself with distinguished men - best and brightest – Robert McNamara (Ford) for Sec. of Defense, Dean Rusk (Rockefeller) for Sec. of State, Arthur Schlesinger (Pulitzer Prize) for White House Spokesperson

POVERTY AND INEQUALITY…

Wanted to help the poor by stimulating the economy

The Other America – written by Michael Harrington – showed that while many Americans did enjoy the prosperity of the 1950s – 1/5 of the population was living below the poverty line

JFK began to think that direct aid was the only solution to help the poor in the US

Most of JFK attempts at aid to the poor or elderly were ended by Congress

He did succeed in raising the minimum wage ($1.00 to $1.25) and passing the Housing Act of 1961 – gave $4.9 billion for urban renewal

Twenty Fourth was passed and went to the states for ratification –outlaw poll tax (to keep poor AAs from voting in 5 southern states)

WOMEN’S RIGHTS…JFK set up a panel to study how

poverty and discrimination affected women – especially the inequality in pay

Equal Pay Act of 1963 – Required equal wages for equal work

Had huge loop holes but was a big first step in ending sex discrimination

1964 Congress would add “race, color, religion, national origin and sex”

THE ECONOMY…1962 – US Steel announced that it

was raising the price of steel $6/ton – other companies did the same

JFK called it unjustifiable and ordered an investigation into possible price-fixing

Steel producers backed down but were very angry – stock market fell in the steepest drop since the 1929 crash

JFK wanted to cut taxes – 13.5 billion in 3 years – would reduce gov’t income and create a deficit at first

He believed that the extra cash in the peoples wallets would stimulate the economy and would bring added tax revenues

Congress was against this proposal and stalled the measure in committee

JFK believed that deficit spending – borrowing money to spend more than is received in tax revenues - this would stimulate the economy

He was successful in jump starting tremendous economic growth in the late 1960s

CIVIL RIGHTS…

JFK cautiously worked on Civil Rights He did not have a mandate and did not

want to anger conservative white southern members of Congress

JFK remained cautious during the Freedom Rides and battles in Birmingham

1963 – he introduced a Civil rights bill that demanded persecution for voting rights violations and aid for school desegregation

THE SPACE PROGRAM…

NASA was working to place a manned spacecraft in orbit around the earth

7 pilots were chosen to train as astronauts for the Mercury program

Space task force wanted the program to go for exploratory missions w/o human crews

SPACE RACE…. April 1961 - USSR – Yuri Gagarin became the

1st human to orbit the earth on the Soviet Vostok

May 1961 – Alan Shepard in the Freedom 7 space capsule made a 15 minute suborbital flight at an altitude of 115 miles – not the same as the Russians but enough to convince JFK to go on with the program

Feb. 1962 – John Glenn in the Friendship 7 space capsule successfully orbited the earth 3x and then landed in the Atlantic Ocean near the Bahamas

1967 – Astronauts Grissom, Chaffee and White died in the Apollo 1 during a routine test before take off

July 1969 – Neil Armstrong becomes the first man to walk on the moon (Columbia)

ASSASSINATION…..

Nov. 22, 1963 – Dallas, TX – traveling in a motorcade with TX Gov. John Connally and his wife Nelly and the First Lady – JFK was looking to his reelection the following year – campaigning for votes

Riding in an open limousine – shots rang out – bullets hit both JFK and the Governor – Connally was wounded but the President was pronounced dead at the hospital

Lee Harvey Oswald was apprehended and charged with the murder – as he was being moved to a different jail – Jack Ruby shot Oswald

JFK was buried at Arlington Nat’l Cemetery – an eternal flame marks his burial site

Lyndon B Johnson was sworn in as President on board Air Force One 90 minutes after JFK was pronounced dead

WARREN COMMISSION…

LBJ appointed Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren to investigate the assassination

Less than a year later – the report was released – there was no evidence found that indicated a conspiracy and it was believed that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone

LET US CONTINUE… Words spoken by LBJ his first few days as

President – letting the nation know that things would not change – that he was going to pursue those same goals that JFK had set in place

LBJ was a Representative and a Senator prior to VP and then President – He was not happy as VP because he was used to all of the action as a Congressman – and then JFK was shot and everything changed

GREAT SOCIETY….

Swift passage of JFK’s civil rights bills and tax-cut bills took place in Congress to help in the healing process of the nation

LBJ pushed on with aid for public education and medical care for the elderly as well as trying to eliminate poverty

He started using the phrase the Great Society to describe his goals

CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964…

Outlawed discrimination in voting, education and public accommodations

It demanded an end to discrimination in hospitals, restaurants, theaters, and other places open to the public

Started the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to fight hiring discrimination against AA and MA

Title VII prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex

THE WAR ON POVERTY…. Pushed for JFKs antipoverty program Declared war on poverty in the US The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 –

set up to fight illiteracy, unemployment and a lack of public services

$950 million set aside to fund 10 different programs like VISTA Volunteers in Service to America – who volunteered to help people in poor areas – gave them a voice in housing, health and education policies in their own neighborhoods

ELECTION OF 1964…

Landslide victory over Barry Goldwater (R) in the Election of 1964

Goldwater – Senator from AZ – was very conservative – opposed civil rights and thought that military commanders should be able to use nuclear weapons on the battlefields as they saw fit

Youtube – LBJ Campaign commercials

RESULTS OF THE ELECTION…

LBJ rec’d 61% of the popular vote and 486 to 52 in the Electoral vote

Democratic majorities were established in both houses of Congress – 295 to 140 in the House and 68 to 32 in the Senate

Now Johnson had the mandate to move ahead aggressively with his ideas

MEDICARE AND MEDICAID… Truman had proposed a health insurance

program in his Fair Deal LBJ pushed 2 new programs through

Congress Medicare – hospital and low cost medical

insurance for Americans 65 year of age or older

Medicaid –Low cost health insurance for poor Americans of any age who could not afford their own private medical coverage

Two of the most important pieces of social legislation since the passing of the Social Security Act in 1935

AID TO EDUCATION…

Elementary and Secondary Education Act – gave aid to states based on the number of children they had from low income homes

$1.3 billion was distributed to public and private schools

ENVIRONMENT AND CONSUMERS…

The Clean Waters Restoration Act of 1966 – set standards for air and water purity

The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 – head rests, seat belts, shatter proof windshields, motorcycle helmets, street lines, guardrails, breakaway signs, enforcement of DUI laws

IMMIGRATION REFORM… Laws passed in 1921 and 1924 set quotas on

immigrants from each foreign nation – they set low quotas for immigrants from southern and eastern Europe and banned Asian immigration completely

Immigration Act of 1965 – eliminated quotas and replaced them with more flexible limits – 170,000 from the Eastern Hemisphere and 120,000 from the Western Hemisphere – family members of US citizens were exempt from the quotas as well as political refugees

350,000 immigrants came to the US in the 1960s, 400,000 per year in the 1970s

THE TAX CUT…LBJ pushed the tax cut bill by

promising Congress to cut gov’t spending

When the tax cut went into effect – it worked as planned

GNP rose 7.1% in 1964, 8.1% in 1965 and 9.5% in 1966

The deficit shrank due to the new wealth generating tax revenues

Unemployment fell and inflation remained even

THE SUPREME COURT…

1960s the SC was willing to take on many controversial social, religious and political topics

Lead by Chief Justice Earl Warren – the SC was often referred to as the Warren Court – became the most liberal court in US history – supporting civil rights, civil liberties, voting rights and personal privacy

BAKER V. CARR

Congressional districts had to be apportioned according to “one person, one vote”

This decision prevented political parties in power from drawing the district lines in unfair ways to give themselves more votes

Today 435 seats in Congress = 665,000 people on average

REAPPORTIONMENT…

Apportionment – distribution of legislative body’s seats among electoral districts

Most districts needed looked at due to population shifts – move from rural to urban or vice versa – over or under-representation

REYNOLDS V. SIMMS

State legislative districts not based on “one person, one vote” formula violated the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment

MAPP V. OHIO

Established the exclusionary ruleEvidence seized illegally could not

be used in a trial

GIDEON V. WAINWRIGHT

Suspects in a criminal case who could not afford an attorney have the right to free legal aid

ESCOBEDO V. ILLINOIS

Accused individuals have to be given access to an attorney while being questioned

MIRANDA V. ARIZONA

A suspect must be warned of his or her rights before being questioned

Miranda Rule – police must inform accused persons to remain silent, anything that they say can be used against them in a court of law, and that if they cannot afford an attorney – one will be appointed for them

ENGEL V. VITALE…

Could a public school require students to recite a state-sanctioned prayer?

SC ruled that school prayer was a violation of the First Amendment and an attempt by a gov’t body to promote religion

ABINGTON V. SCHEMPP…

Bible reading in public schools is a violation of the First amendment

BROWN V BOARD OF EDUCATION

Stuck down the old “separate but equal” doctrine

Segregation was illegal in public schools and the military

EFFECTS OF THE GREAT SOCIETY… LBJ became more popular than JFK at

comparable points in the terms The economy had improved because LBJ

had pushed JFK’s tax-cut bill through Congress

But many complaints started to surface – too much $ being spent on the poor – Fed. Gov’t had too much power – but the number of Americans living in poverty was cut in half during the 1960s and early 1970s