John F. Kennedy

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John F. Kennedy 1961-1963
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The Election of 1960

• The election of 1960 was the closest since 1884
  .
• Kennedy defeated Richard Nixon by fewer than
  119,000 votes.

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Kennedy Facts

• He was a decorated naval officer in World War
  II. He received the Pulitzer Prize for his
  book, "Profiles in Courage." He served exactly
  1,000 days in office. He was the first
  president born in the 20th century and the
  youngest president ever elected.
• He is the only Roman Catholic president.
• He could read 1600 words a minute.

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Kennedys Inaugural Address
Kennedy was the youngest person ever to be
elected president. His youth helped provide the
theme to his inaugural address
Let the word go forth That the torch has
been passed to a new generation of
Americans The energy, the faith, the devotion
which we bring to this endeavor will light our
country and all who serve itAnd so, my
fellow Americans-ask not what your country can do
for you-ask what you can do for your country.
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The Camelot Years
With JFKs youthful glamour, beautiful
family, and talented advisors, the Kennedy
White House reminded many of a modern- day
Camelot, the mythical court of King Arthur.
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Crisis Over Cuba

• The first test of Kennedys
• foreign policy came in Cuba,
• just 90 miles off the coast of
• Florida.
• Revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro, openly
  declared himself a communist and welcomed aid
  from the Soviet Union.

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The Bay of Pigs

• On the nights of April 17,1961,
• some 1500 Cuban exiles
• supported by the U.S. military
• landed on the islands
• southern coast at the Bay of Pigs.
• The CIA and the exiles hoped it
• would trigger a mass uprising
• that would overthrow Castro.
• It didnt! Cuban forces, backed
• by Soviet tanks and jet aircraft,
• easily repelled the exile invasion.
• Some of the exiles were killed,
• others imprisoned.
• The U.S. paid 53 million in food and medicine
  for their release.

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Cuban Missile Crisis
In October, 1962, photographs taken by American
planes revealed Soviet missile bases in Cuba
some with missiles ready to launch and reach U.S.
cities in minutes.
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Naval Blockade

• On October 22,
• Kennedy ordered
• a naval blockade
• of Cuba to prevent
• further deliveries
• of Soviet weapons.
• He also demanded
• that the Soviets
• remove the missiles.
• Khrushchev promised to
• challenge the blockade,
• calling it outright banditry.

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Let every nation know, whether it wishes us
well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear
any burden, meet any hardship, support any
friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the
survival and the success of liberty.This much we
pledge and more. -- JFK Inaugural Address
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For a few days, nuclear war and massive
destruction was a distinct possibility for every
American. In schools, children practiced air raid
drills, a common occurrence during the Cold War.
People who had built bomb shelters began
stocking them with food and other provisions.
Even the president called his family to the White
House where they could be protected in the
presidential nuclear shelter.
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• Suddenly, on October 24, many of the Soviet
  ships stopped short
• of the blockade line, turned, and sailed home.
• Were eyeball to eyeball, said Secretary of
  State Dean Rusk, and I think the other fellow
  just blinked.
• On October 28 Khrushchev agreed to dismantle the
  missile bases in response to Kennedys promise
  not to invade Cuba to remove U.S. missiles in
  Turkey.

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The New Frontier
President Kennedys legislative program
to provide medical care for the elderly.
To rebuild blighted urban areas.
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To aid education.
To bolster the national defense.
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To increase international aid.
To expand the space program.
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To provide volunteer assistance to
developing nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin
America through the Peace Corp.
And to promote civil rights.
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Tragedy in Dallas

• In the fall of 1963, public opinion polls showed
  that Kennedy was losing popularity because of his
  support of civil rights.
• On November 22, 1963, President and Mrs. Kennedy
  went to Dallas, Texas to mend
• political fences with members of the states
  Democratic
• Party.

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The Motorcade
Crowds lined the streets of Dallas to greet the
President. In front of him sat Texas Governor
John Connally and his wife Nellie.
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As the car approached a state building known as
the Texas State Book Depository, rifle shots rang
out.
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November 22, 1963

• Kennedy was shot in the throat, then the head.
• His car raced to a nearby hospital, where
  doctors
• frantically tried
• to revive him.
• It was too late President Kennedy was dead.

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The Assassin?
In 1963, the Warren Commission investigated and
concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald had shot the
president while acting on his own.
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More Shock!!
On Sunday, Nov. 24, as millions watched live
television coverage of Oswald being
transferred between jails, a nightclub owner
named Jack Ruby broke through the crowd and shot
and killed Oswald.
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JFK Eternal Flame