1. 1960’s
Lecture Notes

2. The Election of 1960
John F. Kennedy defeated Richard Nixon in an extremely close election
First televised debates
Election represented a general shift
Liberal intellectuals
“The Age of Camelot”

3. Fidel Castro
In 1959, communist revolutionaries, led by Fidel Castro, had ousted Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista.
United States suddenly found that it had a communist regime for a neighbor
90 miles off the Florida coast.

4. Cuban Missile Crisis Possible solutions: Kennedy chooses to quarantine
Bomb missile sites
Blockade Cuban ports
Label “quarantine” because establishing a naval blockade is an act of war.
Stop Soviet ships from bringing more missiles to the island.
Kennedy chooses to quarantine
Soviet ships still approaching Cuba, but turn around (relief)

5. Kennedy’s Domestic Record
JFK’s “New Frontier”
Vastly expanded defense budget
Moon landing proposal
Faced opposition from Republicans and southern Democrats
Peace Corps and Alliance For Progress
created to provide economic assistance, promote American ideals

6. Dallas: November 22, 1963 JFK assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald
LBJ sworn in aboard Air Force One
Oswald was killed by Jack Ruby two days later
Millions of Americans suspected a conspiracy
Warren Commission did little to convince public that Oswald acted alone

8. Johnson Takes Over
LBJ was committed to social equality, knew how to push legislation through Congress
“Great Society”
“War on Poverty”
Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) established in 1964 to provide health and educational services

9. The Election of 1964
Landslide defeat of Barry Goldwater gave Johnson the ability to enact his “Great Society” programs
Wilderness Act
Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Medicare and Medicaid
Permanent change for voters in the South
Democrat -> Republican

10. The Warren Court Landmark cases had a major impact
Baker v. Carr (1962) dealt with congressional reapportionment
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) and Miranda v. Arizona (1966) addressed the “rights of the accused”