1. John F. Kennedy

2. Significances of the 1960 Nixon Kennedy Campaign
Television debate : Appearance versus substance
Main Issues:
“missile gap”
Kennedy’s Catholic religion
Won by 100,000 votes, youngest to win via electoral college/last dem to take wh not from south

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

4. Kennedy’s 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 it…And so, my fellow
Americans-ask not what
your country can do for
you-ask what you can do
for your country.”

5. The New Frontier President Kennedy’s legislative program to
provide medical care
for the elderly….
To rebuild blighted
urban areas….

6. To aid education….
To bolster the national
defense….

7. To increase
international aid….
To expand the space
program.

8. To provide volunteer
assistance to developing
nations in Asia, Africa,
and Latin America.
And to promote civil rights.

9. Started The Peace Corps
Click to see what the Peace Corp is all about:
Answer on your scratch paper after browsing the About and What Volunteers Do sections:
In your words, what is the purpose of the Peace Corp?
How many countries is the Peace Corp involved in?
List 5 examples of what volunteers can do in other countries
Your Thoughts: Why do you think there is more focus on military recruitment in America than opportunities in the Peace Corp?

10. The Camelot Years With JFK’s youthful glamour and his talented
advisors, the
Kennedy White
House reminded
many of a modern-
day Camelot, the
mythical court of
King Arthur.

11. Crisis Over Cuba The first test of Kennedy’s
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.

12. The Bay of Pigs On the nights of April 17,1961, some 1500 Cuban exiles
supported by the U.S. military
landed on the island’s
southern coast at Baja de
Cochinos, the Bay of Pigs. The
CIA and the exiles hoped it
would trigger a mass uprising
that would overthrow Castro.
It didn’t! Cuban forces, backed
by Soviet tanks and jet aircraft,
easily repelled the exile invasion.
Some of the exiles were killed,
others imprisoned.

13. Cuban Missile Crisis In October, 1962, photographs taken
by American planes
revealed Soviet
missile bases in
Cuba-and some
contained missiles
ready to launch.
They could reach
U.S. cities in
minutes.

14. What to do?
Do nothing.
Use diplomatic pressure to get the Soviet Union to remove the missiles.
An air attack on the missiles.
A full military invasion.
The naval blockade of Cuba, which was redefined as a more restrictive quarantine.[12]

15. 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.”

16. Suddenly, on October 24, many of the Soviet ships stopped short
of the blockade line, turned, and sailed home. “We’re 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 Kennedy’s promise
not to invade Cuba.

17. Soviet ships turned back at the last minute
Soviet ship Poltava on its way to Cuba (CIA photo)
Soviet ships turned back at the last minute

18. The Compromise Soviet missiles removed from Cuba
Members of ExComm and JFK planning a compromise
Soviet missiles removed from Cuba
U.S. promises not to invade Cuba
U.S. removed missiles from Italy and Turkey

19. Tragedy in Dallas
In the fall of 1963, public opinion polls showed that Kennedy was losing popularity because of his advocacy of civil rights. On November 22,
1963, President and
Mrs. Kennedy went
to Texas to mend
political fences with
members of the
state’s Democratic
Party.

20. Crowds lined the
streets of Dallas
to greet the
President. In front
of them sat Texas
Governor John
Connelly and his
wife Nellie.

21. As the car approached a state building known as the Texas State Book
Depository, rifle shots rang out.

22. Kennedy was
shot in the head.
His car raced to
a nearby
hospital, where
doctors
frantically tried
to revive him,
but it was too
late. The only
footage of the assassination was filmed by Abraham Zapruder. This film would cause controversy until this day, leading to speculation of “2 shooters” and a conspiracy to kill the President.

23. On Sunday, Nov. 24,
as millions watched
live television
coverage of alleged assassin Lee Harvey Oswald
being transferred
between jails, a
nightclub owner
named Jack Ruby
broke through the
crowd and shot and
killed Oswald.

24. Because there is not trial mystery and conspiracy theories abound
Because there is not trial mystery and conspiracy theories abound. In 1963, the Warren
Commission investigated
and concluded that
Lee Harvey Oswald
had shot the president
while acting on his own.