JFK

JFK

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Overview

• In a bold move, Democrats nominated 43-year-old John F. Kennedy, a well-spoken and photogenic senator from Massachusetts for president in 1960.
• Kennedy’s youth and Catholicism would be sticking points.
• To gain support of southern Democrats, Kennedy chose Texan Senate majority leader Lyndon Johnson as his running mate.
• Kennedy would preside over a tense period of the Cold War.

Election of 1960

• Kennedy openly addressed his Catholicism and dispelled fears he was beholden to the pope.
• While Kennedy seemed genial and articulate, Nixon came across as stern and humorless.
• Despite the risks, Kennedy intervened on behalf of Reverend King to voice concerns on Civil Rights.
• In a narrow margin, Kennedy won 49.7 percent of the popular vote against Nixon's 49.5 percent. The electoral votes told a different story, with 303 for Kennedy and 219 for Nixon.
• President Kennedy would face hard choices over the construction of the Berlin Wall, the Bay of Pigs incident, and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

• Three short years later, coverage of Kennedy's brutal assassination would be played out on live television.

Election of 1960 (continued)

New Frontier

• JFK became the youngest president elected to office in US history.
• He promised the nation a "New Frontier" of prosperity and advancements.
• JFK received praise for his dedication to making improvements across the United States.
• His tax and tariff cuts brought economic success to the nation.
• JFK's administration and short White House stay became known as Camelot.
• As attorney general, JFK's brother Robert Kennedy aggressively unleashed a war on organized crime and a federal effort against individuals such as Jimmy Hoffa and Carlos Marcello.

New Frontier (continued)

• This came with a political cost to Kennedy's presidency.
• Another major area of disagreement and uncertainty was civil rights.
• JFK worked hard to enforce the civil rights laws put into place, but he was unable to stop the later crisis that erupted around the nation.
• Kennedy also realized that if he was not careful, his civil rights efforts could ultimately lead to broken relationships with southern Democratic leaders, who were necessary to his presidency.
• Kennedy also became well known for his creation of the Peace Corps.
• Peace Corps members participate in things like farming, construction, and water conservation projects.