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34. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (I Got dem Eisenhower Blues)





Born: October 14, 1890, Denison, Texas
Died: March 28, 1969, Washington, DC

Term: January 20, 1953- January 20, 1961
Political Party: Republican

Vice President: Richard Nixon

First Lady: Mamie Doud Eisenhower

Before the Presidency: Dwight Eisenhower grew up in a farming community in Kansas. His mother was a religious pacifist who opposed war making it interesting that young Dwight was considering a military career from a very young age.

He joined the West Point Academy in 1911 where he played football until a knee injury ended his career. Known as a prankster, he didn’t really distinguish himself and graduated in the middle of his class.

Eisenhower’s lot improved over the years though as he began to take things more seriously. After various stints at a number of camps, mostly as a Second Lieutenant, he met George Patton at Camp Meade, Maryland. He and Patton both wrote articles advocating better use of tanks as an alternative to trench warfare. The Army responded with a threat of a court-martial (How dare he question the Army?).

At least Eisenhower wasn’t alone. He was transferred to the Panama Canal Zone in the 1920s where he worked under General Fox Conner. Conner was impressed with Eisenhower’s critical thinking, and he agreed with Eisenhower that the Army wasn’t using its resources to the best of its ability. Conner mentored Eisenhower and arranged for his schooling at the General and Command Staff College in Leavenworth, Kansas. Eisenhower was a prankster no more, and he graduated number one in his class. He subsequently would work for famous Generals John Pershing and Douglas MacArthur.

The years with MacArthur were stormy to say the least. The junior Officer certainly had a different approach to things than MacArthur (he of the Bonus Army massacre). Indeed, though he opposed it, Eisenhower’s loyalty came first, and he helped implement the evacuation of the Bonus Marchers in 1932. Despite the bad taste in his mouth, Eisenhower would stay with MacArthur when he was transferred to the Philippines in 1935.

Eisenhower returned to the United States in 1939 just as World War II was breaking out in Europe. While training troops in Louisiana, Eisenhower’s strategic skills were noticed, and he earned a promotion to Brigadier General. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in December 1941, Eisenhower was transferred to Washington, DC, to work on war plans. Eisenhower caught the eye of General George Marshall, and the General was promoted yet again. By November 1942, he was commanding Allied troops in North Africa under Operation Torch. With more successes, Eisenhower was appointed as Supreme Allied Commander in Europe in 1943.

Eisenhower was well liked as Supreme Commander. He knew how to build coalitions within the Allied ranks, and it made for great leadership as the Allies successfully invaded Italy in particular.

Of course, General Eisenhower’s finest moment was the D-Day invasion of Normandy in 1944. It wasn’t an easy decision; poor weather was predicted for that day and, indeed, if you see the film clips, you can tell it was kind of a nasty day. Eisenhower, though, knew time was of the essence (the Germans knew they were coming; they just didn’t know where exactly). So, he simply said, “Okay, let’s go.” The rest, of course, is history.

After Germany surrendered, Eisenhower received a hero’s welcome all over Europe, and in Washington DC. He was, perhaps, the most celebrated person in America and was now on the same level as other historic Generals like Washington and Grant. Eisenhower was appointed Commander of US Occupation Forces in Germany. There he had to make some difficult decisions such as firing his friend, George Patton, for basically being politically incorrect (not that hiring former Nazis on your staff was exactly smart). He also had to send Soviet citizens in the US occupation zone back to the USSR, even those that didn’t want to go.

Eisenhower also wasn’t without his own opinions, especially when it came to military matters. He was against the use of the atomic bomb worried that it would tarnish the US image at a time when the image was at an all-time high.

Eisenhower returned to Washington as Chief of Staff of the Army. For the next two years, he prepared the Army for what would likely be a long cold war. Afterwards, he left the command to become President of Columbia University, only to return as Supreme Commander of NATO of Europe in 1951.

Of course, there was a lot of political interest in the immensely popular Eisenhower as well. President Truman wasn’t very popular as the 1948 election rolled around, and he tried to convince Eisenhower to run for President with Truman on the ticket. Eisenhower was no doubt flattered but he turned the offer down. He was a military man, after all, not a politician, in fact, he had never even voted. He also turned down offers from the Republicans as well.

Things would change in 1952 as the US was now mired in the Korean War and McCarthyism was now running amok. Truman wisely decided not to run again, but there had to be a voice that could steady the nation yet again.

Summary of offices held:

1915-1953: United States Army

1943-1945: Supreme Allied Commander in Europe (World War II)

1945: Military Governor, US Occupation Zone in Germany

1945-1948: Chief of Staff, US Army

1948-1953: President, Columbia University

1951-1952: Supreme Allied Commander, Europe


What was going on: The Cold war, Civil Rights movement, Elvis Presley and Rock n Roll, Army- McCarthy hearings, Suez Canal crisis, Interstate Highway system

Scandals within the administration: Richard Nixon Checkers speech, Sherman Adams scandal

Why he was a good President: He had a very calming influence. Even with the Cold War seemingly running amok, he had a way of letting people know things were going to be okay. He also started the space program, helped to enforce the civil rights legislation that existed at the time, and helped to keep the world safe for democracy. Most importantly, he was a very decent man.

Why he was a bad President: Yes, Eisenhower was a decent man, but he is also responsible for jacking up the nuclear arms race, supported less than noble means of influencing third world governments through the CIA, and avoiding the civil rights issue until he no longer could. Basically, when it came to foreign policy at least, Eisenhower was fairly secretive.

What could have saved his Presidency: A stronger Civil Rights platform. He could have been LBJ without the Vietnam War if he had played his cards right. He also should have kept his nose out of the Middle East and especially the Latin American countries.

What could have destroyed his Presidency: War with China over Formosa, Heavier involvement in Vietnam, the war that destroyed LBJ’s Presidency. If the nuclear arms race had proved disastrous.

Election of 1952: Both parties again tried to entice Eisenhower to run, and Eisenhower was now in a different state of mind. He was obviously being drafted and he realized he was being called to service again. But with what party?

Eisenhower, by now, was rather disappointed with Truman, particularly with the war in Korea. Eisenhower wanted to find a way out, so he ultimately went with the Republicans.

Of course, it was assumed that 1952 would be Robert Taft’s year as he came in as the frontrunner. However, Taft was an isolationist at a time when the Cold War was getting hot. Republicans, therefore, were looking for someone popular who would still be active in defending the world against Communism and especially the Soviet Union. And there was only one man that could fit the bill.

It was Henry Cabot Lodge who initiated the draft Eisenhower movement in the GOP and Eisenhower finally threw his in his hat in January 1952.

Eisenhower won the New Hampshire primary easily and it was obvious the Republican voters wanted him as well, but there were still few primaries (the first truly full blown primary season wouldn’t be until 1972) and it would ultimately be up to the delegates as to who they would go with, thus Taft still appeared the front runner.

But there were disputed delegates, and the Eisenhower camp was able to get them all. In the end, Eisenhower would win on the first ballot. Eisenhower would choose Senator Richard Nixon of California as his running mate (and boy are we going to have a field day with him in a few chapters). The young senator had already made his mark as an anti-Communist crusader and seemed like a good pick for the ticket.

With Truman out of the way, the Democrats went with the witty and articulate Adlai Stevenson of Illinois. By now, the Northern liberals were taking over the party and Stevenson’s liberal cred pushed all the right buttons. This figured to be an interesting contest.

In the end though, Stevenson never really had a chance. Eisenhower campaigned almost flawlessly, surviving even a mini- Nixon scandal (we’ll talk about that in his profile). He oozed assurance and voters truly felt comfortable with him. Stevenson, of course, wasn’t a bad guy either and is still considered as one of the great statesmen in history. But how do get out from under the unpopularity of Truman, who Eisenhower chose to attack rather than Stevenson?

So, in the end, Eisenhower won in a landslide and Adlai Stevenson would join William Jennings Bryan as one of the Democrats’ what ifs.

First term: President-Elect Eisenhower pledged to go to Korea during the election campaign and, indeed, he did go to Korea, even before he was inaugurated. Still, it didn’t look there was a clear way out and there were certainly still some hawks that thought the US could win this war.

But Eisenhower wanted out and he secretly muscled China with threats of invasion and the use of nuclear weapons. The Soviets also wanted to end the war and Stalin’s death strengthened their resolve even more.

So, Eisenhower got what Nixon never really did get with Vietnam, peace with honor. The two Koreas signed an armistice that more or less kept the borders the same as they had been before. It didn’t end tensions between the two countries (even today, they technically remain at a state of war), but they do have an uneasy peace and the American troops were able to come home.

The Red Scare was still front and center on the domestic front as Senator McCarthy was swinging wildly accusing everyone of being a Communist and scaring the average American to death. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, meanwhile, became a cause celebre as they were convicted of spying and sentenced to death. Many people thought they were innocent (Ethel actually was, Julius, not so much). When they were executed, the public outrage was quite evident.

As for McCarthy, Eisenhower, for the most part, stay tight lipped despite his utter disgust of the man. For political reasons, he had to hold his tongue during a campaign stop in Wisconsin when McCarthy trashed his friend, George Marshall. Later, as President, Eisenhower remained quiet as McCarthy’s popularity was reaching an all-time high.

Then came the Army-McCarthy hearings of 1954. Now McCarthy was going after the United States Army; Eisenhower had enough. He instructed his staff to find information that would discredit McCarthy and it wasn’t hard to find. Another way to thwart McCarthy was to invoke Executive privilege so his aides wouldn’t be forced to testify in the McCarthy circus. And, while Eisenhower invoked it for all the right reasons, it would be abused by Presidents in the future, especially with Nixon and Trump.

Even with all the maneuverings in the Eisenhower White House, they weren’t able to take McCarthy down, nor was respected newsman Edward R. Murrow able to eliminate this great scourge. No, as it turned out, the man who took McCarthy down would be a somewhat meek older lawyer named Joseph A. Welch. After McCarthy accused one of Welch’s aides of having ties to a Communist organization. Welch was taken aback, but calmy responded with the famous words, “Have you no decency?” The Red Scare was over, and McCarthy was forever disgraced.

Now that people could live their lives with a booming economy and an increase in consumerism, Eisenhower could concentrate on other things. In 1953, he made what he thought might have been his biggest mistake when he appointed Earl Warren as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Warren, a Republican, would prove to be one of the most liberal justices in history, arguably even an activist, and it was he who authored and engineered the unanimous decision in Brown v Board of Education which declared the segregation of schools unconstitutional. That combined with the Montgomery Bus Boycott that launched Martin Luther King, Jr. into prominence sparked the beginning of the Civil Rights movement.

Eisenhower didn’t really have a problem with that decision (it would be future Warren decisions that would get his goat), but he would have likely preferred to have things go on as usual. Nevertheless, he would act when the time came.

Eisenhower’s forte, of course, was in foreign affairs and he had to deal with at least one major one when the Chinese Nationalists, led by Chang Kai-Shek, occupied the island of Formosa. Red China threated war over the island, and it would take a diplomatic tightrope (Eisenhower was willing to go to war as well) to prevent a full blown war from erupting. Formosa is now the independent nation of Taiwan and Red China still has designs on the island, only the threat of US intervention preventing the Chinese from an all-out attack.

On other matters, Eisenhower enhanced the power of covert tactics by the CIA and ramped up the production of nuclear weapons to deter would be attackers. He was a firm believer that it was preferable over conventional warfare as, by the nuclear bombs’ destructive nature, there would be fewer wars to begin with. It’s possible he would come to regret the nuclear arms race he helped to instigate later.

Health would become an issue for President Eisenhower as he would suffer the first of many heart attacks. He would survive, of course, but it did raise questions on whether he would run for a second term.

When he returned to the White House he also had to deal with another international crisis, this one involving Gamel Abdel Nasser of Egypt. He had a bit of a feud going with France, Britain, and Israel and he responded by closing the Suez Canal, an important waterway for trade through the Middle East. Israel responded by attacking the Sinai Peninsula. Eisenhower was furious as he though the attack would glorify Nasser. He urged the three nations to stand down and Nasser would eventually reopen the canal in 1957.

Eisenhower had one last domestic gem to introduce in his first term and it is probably the most important thing in his legacy. He had long been an advocate of an uninterrupted highway system that would make it easier to transport military equipment in times of war. With automobile travel being by now the easiest form of transportation, it made sense that the highway system could be used for civilian use as well.

So, on June 29, 1956, President Eisenhower signed the Federal Highway Act which created the vast Interstate System that we have today. Indeed, parts of Interstate 70 (which happens to start in Baltimore) is known as the Eisenhower Interstate Highway.

So, even though it was the not very eventful fifties for the average American, it was an eventful time for President Eisenhower.

And even more was yet to come.



Election of 1956: Because Eisenhower was very adept at keeping things behind the scenes, letting Americans enjoy their television and tv dinners and the like, he was an immensely popular President by 1956 and his re-election seemed be to a foregone conclusion.

Of course, after his heart attack in 1955, there was speculation that he wouldn’t even run again but he allayed the fears when he announced his intention to run in February 1956.

The real issue was then who would be Eisenhower’s running mate. Nixon proved very capable running things during Eisenhower’s convalescence, but he was also seen as partisan. Also, Eisenhower didn’t like him very much.

So, Eisenhower tried to tempt him to take a cabinet post. Nixon twice refused. Eisenhower wouldn’t dump him, however, as the party regulars liked him, so it would be Eisenhower-Nixon again at the August convention.

The Democrats knew they probably had a snowball’s chance in Hell, so they went with Adlai Stevenson again with the esteemed Senator Estes Kefauver as his running mate. Kefauver beat out a young Senator John Kennedy for the VP slot.

Just as in 1952, Stevenson never really had a chance. He did score points with the concern that Nixon could be President if something happened to Eisenhower. But he sealed his fate when he proposed a nuclear test ban, something Soviet Premier Bulganin supported. This gave Eisenhower and Nixon the opportunity to gang up on Stevenson in a nation terrified of the Soviets.

Of course, in the end, none of it really mattered of course as Eisenhower would win in another landslide.

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rubber soul

DWIGHT EISENHOWER (Part 2)


Second Term: As Eisenhower’s second term began, the major issues were the strife in the Middle East, the Space race, and at home, civil rights. Eisenhower addressed the Middle east issue with what he called the Eisenhower Doctrine. This one dealt with the Middle east. With this doctrine Eisenhower promised economic and military aid to any middle eastern nation that rejected Soviet Communism. I imagine it didn’t hurt that the Middle East was rich in oil reserves either. In any event, ever since then, the US, Europeans, Russians, Chinese, etc. have been overly involved in Arab affairs and their historical hatred of Israel, who the Christian leaning US blindly allies with, regardless of their politics (Israel has historically wavered from wanting peace to waging World War III on the Palestinians). It’s a quagmire that we have yet to get ourselves out of, so thanks, Ike.

1957 was also the year the Soviets launched the Sputnik Satellite. This especially concerned the Administration, and the American people since it seemed to give the Soviets an advantage in the space race as well. This prompted Congress and the Eisenhower Administration to start its own space program. The US launched their first satellite in January 1958 and created the National Aeronautical Space Agency, or NASA, the following summer. Though initially intended for military use, it would prove to be the leader in space exploration for decades. We can thank Ike for that one too, sincerely this time.

The burning issue in 1957, however, was the Civil Rights movement. In particular was the refusal of southern states to desegregate schools as per the order of the Supreme Court. Virginia responded by refusing to open schools at all.

But it especially got ugly in Arkansas when the Governor mobilized the National Guard to prevent the enrollment of African American students. President Eisenhower may not have been crazy about the Supreme Court decision, but he was a man who believed in the law and as such, would enforce the order. As such, he sent Federal Troops to Little Rock to ensure the students would be enrolled. It wasn’t pleasant as the students were taunted and spat on by those friendly white Christians (yeah, I know, I’m showing my bias here), but they braved the insults and slowly but surely, not only schools, but mostly all institutions would become integrated.

Another milestone was the Civil Rights Act of 1957. It didn’t have the teeth the more famous Civil Rights Act of 1964 would have, but it was nonetheless an important stepping stone in the quest for racial equality. Strom Thurmond knew this, and he did everything he could to block it. He performed with the longest filibuster in Senate history, for over twenty-four hours in fact. In the end, he failed, and the bill passed and would be signed by President Eisenhower.

The remainder of Eisenhower’s term dealt mostly with foreign affairs with the exception of a scandal involving his Chief of Staff, Sherman Adams, forced to resign after accepting improper gifts. He also would lose his Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, to cancer.

But again, Eisenhower would deal with mostly international issues. In 1958, Vice President Nixon went on a tour of Latin America and met with a somewhat violent reception. Eisenhower sent a thousand troops to the Caribbean in case the violence went beyond the egg throwing incidents (Fortunately, it didn’t).

Closer to home, there was a revolution going on in Cuba, and the dictator, Fulgencio Batista, was overthrown by a revolutionary army led by Fidel Castro. At first, Eisenhower was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, but it soon became obvious the two had different priorities. By the time the Eisenhower Administration had ended, Castro was all but aligned with the Soviet Union and a decades long boycott was placed on Cuban goods. The Cold War was at our doorstep.

Vietnam too was now on our radar and Eisenhower was looking for ways to help the South Vietnamese as well. It clearly became more profound under Kennedy, but the long involvement started with Eisenhower. He had also backed a coup in Guatemala in 1954 on behalf of the United Fruit Company (Folk artists would later have a field day with this).

Of course, none of this mattered to the American public. They were happily watching Leave It To Beaver and keeping up with the latest fads. Indeed, the biggest problem in late fifties America seemed to be the scourge that was rock n roll. Whatever was going on, President Eisenhower gave Americans a sense of security. A false security? Maybe, but there was nothing sinister about it from Eisenhower’s standpoint.

President Eisenhower left office in January 1961 but not before he gave a rather prophetic warning when he warned the public about the military-industrial complex.

And it wouldn’t be very long for the American public to understand what he meant.

Post Presidency: General Eisenhower, as he preferred to be called as opposed to President, left office as one of the most popular Presidents in history. At seventy, he was the oldest President to date, and he decided to retire on his farm in Pennsylvania. Though retired, he was always available to give advice to Presidents Kennedy and Johnson.

Though he was able to travel for a time (He visited Normandy with his wife for example), health issues kept getting in the way. He suffered a major heart attack in 1965 and never really recovered. He spent the last nine months of his life at Walter Reed Hospital where he would be visited by his former Vice President, now President Nixon. Eisenhower died peacefully on March 28, 1969.

Odd notes: Eisenhower named the Shangri-La retreat camp David after his grandson

Despite being the Commander of Armed Forces in Europe, Eisenhower never saw active duty

Final Summary: When I think of the phrase the road is paved with good intentions, Eisenhower comes to mind. He truly thought that the best way to keep Americans safe was to build enough nuclear weapons to destroy the world hundreds of times over. Even his penchant for covert actions (Kennedy initiated the Bay of Pigs fiasco but it started under Eisenhower), had the welfare of the United States in mind. Unfortunately, all it did was to encourage future Presidents to initiate their own misadventures, the Vietnam War only being the tragic tip of the iceberg.

Having said that, Eisenhower accomplished a lot of great things starting with the Interstate Highway System. NASA likely would have not transformed into the great reservoir for space exploration without him lighting the match. And, yes, he did drag his feet when it came to civil rights, but when he had to act, he did, and wouldn’t flinch while doing it.

Because Eisenhower was undoubtedly the perfect President for the conservative, laid back fifties, his standing among historians have risen to the point where he is in some top tens. Of course, I can’t rate him that high because of the covert actions mostly.

But when you compare him to the more recent Presidents, the man looks like George Washington. Why? Because he had the qualities that few Presidents have had but we have always wanted, Integrity, honesty, a certain confidence without being arrogant, and trust.

So, no, he certainly wasn’t perfect, but for a General, he didn’t do too bad.

Overall rating: B

https://millercenter.org/president/eisenhower

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rubber soul

35. JOHN F. KENNEDY (Yes, we're going to have a wingding)



Born: May 29, 1917, Brookline, Massachusetts
Died: November 22, 1963, Dallas, Texas

Term: January 20, 1961- November 22, 1963 (assassinated)
Political Party: Democrat

Vice President: Lyndon Johnson

First Lady: Jackie Bouvier Kennedy

Before the Presidency: John Kennedy was born to a privileged family in Brookline, Massachusetts. His maternal grandfather was Honey Fitz Fitzgerald, a former mayor of Boston. His father, Joseph Kennedy, Sr., also came from a political family and had dreams of his oldest son, Joseph Jr., one day becoming President of the United States.

Jack, as John was called, was the second oldest and he suffered from various ailments as a child. Still, he was a Kennedy and he found ways to toughen up. He grew up not really planning a career in politics and yet, always felt in competition with his brother, something the father always encouraged.

The senior Joseph was something of an entrepreneur and it is said that he gained much of his fortune in the prohibition 1920s as he was involved in the rumrunning business. He was also smart enough to pull his money out of the stock market just before the crash of 1929. He also had political connections and would become friendly with Franklin Roosevelt, who appointed him to several posts, culminating with the Ambassadorship to England.

As for Jack, he studied at Harvard, and it was only there where he learned the devastating effects of the Great Depression. He really did have a privileged life.

In 1938, Joseph Kennedy became Ambassador to England and brought the whole family with him, nine in all. While in London, Jack wrote his Senior thesis which became the book, Why England Slept.

The Kennedys stayed in England until 1940. That year, Joseph would be recalled after a series of anti-Semitic remarks and tensions with the State Department (Joseph was against American intervention). It’s safe to say the Brits weren’t crazy about him either.

Joseph had actually hoped for a Presidential run in 1940, but he proved too controversial to even be considered by the Democrats (or Republicans for that matter). Thus, he turned his attention to his son, Joseph, Jr.

After Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, both Joe and Jack signed up for the Navy with the elder Joseph’s approval, knowing the political value it would bring both of them. Joe had an easy time of it and he would be flying bombing missions over Europe.

It was a tougher time for Jack though as he still had his health issues, mainly with his back. Still, he had connections and soon he was commanding a PT boat in the Pacific. Again, his innate toughness hid his obvious pain, and he earned the respect of his men because of it.

In 1943, Kennedy’s PT boat was rammed by a Japanese destroyer. Lieutenant Kennedy proved to be a hero as he physically tugged a badly burned seaman with his teeth, leading ten men to a deserted island, where they languished for days before they were rescued. Despite some criticisms of poor seamanship (nobody was on watch when the destroyer hit), Kennedy was awarded the Purple Heart and Medal for Valor and was seen as a national hero.

Needless to say, brother Joe felt he had to top his brother’s feat even though he was no doubt proud (though competitive, the two were actually quite close). In 1944, he flew a top secret mission. It was an experimental mission that would tragically fail. Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. was killed.

So, with the oldest now dead, the elder Joseph’s aspirations now lie with Jack. Like it or not, his political career had begun.

As it turned out, Kennedy proved to be a natural and he enjoyed the political game. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1946. He developed a reputation as a somewhat conservative Democrat and didn’t really distinguish himself during the six years in the House. That would change in 1952, however.

For, in 1952, he was elected to the Senate, and it was there that he would make his mark, defeating the respected incumbent, Henry Cabot Lodge. Kennedy also met Jaqueline Bouvier that year; they would marry a year later, in 1953.

Not that the Senate was easy. Kennedy’s health continued to struggle, and he was diagnosed with Addison’s disease, then considered fatal. But like FDR, though, he was very good at hiding his ailments and he came off as a man with youthful vigor.

Kennedy spent one period of convalescence by writing another book, this one called Profiles in Courage (though accused of being ghostwritten by Theodore Sorenson, a loyal Kennedy aide). The book, profiling eight senators that took moral stands, won Kennedy the Pulitzer Prize.

Despite missing a lot of time in the Senate due to his health, Kennedy was nonetheless in the running for the Vice-Presidential nomination in 1956. In the end, the nod went to Estes Kefauver, but it put the young Kennedy in the national spotlight.

And some fortune came Kennedy’s way as 1960 neared. Doctors were able to get Kennedy’s Addison’s disease under control and, while he would continue to have severe back pain, his health greatly improved. More importantly, Kennedy became a major player in the Senate as an influential member of the Foreign Relations Committee where he was critical of President Eisenhower on what he called the missile gap.

So, in 1960, Kennedy was ready to make his run for the White House, but he would have a lot of competition.


Summary of offices held:

1941-1945: United States Navy, Lieutenant

1947-1953; US House of Representatives, Massachusetts

1953-1961: US Senate, Massachusetts


What was going on: The Cold War, Civil Rights movement, Peace Corps, Cuban Missile Crisis

Scandals within the administration: Sex scandals that would come to light later

Why he was a good President: He had a youthful idealism that fit in well with the optimistic early sixties. He started the Peace Corps and beefed up the space program. He challenged NASA to go to the Moon and they took that challenge. He started the ball rolling for the definitive bill that would guarantee racial equality.

And, most important of all, because of his restraint without giving in, he likely saved the world from nuclear annihilation. It’s hard to top that.

Why he was a bad President: Well, the other side of Kennedy was that he was probably a little narcissistic and even arrogant. He was a womanizer, and one doesn’t know what really happened in the case of Marilyn Monroe (it is assumed she did, in fact, have an affair with Kennedy). Politically, though he did advance the cause of civil rights considerably, it took a lot of prodding from civil rights leaders and even his brother to get him to do it. Speaking of his brother, Robert Kennedy is absolutely one of my favorite all-time people, but you don’t appoint family to an important administrative post, especially when he had next to no experience (luckily, Bobby turned out to be a damned good AG).

What could have saved his Presidency: Advocating Civil Rights from the onset. Telling Allen Dulles to stick it when he pushed the Bay of Pigs invasion. But mostly, cancelling the Dallas trip which not only would have saved his presidency (maybe) but also his life.

What could have destroyed his Presidency: Not taking responsibility for the Bay of Pigs fiasco may have ruined his presidency from the get-go. Otherwise, the obvious answer is botching the Cuban Missile Crisis as that could have not ruined Kennedy’s legacy, but just about anyone who was living in 1962.

Election of 1960: Kennedy did indeed have some competition starting with the Senate Majority Leader, Lyndon Johnson of Texas, who also had his hat in the ring. His biggest competitor, though, was Senator Hubert Humphrey, a classic New Deal liberal from the Midwest. Kennedy did well in the primaries, but it was thought that he would hit a roadblock in the working class state of West Virginia. Kennedy was a Catholic and there was a lot of anti-Catholic sentiment in that state in particular.

Kennedy campaigned hard in that state, assuring West Virginians that he wouldn’t be taking orders from the Pope. Thanks to the organizational skills of the Kennedy clan, JFK won the state and Humphrey was forced to abandon the race. That left Johnson as his main competitor. Kennedy won the nomination on the first ballot and tabbed Johnson as his running mate, not because he liked him (he didn’t and brother Bobby loathed him), but because it would make Kennedy attractive to Southern voters. This irked the more liberal Midwest Democrats who preferred Humphrey or Stuart Symington, but in the end, Kennedy got his way, as would all major party nominees from then on.

The Republicans had an easier time of it, going with Vice President Nixon, the first sitting Vice President under the modern two party system to win the nomination in his own right (Humphrey, Bush I, and Gore would follow in Nixon’s footsteps). Nixon also chose his candidate, Henry Cabot Lodge, the man Kennedy had defeated for Senate in 1952.

Kennedy and Nixon were friends, and they had a civil contest for the most part. Kennedy painted himself as a Cold War liberal and promised to lead America out of what he called the “conservative rut”. He also, after helping to get Martin Luther King out of jail, won the support of African Americans, who have been staunchly Democratic as a whole ever since.

By now television was the main medium and Kennedy and Nixon staged four debates. Nixon, as a seasoned debater, had all the confidence in the world and experts who listened on the radio think Nixon won. But Nixon was not the most handsome of candidates. He refused to wear makeup and it showed. He looked like he hadn’t shaved for two days, and he seemed stiff compared to Kennedy. And while Nixon may have had a better grasp on the issues, Kennedy had a much better delivery. When the debates were over, the polls were at a dead heat.

And it reflected the finally tally on Election Day as well. Kennedy won the popular vote by a razor thin margin, and he won the Electoral vote as well. But there were accusations of voter fraud in both Texas (Johnson territory) and Illinois (Richard Daley ran the Chicago machine like a dictator and he, of course, supported Kennedy). The Texas fraud is disputable at best but there is evidence that Daley may very well have pulled some mischief in Chicago. In any event, Nixon decided not to challenge the election and graciously conceded.

And one of the most storied Administrations was underway.


First term: After giving one of the most famous inaugural speeches in American history, President Kennedy went to work on his vision of a New Frontier. One of the first things he did was to establish the Peace Corps, an organization where Americans volunteer to help people in third world countries in areas such as education, agriculture, and other areas of importance. It is a goodwill organization that is admired to this day.

Of course, Kennedy was indeed a Cold War liberal, and he was made aware of a clandestine operation in Cuba. The idea was that a group of Cuban freedom fighters, backed by the CIA, would invade Cuba, and ultimately topple Fidel Castro. Kennedy went along with the plan. That plan was called the Bay of Pigs operation and it was a disaster. When the press made the fiasco public, Kennedy admitted his error. He also learned a major lesson not to automatically listen to the hawks, something that would probably save the world a year later.

One thing Kennedy had going for him in the early stage of his Presidency was the space program. In May 1961, Alan Shepard, Jr. became to first American to fly in space. If Kennedy was an avid Cold Warrior, he was also an idealist when it came to the space program. As the space program met with more success with each liftoff, Kennedy made a vow that the United States would go to the Moon by the end of the decade. And, indeed, despite a couple setbacks (notably the Apollo 1 disaster in 1967), man would indeed land on the Moon in 1969.

The Bay of Pigs, meanwhile, while on the back burner for most Americans, was not for Soviet Premier Khrushchev, who erroneously saw Kennedy as a weak President. He decided to take a shot at taking Berlin once again. Of course, the talks failed, and he would build the infamous Berlin Wall, preventing East Germans from trying to escape into West Berlin and maybe isolating the American led enclave. Kennedy was cautious, not wanting war to break out obviously, but in the end, he dispatched a symbolic number of troops into West Berlin to assure that the US would defend them at all costs. As a result, the wall stayed up, and Khrushchev backed off on his other demands.

An even more major crisis would rear its ugly head and, if not for some strategic restraint, you might not have been here to read this. In 1962, it was discovered that Cuba was housing nuclear missiles sent by the Soviets. Cuba is ninety miles away from the US mainland (Florida to be exact). Needless to say, this did not go well with anyone in the Kennedy Administration and certainly not with the military. Kennedy ordered a naval blockade of Cuba and for thirteen days, Soviet and American ships were engaged in a very tense standoff. The Americans were made aware of all of this by Kennedy himself and they were on pins and needles for the next two weeks.

Meanwhile, in the war room so to speak, military leaders were pressuring Kennedy to invade Cuba while aides were pushing for negotiations to get the missiles out of Cuba. Kennedy had learned a valuable lesson from the Bay of Pigs, and he wasn’t going to get drawn into a nuclear war that nobody could win. And, as it turned out, Khrushchev felt the same way.

So, now realizing Kennedy had a lot more resolve than he thought, Khrushchev made a secret deal to get the missiles out of Cuba if the US removed their missiles from Turkey. That worked for Kennedy since they were obsolete anyway and Khrushchev was able to save face. The missiles were removed from Cuba, the world breathed a sigh of relief, and Castro threw a temper tantrum. But at least he didn’t have to fear a US invasion anymore.

So, Kennedy had established himself as a very strong President when it came to foreign affairs, but what about the domestic front? Economically, things were going pretty well, and except for lowering taxes and standing up to US Steel when they wanted to raise prices, Kennedy didn’t have to do much. Civil rights, on the other hand, was another matter.

By the time Kennedy became President, Civil Rights became a hot issue and Martin Luther King had a direct line to the President. But, despite the support from Black America, Kennedy was reluctant to do much more than enforcing existent laws, such as ensuring James Meredith would be enrolled at the University of Mississippi.

That all changed in 1963, however, after the legendary bigot police chief of Birmingham ordered the police and firemen to unleash firehoses on peacefully protesting African Americans. With the television camera on for all the world to see, Bull Connor inadvertently did more for the advancement of civil rights than Martin Luther King ever could.

Because President Kennedy saw it too, and so did his Attorney General brother, Robert (yeah, there was a little nepotism in the administration but at least Bobby was a good soul) and it was he who pushed his brother to finally do something.

And thus, the far reaching Civil Rights Bill was introduced which prohibited discrimination on the basis of race, race, religion, or ethnic origin. Basically, it was designed to do away with Jim Crow altogether. Kennedy would push hard for this bill despite Southern opposition. Unfortunately, as most of you probably know, something tragic would get in the way.

In the meantime, 1963 was the year that Martin Luther King became about as well known as the President himself and Kennedy gave his blessing to the March on Washington in August 1963.

1963 was also the year that President Kennedy went to Berlin to a throng of cheering fans as he spoke bad German with the words, Ich Bin Ein Berliner. Not that they cared, mind you.

There was one more thing going on in the foreign theatre of course and that was Vietnam. Kennedy also inherited the issues of the Reds taking over the country and would increase US involvement by sending what were referred to as military advisors. It also turned out that South Vietnam wasn’t exactly what you would call a Democratic paradise. Ngo Dinh Diem was nothing short of a dictator. So, the US backed an assassination attempt, which succeeded. What happened next would be up to the Vietnamese, or maybe President Johnson.

Because President Kennedy was not going to live to see the results of the Diem assassination nor of his civil rights bill.

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rubber soul

35. JOHN F. KENNEDY- PART 2


Assassination: The 1964 election season was already underway in November 1963 and Kennedy decided on a goodwill political trip to Texas, accompanied by First Lady Jackie and Vice President Johnson. It was already assumed that Barry Goldwater would get the 1964 Republican nomination and the President made speeches that were critical of the potential candidate in San Antonio and Houston. Dallas was next after a speech in Fort Worth on the 22nd.

Kennedy had been cautioned not to go to Dallas by various people, especially United Nations Ambassador Adlai Stevenson, who had been heckled and assaulted in Dallas. Dallas authorities were also concerned, but Kennedy insisted on going to Dallas anyway.

On the morning of November 22nd, President Kennedy and the First Lady attended a breakfast at Fort Worth before embarking on the short flight to Dallas. There, at Love Field, he was greeted with a warm reception before occupying the Lincoln Continental Convertible with the top down with Governor Connally and his wife in the middle seats and the Kennedys in the back. The motorcade drove into downtown Dallas and there seemed not to be a hostile being in sight, just cheering crowds as the motorcade went by.

The motorcade turned on Houston and Elm streets. As the car was turning, Mrs. Connally remarked to the President, “You can’t say Dallas doesn’t love you.”

Kennedy agreed. Then shots rang out. One bullet reportedly missed but another hit Kennedy in the neck (it is assumed it went through and also hit the Governor). As the President clutched at his throat, a third shot rang out. This one was a bullseye as Kennedy’s head exploded. The motorcade rushed to Parkland Hospital but there wasn’t really much anyone could do. The President was pronounced dead at one PM, Central Standard Time.

You would think that would be it after the funeral obviously, but the fun was just beginning. Vice President Johnson, at the protest of the Kennedy aides, had himself sworn in on Air Force One with a stunned (because of losing her husband, not because of Johnson) First Lady as a witness. It was a savvy move of course, but we’ll talk about that more in his profile.

As for the investigation, the assassin had actually gotten away for a couple hours. Maybe he would have gotten even farther had he not been stopped by a Dallas police officer, who he shot and killed. Next thing you know, the world knew all about Lee Harvey Oswald and the Dallas Police spent the next two days parading him around for the press to see.

And that proved to be the biggest bonehead thing to do ever because, on Sunday, November 24th, and in front of live cameras, Lee Harvey Oswald would be cut down himself, by girlie club owner Jack Ruby, starting endless conspiracy theories that ranged from the Russians and Cubans to the Mafia and even the Vice President. None of the theories have been proven and while the Warren Commission, arranged by President Johnson, had what you could call a sloppy investigation (which was at least less sloppy than the autopsy), no one could prove anything other than Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone with no support from any entity.

So, John F Kennedy lives on as the greatest martyred President since Lincoln. It would be well over a decade before tales of affairs that would make anyone but Bill Clinton blush and a conspiracy that he had an affair with Marilyn Monroe and had a hand in her suicide in some way. And, of course, there were the Mafia rumors too (we didn’t mention he was buddies with Frank Sinatra and Rat Pack member Peter Lawford was Kennedy’s Brother-In-Law).

But whatever the truth may be, he goes down as one of the most idealistic Presidents in American history.

Odd notes: Kennedy’s father, Joseph Kennedy, made much of his fortune running illegal liquor in the 1920s.

Then Senator Kennedy got into a car accident with a young Larry King (https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/...john-f-kennedy)

Final Summary: Jack Kennedy is not the first, nor the last President to have two different lives, one that was the President, and one that was, well, a scoundrel. No, Kennedy certainly wasn’t the worst human being ever to reside on this Earth, even among our Presidents, but he no doubt felt a bit entitled because of his upbringing and, if I were to judge him on his character alone, frankly, he wouldn’t rate very high.

But Kennedy the President is a different matter. He inspired us to be the best we could possibly be, and he always seemed to have a knack at doing the right thing such as when he finally found the courage to introduce the Civil Rights Act. When he did screw up, such as with the Bay of Pigs, he was the first one to take responsibility. He obviously took Harry Truman’s buck stops here to heart. He inspired the space program, and the Peace Corps remains one of his greatest legacies. And it should also be noted that it was Kennedy, along with Khrushchev (and it probably cost him his premiership) that said enough of the nuclear arms race after the near miss of the Cuban Missile Crisis, and they were in the process of the first arms reduction treaty.

But there will always be one lingering question concerning Kennedy. What about Vietnam? Would Kennedy have escalated the war the way Johnson would? Or would he have found a way out? Yes, Kennedy was a Cold Warrior, but he was also a realist when he had to be. Maybe he would have seen the writing on the wall long before Johnson did. I’d like to think that given how he handled the Cuban Missile Crisis.

But thanks to a whack job in Dallas, we’ll never know.

Overall rating: B+

https://millercenter.org/president/kennedy

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rubber soul

Disclaimer


From this point on, if I haven't done so already, my liberal bias may start to be showing as we cover the more recent Presidents, starting with Lyndon Johnson. These are the Presidents who have, for the most part, helped me to form my own political views so if you happen to be a fan of Ronald Reagan, or think Donald Trump is the greatest US President since Julius Caesar, be forewarned!

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rubber soul

36. LYNDON B. JOHNSON (We're on the Eve of Destruction)




Born: August 27, 1908, near Stonewall, Texas
Died: January 22, 1973, Johnson City, Texas

Term: November 22, 1963- January 20, 1969
Political Party: Democrat

Vice President: Hubert Humphrey

First Lady: Lady Bird Taylor Johnson

Before the Presidency: Lyndon Johnson was the oldest child of struggling farmer Sam Johnson. Sam wasn’t much of a success as a farmer, but he gifted with the gift of gab, and he served five terms in the Texas Legislature before returning back to farming. The family moved to Johnson City when Lyndon was five. There, Lyndon seemed to want to follow his father’s dreams and, at one point, told a classmate he wanted to be President of the United States.

Johnson’s family struggled throughout his childhood, and it gave the young Lyndon a resolve that he wouldn’t let farm prices drop to the point where working class families, like his own, were ruined. He graduated as President of his six member Senior class and his family managed to get enough funds together so Lyndon could attend summer courses at Southwest Texas Teachers’ College. However, his grades were poor, so he was rejected.

So, he decided to sow his wild oats instead. He took off for California with some friends. He drifted a bit between California and Texas, working odd jobs along the way. It got so bad that he would be arrested in 1927. This woke Lyndon up, and this time, the teachers’ college accepted him.

Johnson wasn’t the best student, but he involved himself in extracurricular activities and excelled in his student teaching. He ended up being assigned to teach a small Hispanic school in a poor area. This was during the Great Depression. Johnson excelled in his position and did well financially considering the times, but he really yearned for a political career, so the teaching period was brief.

In 1931, he became an aide to a Congressman of Corpus Christi. There, in Washington, he proved to have a strong work ethic, answering every inquiry from the Congressman’s constituents.

In 1934, while visiting Texas, Lyndon would find love when he met wealthy Claudia Alta Taylor. They would be married within three months, and she would be better known later as Lady Bird Johnson.

Still in Washington, Johnson was clearly a fan of President Roosevelt’s New Deal and was able to procure an appointment as Texas Director of the National Youth Administration, which helped young people find employment. He excelled there as well.

Then fate stepped in. The congressman in his home district died in 1937 and Johnson jumped at the chance to run for his seat. With help from his wife’s inheritance, and being a strong advocate of FDR’s New Deal, he won election at the age of twenty-eight.

Congressman Johnson, due to his age mostly, was somewhat undistinguished at first though he was able to get some housing projects and dams for his district. He also was able to secure electrical power to his old Texas Hill country, something he would consider as his proudest achievement.

One of Texas’ US Senators died in 1941 and Johnson tried for the seat. He was pitted against “Pass the Biscuits, Pappy” O’Daniel. Both were accused of fraudulent methods but O’Daniel proved to be better at it. Johnson returned to the House.

By now, the US was in World War II and Johnson persuaded FDR to give him an officer’s commission in the Naval Reserve. Johnson was appointed as congressional inspector of the war progress in the Pacific which enabled him to keep his seat. He even went on a bombing mission and won a Silver Star. As such, Johnson was able to help out with the war effort and use his political savvy at the same time.

After the war ended, America had entered a different world. Now it was the Cold War against Communism. Johnson, as a New Deal liberal, seemed to be on the wrong side of politics by 1948. This was an issue for him as he went up against Texas Governor Coke Stevenson for the Senate seat.

Stevenson was considered a rather popular Governor due to his more conservative views. The two battled it out for the Democratic nomination, but this time, Johnson was older and wiser, and he knew all the tricks to get elected in Texas. Despite three suspicious vote tallies in South Texas, Johnson edged Stevenson for the nomination and easily defeated his Republican opponent. Lyndon Johnson was now a Senator.

And it was in the Senate where Johnson would truly make his mark and then some. Johnson’s strategic skills made him one of the most powerful Senators in America by the end of his first term. Indeed, he was named the Majority Whip in 1951, after only two years in the Senate. later, when the Republicans took back the Senate, Johnson was named Minority Leader. He was now the most powerful politician in his party.

In 1954, the Democrats were able to take the Senate right back and Senator Johnson was now the Majority Leader. And few would have the power and influence that he had in the fifties. And, though he supported military preparedness, he preferred to use his clout when it came to domestic issues, particularly on spending bills that would help the less advantaged. Johnson was a populist, ultimately, though at least he tried to use it for good.

It is argued that Johnson may have been the most powerful Senate Majority Leader ever. No, he didn’t manipulate the Senate the way Mitch McConnell would, but he knew how to influence other Senators to see things his way. It was called the Johnson treatment in which, basically, Johnson would lean over you as if he was stalking his prey. No one was better at the art of persuasion than Lyndon Johnson.

He also supported President Eisenhower where he could even though he was of the opposite party. As such, he helped push through the Civil Rights Act of 1957, managing to calm Southern nerves along the way. He also helped to get America into the space race after the Russians launched Sputnik.

Johnson’s ambitions and hard work would come at a physical cost, though. In 1955, Johnson suffered a massive heart attack and was sidelined for a time. Like Eisenhower, heart issues would be a major health problem throughout his later life. Johnson did address it though by stopping smoking, lost weight, and tried to delegate some of his work.

By 1960, Johnson felt that he did all he could in the Senate and now it was time to go for the big prize, the Presidency.



Summary of offices held:

1937-1949: US House of Representatives, Texas

1941-1942: United States Naval Reserve, Lieutenant Commander

1949-1961: US Senate, Texas

1951-1953: Senate majority Whip

1956-1957: Senate Majority Leader

1957-1961: Senate Majority Leader

1961-1963: Vice President of the United States


What was going on: Vietnam War, Civil Rights movement, the Beatles, Space program, the Great Society, the assassinations, student protests

Scandals within the Presidency: Bobby Baker corruption charges

Why he was a good President: Only FDR can boast of a stronger domestic agenda than LBJ. Because of Lyndon Johnson, we have the Civil Rights Act that criminalized discrimination, the Voting Rights Act (or at least the part that the Supreme Court allows), Medicaid and Medicare, the Fair Housing Act, and a few other things as well. If we judged LBJ on this alone, he’d probably get an easy A.

Why he was a bad President: One word: Vietnam. While almost a savior domestically, he stubbornly waged the war in Vietnam and over 35,000 American Servicemen would die on his watch alone (Another 20,000 would die under Nixon). He had to deal with protests at home and abroad and, while Nixon would handle them worse, Johnson couldn’t have been prepared for the divide he was causing.

What could have saved his Presidency: Staying out of Vietnam is the easy answer of course. Without Vietnam, he could have been Teddy Roosevelt.

What could have destroyed his Presidency: Well, Vietnam pretty much did, but it could have been worse had he reverted back to the old segregationist policies.

How he became Vice President: Johnson’s Presidential ambitions dated back as early as 1952 when he tried to get on the ticket with Adlai Stevenson. He again would try in 1956. Now it was 1960 and this time, he was going to go for all the marbles.

But he faced long odds, on one hand you had the popular Midwest liberal, Hubert Humphrey (who would later be Johnson’s VP), and, even worse for Johnson, there was that young charismatic idealist from Massachusetts named John Kennedy. All three were Senators.

This was not going to be Johnson’s year either. Kennedy outmaneuvered everybody, even the crafty Johnson, and would secure the nomination. The only question now is who he would pick as his running mate.

Johnson and Kennedy weren’t exactly buddies and Kennedy didn’t expect Johnson to accept the bid for Vice President (Kennedy was pressured by certain Democrats, including some of his closest advisors as a way to attract the South). To Kennedy’s surprise, Johnson accepted, and he was on the ticket. It turned out to be a pleasant surprise as Johnson campaigned hard for the ticket. In fact, it may have very well been Johnson that made the difference in one of the closest elections in American History.

So, Johnson was Vice President, but he would be frustrated that the Kennedy Administration would keep him on the back burner. In fact, it would even be rumored that Johnson would be dropped when 1964 came around. Still, Kennedy nabbed him as head of the Space Program. He also was a key advisor on military affairs, and he also chaired the President’s Committee for Equal Employment Opportunity. Overall, though, he was generally shunned by Kennedy aides, something that grew more frustrating as time went.

On November 22, 1963, Vice President Johnson accompanied President Kennedy to Dallas, Texas. It was a political trip (It looked like LBJ would be on the ticket after all), and Johnson was ready to shake some hands and secure some Texas endorsements, starting with Governor Connally no doubt.

Vice- President Johnson’s car was two vehicles behind Kennedy’s convertible as the motorcade started just before noon.

Two hours later, Lyndon Johnson was President of the United States.

First term: The events of November 22, 1963, are controversial for a variety of reasons and not just because of the assassination. One of them involved the new President, Lyndon Johnson, who insisted he be sworn in on Air Force One. This drew protests from the Kennedy camp, especially after he asked the still shocked first lady, Jackie Kennedy, to witness the proceeding which was also going to be a photo-op. He was sworn in by judge Sarah T. Hughes, a friend of the new President. More controversy occurred as the plane landed at Andrews Air Force Base as Kennedy’s casket was hurriedly removed from the plane. President Johnson gave a quick speech lamenting Kennedy and the country and, while sincere, lacked the charisma of any Kennedy speech. People worried for the immediate future.

But after the mourning period of President Kennedy passed, the new President went right to work starting with the formation of the Warren Commission to investigate what happened in the Kennedy Assassination. That too would prove controversial as they never really had all the information they needed (probably more the fault of zealous Kennedy aides and a sloppy autopsy than anything Johnson did), and a slew of conspiracy theories would soon arise. One of the members of the Warren Commission happened to be Congressman Gerald Ford of Michigan, who would also become an accidental President one day.

One thing Johnson was determined to do was to finally get Kennedy’s Civil Rights bill passed. Johnson had been something of a segregationist, being a product of the South, though not as blatantly racist as the likes of Strom Thurmond for example. But he knew that the African American vote was an important bloc and he always had sympathy for the less fortunate. So, the Civil Rights Bill became his priority in 1964.

Of course, it drew a lot of hostility from the Dixiecrats, and Johnson would later say that it probably cost the Democrats the South for a generation (as it turned out, a lot longer than that). Still, he felt it was the right thing to do and, with the use of his legendary Johnson treatment, he was able to get the groundbreaking bill that banned discrimination in most shapes and forms (the LGBTQ movement wasn’t in play yet). Thus, in many ways the Civil Rights Bill is much more Johnson’s legacy than Kennedy’s.

The other issue he inherited, of course, was Vietnam and this would be the issue that would ultimately sink Johnson’s presidency. Kennedy had been very involved in Vietnam of course, but he also used a bit of restraint even as he had hawks like Defense Secretary Robert McNamara who wanted to go all in. Johnson agreed with McNamara and felt that a quick military intervention was all that was needed to stem the tide of Communism in Vietnam.

Johnson needed an excuse though and he found it in what was called the Gulf of Tonkin incident. There actually was a confrontation between North Vietnam and covert operations in the Gulf, but the second confrontation, the one that sparked direct American involvement in the war, never actually happened. It would later be blamed on miscommunication. The Congress fell for it in any event and passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, giving the President authority to essentially wage war, which he would do after his inauguration the next year.

The Vietnam war was not to be blown sky high just yet and Johnson would go into the 1964 election with a lot of goodwill. The Civil Rights act along with Johnson’s other domestic ideas were very popular and he would be very difficult to defeat in 1964.


Election of 1964: Johnson was all but coronated as the Democratic nominee in 1964. He had a lot of goodwill post-Kennedy and even with a strained relationship with his Attorney General, Robert Kennedy, who nonetheless supported him, there was absolutely no one that was going to try to deny Johnson his bid for a term in his own right.

It was a different story on the Republican side. Barry Goldwater remained the frontrunner, but he was said to have rather extremist views, something that concerned the more moderate members of the party. No one knew it then, but Goldwater had started a movement that would shift the Republican Party much more to the right and eventually give America the gift that was Ronald Reagan.

Of course, there were other candidates to consider. There was talk of a Nixon comeback, but he had been stung by his loss for Governor of California and he really wasn’t ready for a comeback- yet. There was a stop Goldwater movement that lobbied for the nominations of either Nelson Rockefeller or William Scranton. As it was, Goldwater, who was ultimately nominated, would have to pick Liberal Republican William Miller as his running mate.

Goldwater’s style of Libertarianism didn’t sit well with American voters and his speech about Extremism in the name of liberty being no vice didn’t help matters much. The Johnson campaign exploited this with a devastating TV commercial known as the Daisy girl ad which suggested Goldwater would lead us to nuclear war.

So, it was to no surprise that Johnson would win by the largest popular vote margin in history. Some white Southerners did vote for Goldwater given he opposed the Civil Rights Bill (though for libertarian reasons, not because of any hatreds), but for the most part, it was pretty much a rout with Goldwater carrying only six states, his own state of Arizona and five in the Deep South. Lyndon Johnson had a mandate.

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rubber soul

36. LYNDON B. JOHNSON (part 2)


Second Term: With the election behind him, President Johnson set on his ambitious domestic agenda that promised to be the most reaching since the New Deal. He pushed for what he referred to as his Great Society programs. First though, he needed to get through the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that Martin Luther King was pressuring him to do. Johnson was concerned that getting a voting rights act through now might derail his domestic agenda in general, but again, dumb white racists made the decision for him.

For there was an incident in Selma, Alabama known as Bloody Sunday. A peaceful march across the Edmund Pettis bridge was halted by Alabama state troopers. The marchers did indeed halt, but it didn’t end there. The troopers attacked the marchers with tear gas and nightsticks and, of course, the event was televised.

So, Johnson had his cause to act, and this time it wasn’t manufactured. He made a speech imploring white Americans that the Black Americans’ cause was theirs too. The bill passed with great bipartisan support, and it banned literacy tests among other things as well as allowing the Justice Department to intervene where discriminatory practices kept less than half of eligible voters from being able to do just that, vote. Yes, some of the bill would, decades later, be ruled unconstitutional simply because times had changed (and, of course, after George Floyd, we know that things haven’t really changed at all, thanks, John Roberts). Some of the bill survives though and it is a great companion bill to the Civil Rights Act of the year before.

With the Voting Rights Act behind him, President Johnson began work on his other projects, starting with Medicare and Medicaid, something that would guarantee at least some health insurance to the elderly and the poor. Of course, the conservatives, whose idea of helping people is to let them starve, were freaking out (You should listen to Ronald Reagan’s album, Ronald Reagan speaks out against Socialized Medicine, it’s a comedy classic). The bill passed anyway, and the Supreme Court hasn’t outlawed that as of yet (and, after okaying Obamacare twice, they probably won’t), so, along with Social Security, older people have at least a little bit of security.

Lesser known, but equally important accomplishments in the Johnson Administration, include the Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD for short, the National Endowments for the Arts, the National Endowments for the Humanities, the Public Broadcasting Act (PBS, if you’re wondering), and the Consumer Protection Agency, and these are just the ones I can think of right off the bat.

These great accomplishments would put any other President in the far upper tier to be sure, but sadly, Johnson’s foreign policy was a downright disaster.

For the Vietnam War was, to the doubt of no one, President Johnson’s war. The US began to bomb North Vietnam in February 1965 and soon troop levels were increasing faster than today’s gas prices. By the end of 1965, nearly 200,000 US troops were fighting in Vietnam. That number doubled by the end of 1966 and more than half a million troops were in Vietnam by the time Johnson left office.

And the war was going nowhere. Young American men had to live in fear of their lives being interrupted at best and maybe ended at worst. More and more troops were coming home in body bags and colleges were erupting in protests throughout the country. Even worse, there was still racial strife domestically as Martin Luther King was now getting resistance, first by a white mob in Chicago, then with more radical black activist groups such as SNCC and the Black Panthers that advocated violence instead of King’s non-violent approach. King even alienated Johnson for a time when he spoke out against the Vietnam War.

And as such, the last two years of Johnson’s presidency would end up in two of the worst years in American History. In 1967, despite some positive goings on such as the Summer of Love, there would be race riots in Detroit and Newark as well as more escalation in Vietnam. The ongoing war in Vietnam had an even bigger impact on the young as protests dominated throughout the year, some of them violent. The most notable protest however was very peaceful when protestors descended on the Pentagon in October 1967, remembered mostly for Allen Ginsburg’s attempt to “lift the Pentagon.”

1968 would even be worse as it wouldn’t even have a summer of love. Instead, the year started out with the Pueblo Incident off North Korea where a US spy ship was captured, and the personnel were imprisoned for almost a year.

But that paled to what would happen in Vietnam the next month. In February 1968, the Vietcong pulled a surprise attack on what was called the Tet Offensive. By now, the Vietnam War was on the TV news daily the same as if you were watching a rerun of the Flintstones. So, it was to no surprise that the horrors of the war were seen by just about everyone, with a street execution shown as the exclamation point.

This was the last straw as Walter Cronkite publicly spoke out against the war on his newscast. This, along with the entry of Robert Kennedy in the Presidential Race drove President Johnson to this fatal announcement.

“I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President”.

(We’ll cover the rest of 1968 in a special post before we get to Nixon)

Post Presidency: The few years of Johnson’s post presidency were somewhat quiet as he retired to his ranch. His heart was failing, and he never really got over the guilt of sending thousands of young men to their deaths in Vietnam. Still, he wasn’t a broken man as he kept busy writing memoirs and overseeing the building of his Presidential Library. He died in January 1973, just two days after the Paris Peace Accords officially ended US involvement in the Vietnam War.

Odd notes: Before the Presidency, Johnson was a noted segregationist

Johnson had a propensity to show off his scar from a gall bladder operation.

He grew his hair out after the Presidency

Final Summary: In some ways, you can compare Lyndon Johnson to Woodrow Wilson as something of a Jekyll and Hyde. Wilson of course did his own great things, but his blatant racism ruined his legacy. Johnson, on the other hand, did so many great things domestically and African Americans can actually congregate with White Americans freely (even if some of the whites don’t like it much). Johnson is the one most responsible for that.

But then there is Vietnam and that’s the Hyde side of LBJ. Believe it or not, as a Cold Warrior, he did it with all the best intentions, but he was too much of a cowboy President (I didn’t mention it earlier, but he ordered Marines into the Dominican Republic in 1965 to protect American Citizens), and that was his downfall when it came to Vietnam. He also was easily hurt as he felt betrayed when Martin Luther King went against him on Vietnam.

So, like Wilson, it would be easy to give Johnson and A on domestic policy and an F on Vietnam, but somehow, I think because of the domestic gains, I think LBJ deserves a little better than that.

So, I’m giving him a few bonus points.

Overall rating: B-

https://millercenter.org/president/lbjohnson



NOTE: Stay tuned as we post a special entry on Friday concerning the pivotal political year of 1968 that started the US on the slow descent that we enjoy to this day.

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rubber soul

1968 SPECIAL (and it's not the Elvis Presley Comeback Special)




“I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President.”

I’d like to say the troubles of the Johnson Administration ended there but, unfortunately, it was only the beginning.

The Presidential campaign was already underway as it had been obvious Johnson was not going to be coronated this time. Between Vietnam and the racial tensions, not to mention the anti-war protests at home, which was already sparking a law and order backlash, it was to no surprise that Johnson would have competition in this election.

And it came in the form of anti-war candidate Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota. His insistence to get out of Vietnam hit a note with younger voters and other liberal minded Democrats were attracted to his positions as well. And, with everything going on, Johnson had every reason to fear a rejection at the Democratic National Convention, especially after Johnson barely won the New Hampshire primary.

But Johnson was about to get an even bigger headache. For the good part of a year, there was a draft to get Robert Kennedy, now a Senator from New York, to run. Like McCarthy, he was a vehement opponent of the Vietnam War, but he also emphasized programs to help the poor and disadvantaged, even visiting an economically challenged town of white folks in Appalachia. He was also visiting African American towns in Mississippi as well and people could see the genuine emotion in his face as he visited these areas. After his brother had been assassinated, Kennedy took a reassessment of himself and out of it came a compassion that has rarely been seen in anyone in politics, quite frankly.

So, after the New Hampshire primary, and realizing he had the best chance to defeat Johnson, Bobby Kennedy announced his candidacy for President.

This was likely the last straw for Johnson. He had threatened to resign before but this time, with McCarthy and Kennedy running, and Cronkite now against him, Johnson decided he had enough and wasn’t going to run again. Instead, he would back his Vice President, Hubert Humphrey, as he at least shared some of his Vietnam policy, even actively campaigning for his election.

So, as April began, it looked like a three way contest for the 1968 nomination while the Republicans were trying to figure out who would hold their banner. At this point it appeared to be between Michigan Governor George Romney and, guess who, Tricky Dick Nixon, who was ready for his comeback tour. As of early April, Nixon already had the decided edge.

Now, you may ask why I’m doing 1968 as a separate chapter. It’s quite simple really; there were events in 1968 that frankly went beyond politics and, in some cases, even the political events went way beyond just some mention in a Presidential bio.

For just four days after Johnson’s announcement that he wouldn’t run, Martin Luther King was shot and killed in Memphis. King had been there to support a garbage workers’ strike and had made an inspiring speech at a church the night before pledging that “We will get to the mountaintop.” He also admitted that he likely wouldn’t get to the mountaintop with them. It proved to be tragically prophetic.

Because King was now dead, and the inner demons of anger rose. Cities like my own city of Baltimore erupted in violence. Forty-three people were killed, thousands were injured, even more thousands were arrested, and there was enormous property damage in what was seen as the worst violence since the Civil War. President Johnson sent in Federal troops to quell the violence as he needed to do but worried that local authorities would use unnecessary force. He was even reported to say, “What did you expect? I don’t know why we’re so surprised. When you put your foot on a man’s neck for three hundred years, and then you let him up, what’s he going to do? He’s going to knock your block off.” Legislatively, Johnson was able to respond by getting the Fair Housing Act passed, the last of his many great domestic accomplishments.

By May, the riots had passed, and it was back to Vietnam and the primaries. Kennedy was doing well at first, but hit a roadblock when McCarthy pulled an upset win in Oregon. It was assumed that if Kennedy had any chance of winning the nomination, at this point being reserved for Humphrey’s to lose, he would have to win the California Primary in June.

Meanwhile, there was now an attempt to finally try to get the US out of Vietnam as the Paris Peace talks were getting underway. Long story short, the talks would never get very far, and it is even rumored that Nixon may have meddled in an effort to improve his own election chances. In any event, the talks failed, and the war went on.

By June, Bobby Kennedy’s campaign was beginning to take flight. It had been an idealistic campaign to be sure as he was still remembered for his comforting speech in Indianapolis the night Martin Luther King was killed. Yes, he lost in the Oregon primary, but it looked like he had a fighting chance in both California and South Dakota. The primaries were on June 4 and Kennedy had won both. At the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, Kennedy gave what would be his last speech finishing with the words “It’s on to Chicago and let’s win there.”

As Kennedy as his entourage were exiting through the kitchen, shots rang out. After the melee was over and the assassin being held on the floor as a reporter screamed, “Get the gun,” Robert Kennedy lain on the floor with a bullet wound to the head, barely conscious as a busboy tried to comfort him. Kennedy was rushed to Central Receiving Hospital. By then he lost consciousness. He then was transferred to Good Samaritan Hospital where they operated on him, listing his condition as grave as to life.

On June 6 at 1:44 AM, Robert Kennedy was pronounced dead and the idealism that in some ways started with the Kennedys died that day as well.

The summer of 1968 contrasted with the positive vibes of the previous summer. We were still mired in the Vietnam War, and we just went through two major assassinations, what else could possibly go wrong?

Well, your friendly neighborhood mayor Richard Daley of Chicago was happy to give the answer. For, the Democratic National Convention to coronate Hubert Humphrey was underway and Daley wasn’t going to let a bunch of unkempt hippies ruin Chicago’s week in the spotlight.

Of course, those unkempt hippies were in Chicago to protest the war and planned peaceful, if vocal protests in Lincoln Park. Daley, of course, had a problem with that and a violent confrontation between the Yippies, as they called themselves, and the more than willing Chicago Police took place. This and a few other skirmishes set up what would become a night where the whole world was watching.

On the night of August 28, protestors marched in front of the Convention Center. The police responded the best way they knew how, with violence. Tear gas was thrown, protestors were beaten in front of a live audience. Word of the violence got into the convention as well as Senator Abe Ribicoff of Connecticut accused Mayor Daley of using Gestapo tactics. Even more telling, as a reporter was being roughed up by Daley’s security, Walter Cronkite called the security personnel a bunch of thugs. By the time Hubert Humphrey came on for his acceptance speech, he was reduced to making a desperate plea for harmony.

The rest of 1968 was relatively calm as Humphrey ran up against Nixon and his Law and Order campaign (more on that with the next post) and a third party bid by traditional segregationist, George Wallace, who would have some success in the South. Needless to say, with the damage done in Chicago, Humphrey was not to be the next President which is a shame for a couple of obvious reasons, but also because he was, even with his support of the war, a basically decent guy. In any event, after 1968, the United States would never be the same.

And not for the better.

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rubber soul

RICHARD M. NIXON (Here's to the State of Richard Nixon)




Born: January 9, 1913, Yorba Linda, California
Died: April 22, 1994, New York, New York

Term: January 20, 1969- August 9, 1974 (resigned)
Political Party: Republican

Vice President(s): Spiro Agnew, Gerald Ford

First Lady: Patricia Ryan Nixon

Before the Presidency: Richard Nixon grew up in a small town in California. He was the son of an odd mix of parents. His father was a bit of a boor while his mother was, as he would famously put it, a saint. Young Richard was ambitious from the start and excelled at school and would excel at Whittier College and Duke University law school. Even with his impressive academics, however, he couldn’t get into the FBI when he applied in 1937.

Nixon settled in Whittier, California where he met and married Pat Ryan, destined to be his long suffering wife. The Nixons moved East as opportunities began to present themselves. Nixon got a job with the Office of Price Administration in Washington.

After Pearl Harbor, Nixon enlisted in the Navy. It wasn’t an especially distinguished stint, but he left with an Honorable Discharge in 1945. When he got home, his political career started when he was approached by a group of Southern California Republicans.

Nixon learned the art of negative campaigning and dirty tricks from the get-go, and he set his eyes on Jerry Voorhis, the Congressman from California’s 12th District. Voorhis was a New Dealer who was also an avowed anti-Communist. No matter, Nixon’s men was able to come up with a document linking him to a PAC, not a Communist backed PAC mind you, but enough to scare the votes enough to go with Nixon. Richard Nixon was going to Washington.

This was the period of the Great Red Scare and Nixon would exploit it as hard as he could. Next in his crosshairs was Alger Hiss, a prominent employee at the US State Department. He was under investigation by the House Un-American Activities Committee in which Nixon was a member. Nixon went after Hiss like a pit bull, all but destroying his career (though later documents suggest that Hiss was, in fact, passing information to the Soviets). Nixon had reached National prominence.

Buoyed by the success in the Hiss case, Nixon then went for the Senate seat. This time the victim was Helen Gahagan Douglas. He came up with a “pink sheet” that compared Douglas to a Communist Party member, calling it the Douglas-Marcantonio Axis. This not only won Nixon the Senate seat in 1950 but also the derisive moniker, Tricky Dick. Yes, Richard Nixon was a despicable man even in the early days, but in the paranoia days of the early fifties, he was the next best thing next to Joe McCarthy.

And as such, he was being touted as a possible Vice Presidential candidate in 1952. Eisenhower would go with Nixon after Nixon guaranteed some California delegates. Eisenhower may have regretted it though as it wasn’t much long before Nixon became the news in not a good way. A news article accused Nixon of taking illegal gifts and Eisenhower was ready to dump him. Nixon knew this too.

So, with TV now the rage, he arranged what we would now call an informercial that we know now as the Checkers speech. Here, Nixon highlighted his dog, explaining that Checkers was a gift given to him for his daughter and he wasn’t going to give the dog back. It was pure manipulation at its best as Nixon came off as a warm family man. Nixon saved his place on the ticket.

And, despicable as Nixon was, he did have a soft spot for his family. His wife was devoted to a fault and his two daughters adored him. This would come into play later when his political career came to a spectacular end.

Eisenhower won the election easily and Nixon was the youngest Vice President in history. As Vice President, Nixon would become an expert in foreign affairs, visiting dozens of countries. There were two notable trips in particular. On the Latin America Trip in 1958, Nixon was met with protests and a mob in Caracas stoned his motorcade. This only made Nixon more popular.

The incident that gave him real glory happened in 1959 though when he met Nikita Khrushchev in the Soviet Union. There the two staged what was called the Kitchen Debates as they traded words about the merits of their two respective countries. Both parties looked quite positively, and it gave Nixon a reputation of being able to stand up the big boys.

Nixon even had some Presidential experience when he had to fill in as Acting President when Eisenhower suffered his heart attack in 1955. Nothing major happened and, for all extensive purposes, Nixon didn’t do anything to embarrass Eisenhower when he returned.

So, when 1960 rolled around, Nixon was a prime candidate for President, and he would be nominated by the Republicans. Nixon wouldn’t be ready for the glamour that was Kennedy though and this time, the same TV that saved his political career would now be his Achilles hell. The two candidates, who were also personal friends, decided on four televised debates. Kennedy was a handsome man and was able to show his charm in front of the cameras. Nixon, on the other hand, looked like he hadn’t shaved, and while he may have had a better grasp of the issues than Kennedy, his delivery seemed off and people were turned off by his general appearance. As such Kennedy won the debate.

And, despite some controversy, Kennedy also won a close election. It’s true Nixon could have contested it, and no one could have really blamed him, especially in the case of Illinois, but Nixon decided not to contest the election and conceded gracefully. Nixon figured he’d just try again in 1964.

But first, he would try a stab at California Governor in 1962 after writing his book, Six Crises. Nixon ran as a moderate against the staunch conservative, Joseph Shell, in the primary, and won the nomination easily. The general election was a different matter though as the Democratic Governor, Pat Brown, was quite popular. Nixon felt the press liked Brown a little too much too and, when Nixon lost big in the general election, he announced that they wouldn’t have Nixon to kick around anymore.

Nixon instead spent the bulk of the sixties campaigning first, for Goldwater, then for Republicans in the 1966 midterms. For somewhat who had been supposedly retired from politics, he seemed to be ready for another Presidential run in 1968

Summary of offices held:

1942-1946: United States Navy, Commander

1947-1950: House of representatives, California

1950-1952: United States Senator, California

1953-1961: Vice President of the United States


What was going on: Vietnam War, The Apollo Space program, Kent State, relations with China, Energy Crisis, Watergate

Scandals within the Presidency: Agnew tax fraud trial, and, um, Watergate

Why he was a good President: He was surprisingly strong on the environment, creating the EPA among other things. It took him long enough, but he did finally get us out of Vietnam. And the space program flourished under him. Plus, he handled the inflation issue about as well as anyone could have in the early seventies. And, of course, he was very adept at foreign diplomacy, forging relations with China and signing the SALT nuclear arms agreement with Russia.

Why he was a bad President: Well, Watergate of course, but his paranoia sometimes would go amok as he wasn’t afraid to curtail the civil liberties of those who protested his policies, particularly when it came to Vietnam. Plus, who remembers his infamous enemies list?

What could have saved his Presidency: A lot less paranoia and more of where he did best, with foreign diplomacy and moderate domestic policy. Oh, and a little more honesty and openness wouldn’t have hurt either

What could have destroyed his Presidency: Oh, I don’t know, maybe a political scandal? You know, like, WATERGATE????

Election of 1968: Nixon came into 1968 as the Republican front runner with George Romney and Nelson Rockefeller on the left and Ronald Reagan on the right. Reagan, at this point was a former actor who was now Governor of California (he did what Nixon couldn’t do, defeat Pat Brown). Reagan had taken the mantle of Goldwater conservatism and it was he who would transform the United States into the wonderful wasteland it is today. For now, though, he was just beating up hippies in California.

Despite the loyal competition, Nixon’s nomination never really was threatened. Romney dropped out after he turned against the Vietnam War and Rockefeller was way too liberal for these Republicans. On the other hand, Reagan’s conservatism scared the pants out of them. They much preferred someone close to the center, in other words, Nixon.

So, Nixon was up against Humphrey in the general election (see the 1968 chapter for the fun on the Democratic side). A third candidate also had his hat in the ring. Mr. Segregation Now himself, George Wallace, was running on the third party American Independent ticket, and he would indeed make some noise, though he probably would hurt Nixon more than Humphrey.

As for Nixon, he ran on a law and order campaign, essentially a reaction to both the civil unrest of recent years and the student protests that were getting out of control, such as in Chicago. He also had a secret plan to get out of Vietnam (he didn’t but people are pretty gullible sometimes). And, oh yeah, he also had as his running mate, Governor Spiro Agnew of Maryland. Great, so Nixon would not only embarrass himself a few years later, his Vice President would embarrass my home state as well (In 1973 for sure but one can argue he started to embarrass us in 1969).

Anyway, even though Humphrey was gaining on Nixon in the days before Election Day, it was too little too late. Nixon won with a razor thin plurality (yep, yet another plurality), though he fared a little better in the Electoral Vote with Wallace gaining most of the Deep South. Nixon took the rest of the South which fulfilled LBJ’s prediction from four years earlier. Hatred doesn’t die very easily.

First term: Buoyed by the support of his “Silent Majority,” President Nixon embarked on the first of his international trips, the first one being to Europe. Back at home, Nixon would concentrate on two things in his first year, scaling back the war in Vietnam, though not ending the involvement, just that fewer men would have to go. He also had to deal with the political unrest at home as young protesters were now being attacked by groups that called themselves Hard Hats. When you say Hard Hats, think of a lot of violent Archie Bunkers on steroids. Nixon, not a fan of the protestors, was certainly favoring the Hard Hats, at least in secret.

When it came to foreign policy, Nixon was a hands-on President, keeping his Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense out of the loop. He had a group of trusted aides around him from Chief of Staff HD Haldeman to security advisor Henry Kissinger. As such, he was often commanding the Vietnam War from the White House.

Domestically, things started out well, but inflation was becoming a major problem. By 1971, and despite Nixon’s best efforts, it had spiraled out of control to the point that Nixon ordered Wage and Prize freezes over the next year in hopes to get the inflation under control. It didn’t really work though as domestic policy really wasn’t Nixon’s forte, but he would sign off on the Environmental Protection Agency and signed the Clean Air act.

Nixon was President when NASA had its greatest moment. John Kennedy’s dream of a man on the moon before 1970 had been realized as Neil Armstrong took the first steps off Apollo 11 in July 1969. More moon missions would follow throughout Nixon’s first term.

But like Johnson before him, Vietnam was ultimately Nixon’s Achilles Heel. Even though Nixon was now slowly withdrawing troops from Vietnam, there was still a draft, which was now a televised lottery (Congratulations to those born on September 14th, you win a free trip to Vietnam), and the withdrawal was much too slow for not only the young, but for middle America as well as many of them had now turned against the war (The 1968 Tet Offensive being the turning point for many). On top of that, Nixon replaced troop withdrawals with bombing missions in North Vietnam. By 1970, it had spread to Cambodia and Nixon announced that US planes had bombed that country as well.

College campuses all over the country erupted in protest over the Cambodia bombing and it reached a boiling point when National Guardsmen fired on protestors at Kent State University in May 1970. Four people were killed, two of whom were only observing the protests in between classes.

Nixon, to his credit, didn’t overreact as now colleges were shutting down in the wake of the Kent State tragedy (another shooting incident also happened at black college Jackson State later that month). Instead, he tried to talk directly with a group of anti-war protestors at the Lincoln memorial. Yes, it was as bizarre as it sounds, and Nixon was no doubt feeling out of place as he tried to get with it.

Nixon ultimately was quite the paranoid, especially when it came to Vietnam. He had the Oval Office secretly bugged as a way to use it against those that may oppose him. Needless to say, that backfired spectacularly. He also would go back into his bag of dirty tricks as the Pentagon Papers were being published in 1971. His Attorney General, John Mitchell, was something of a pit bull and he would be used to discredit people and, in the case of Daniel Ellsberg, even try to prosecute. Mitchell also would take initiatives on his own as when he tried to deport John Lennon in 1972.

Even with all the fun and games going on around him, Nixon still had a bit of political capital going into 1972, and his trip to China would prove to be the most lasting achievement of his administration. He struck a diplomatic relationship with Chou En Lai and Americans were seeing Red China in a positive light for the first time. Critics called it Ping Pong diplomacy, but it worked. Nixon would also have talks with Brezhnev later and he would be credited with toning down the rhetoric of the Cold War quite a bit.

1972 was, of course, election season, but it was also the year of the Paris Peace Accords. Henry Kissinger even went as far to say that pace was at hand, though that proved to be premature. North Vietnam, having the upper hand really, was still playing hardball, so Nixon ordered more bombings of North Vietnam as 1972 ended, after all Nixon was already re-elected, what could they do to him now? In the end, North Vietnam signed the accords, and the US was finally getting out of the war as Nixon’s second term began.

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