1. Essential Question:
To what degree did Kennedy’s “New Frontier” domestic & foreign policy differ from Truman & Eisenhower in the 1950s?
Lesson Plan for Wednesday, March 18, 2009: RQ 28A, JFK Notes & Video

2. Kennedy & the New Frontier
18:46- 27:00 (8.15 minutes long)
JFK Video

3. JFK’s New Frontier
But, it was not the 1st time TV influenced politics…
The election of 1960 between Richard Nixon & John F. Kennedy was the 1st to use TV debates:
Nixon was much better known but the TV debates helped swing undecided voters towards JFK
1960 marked the beginning of television dominance in politics
Image & appearance became essential traits for candidates
McCarthy was destroyed by TV in the Army-Senate hearings
Eisenhower used TV to campaign in 1952 & 1956
Nixon used to TV to defend himself in the “Checkers” speech
TN Senator Kefauver used TV to investigate organized crime

4. JFK’s New Frontier
Kennedy’ administration reflected youth, energy, & sharp break from Eisenhower
JFK promised a New Frontier:
Domestic reforms in education, health care, & civil rights
A foreign policy committed to defeating the Soviet Union & winning the Cold War
The JFK era began “Camelot” comparisons with JFK as a modern-day Lancelot

5. JFK’s New Frontier
…the extension of Social Security…
Aid for public schools…
JFK’s New Frontier promised a return of FDR-era liberal policies:
But, Conservatives in Congress opposed JFK’s social reforms in education & health care
Congress did help the poor
The modernization of industry, gov’t spending, & a major tax cut in 1963 stimulated the economy & created jobs
An increase in the minimum wage
…and medical insurance for the elderly were all shot down by Congress
…unemployment benefits…
Increased funds for public housing

6. Kennedy referred to his staff as the “the best & the brightest”
JFK’s New Frontier
One long-lasting achievement of the JFK-era was strengthening the presidency:
Eisenhower left many decisions to his staff, but JFK demanded more direct presidential control
JFK transferred much of the decision-making power from the cabinet to his White House staff
JFK appointed tough, pragmatic, & academic “New Frontiersmen” to his staff
Kennedy referred to his staff as the “the best & the brightest”

8. Kennedy Intensifies the Cold War

9. Kennedy Intensifies the Cold War
Addressing U.S. foreign policy & containing Communism was JFK’s top priority as president:
JFK believed Ike compromised with the USSR when the Cold War could have been won
JFK aimed to close the “missile gap” & increase U.S. defenses
Looked to solve issues in Berlin, Vietnam, & Cuba
“Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival & success of liberty. We will do this & more.”
—JFK’s inaugural address

10. Flexible Response
JFK shifted from Ike’s “mutually assured destruction” to a “flexible response” capable of responding to a variety of future problems:
Increased nuclear arsenal to 1,000 ICBMs & 32 Polaris subs to create a “first-strike” capability
Increased the army & air force
Expanded covert operations & created the Green Berets
JFK was convinced that the USSR had more missiles, but really the U.S. had the lead with 600 B-52s, 2 Polaris subs, 2,000 warheads
To combat Communism & to help underdeveloped countries, JFK created the Peace Corps & the Alliance for Progress

11. The Space Race The Apollo Program
JFK hoped to avoid another Sputnik & hoped to beat the Soviets to the moon:
JFK greatly expanded NASA & announced that the U.S. would get to the moon by 1970
The U.S. landed a man on the moon in 1969

12. Crisis over Berlin
JFK’s 1st confrontation with the Soviet Union came in Berlin:
Khrushchev was upset with the exodus of skilled workers from East Germany to West Berlin
The USSR threatened to remove all U.S. influence from West Berlin, but settled on building the Berlin Wall in 1961

13. “Ich bin ein Berliner”
—JFK, 1963

14. Containment in Vietnam
Vietnam proved to be a tough test:
Since 1954, Communist leader Ho Chi Minh gained popularity in North Vietnam; By 1961, he gained a foothold in the South
The U.S. gave aid to unpopular South leader Ngo Dihn Diem
When Diem lost control of the South, JFK gave the OK for a coup against Diem in 1963
“Strongly in our mind is what happened in China at the end of World War II, where China was lost. We don’t want that.”
—JFK

15. Vietnam Viet Minh are Vietnamese communists in North Vietnam
Viet Cong are Vietnamese communists in South Vietnam

16. Monk Quang Duc protested Diem’s treatment of Buddhists

17. Containing Castro: Bay of Pigs
Fidel Castro took over Cuba in 1959 & developed ties with Russia
The Eisenhower administration (directed by the CIA) had been training Cuban exiles for an invasion & overthrow of Castro
In 1961, JFK gave the OK for the CIA to initiate the Bay of Pigs invasion
JFK blamed the Republicans for allowing a “communist satellite” to arise on “our very doorstep”

18. The invasion called for U. S
The invasion called for U.S. air support but JFK canceled the air strike; without air support, Castro squashed the invasion
Kennedy took full responsibility for the failure of Bay of Pigs, but did not apologize for coup

19. Cuban Missile Crisis
24 medium-range & 18 short range ICBMs
To protect Cuba from another U.S. invasion, the USSR began a secret build-up of nuclear missiles
On Oct 14, 1962 a U-2 spy plane discovered Cuban missile camps
How would the U.S. respond?
Immediate air strike?
Full-scale invasion?
Kennedy chose to “quarantine” Cuba to keep new missiles out & an invasion of Cuba if the USSR did not remove its nukes
Diplomacy: trade nukes in Cuba for nukes in Turkey?
Naval blockade to keep warheads out?

20. Cuban Missile Crisis Video (7.17)

21. The Cuban Missile Crisis
Kennedy announced a quarantine (blockade) to keep more missiles out & demanded that the Soviets remove the missiles already in Cuba
The Cuban Missile Crisis
"We are eyeball to eyeball, and the other fellow just blinked."
—Sec of State, Dean Rusk

22. And…U.S. removal of nuclear weapons in Turkey
Cuban Missile Crisis
And…U.S. removal of nuclear weapons in Turkey
The standoff ended when Russia removed its Cuban missiles & the USA vowed to never invade Cuba
The impact of the crisis:
Seen as a political victory for JFK
Installed a “hot line” to improve US-Soviet communications
This near-nuclear war convinced both sides to move from confrontation to negotiation
“Our most basic common link is the fact that we all inhabit this planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s future. We are all mortal.”
—JFK

23. Essential Question:
To what degree was Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society” a continuation of JFK’s “New Frontier” domestic agenda?
Reading Quiz Ch 28B
Lesson Plan for Friday, March 20, 2009: RQ 28B, LBJ Notes & Video

24. “Let Us Continue”
LBJ Video

25. "Let Us Continue"
On Nov 22, 1963 in Dallas, JFK was assassinated & VP Lyndon Johnson became president:
LBJ was a master politician with a reputation for getting results
LBJ promised to continue Kennedy's liberal agenda
LBJ ultimately exceeded JFK’s record on providing economic & racial equality
LBJ helped push through the greatest array of liberal legislation in U.S. history (“Great Society”), surpassing FDR’s New Deal

26. The Kennedy Assassination Video (3.00)

27. Americans were stunned this rapid succession of events

28. The Zabruder Film

29. Lincoln
Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846 & as President in 1860
He was directly concerned with Civil Rights
Lincoln was shot in the head in front of his wife on a Friday
Lincoln shot in the Ford Theatre
The assassin, John Wilkes Booth, was known by three names of 15 letters
Booth shot Lincoln in a theater and fled to a warehouse (barn)
Booth was killed before being brought to trial
There were theories that Booth was part of a greater conspiracy
Lincoln's successor was Andrew Johnson, born in 1808
Kennedy
Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946 & as President in 1960
He was directly concerned with Civil Rights
Kennedy was shot in the head in front of his wife on a Friday
Kennedy shot in a Lincoln (Ford)
The assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, was known by three names of 15 letters
Oswald shot Kennedy from a warehouse and fled to a theater
Oswald was killed before being brought to trial
There were theories that Oswald was part of a greater conspiracy
Kennedy's successor was Lyndon Johnson, born in 1908

30. Lyndon Johnson in Action
LBJ quickly pushed through Congress 2 key “Kennedy” bills:
A $10 billion reduction in income taxes that led to increased consumer spending & new jobs
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 that declared segregation in public facilities illegal & protected black voting rights
The most significant legislation on race since the Reconstruction Amendments

31. Lyndon Johnson in Action
In 1964, LBJ waged a “war on poverty in America” & created the Office of Economic Opportunity:
Created the Job Corps for high school dropouts
Head Start for preschoolers
Adult education & technical training opportunities
As a result, America had 10 million fewer poor people by 1970
In 1964, the U.S. had 35 million poor people

32. The Election of 1964 In 1964, LBJ ran against:
Conservative Republican Barry Goldwater rejected LBJ’s liberal welfare programs & called for a stronger foreign policy stance
Segregationist George Wallace
LBJ won in a landslide & the Democrats took control of Congress for 1st time in 25 years

33. The “Daisy” Campaign Spot

34. The Great Society
Once elected, LBJ initiated his “Great Society” domestic agenda:
Medicare & Medicaid extended health insurance to the elderly & the poor
Extended $1 billion to improve public & parochial schools
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 banned literacy tests & provided for federal registrars for polls

35. The Triumph of Reform
By 1965, Congress passed laws or reforms as part of LBJ’s social agenda:
The Great Society was the most comprehensive agenda of social reform since FDR
But…the American people did not respond well to LBJ
Soon…events in Vietnam, would taint his presidency

36. Johnson Escalates the Vietnam War

37. LBJ Escalates the Vietnam War
“I am not going to lose Vietnam. I am not going to be the president who saw Southeast Asia go the way China went.”
—LBJ
LBJ continued JFK’s strong foreign policy positions too:
He supported CIA-sponsored coups in Brazil, Panama, & the Dominican Republic
LBJ continued Eisenhower & JFK policies towards Vietnam
But in doing so, LBJ found himself under attack from Congress, the media, & universities

38. The Vietnam War Video (5.26)

39. LBJ Escalates the Vietnam War
During the Gulf of Tonkin affair in Aug 1964, the military bombed North Vietnam in retaliation for an attack on the USS Maddox
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution gave LBJ the authority to:
Defend Vietnam at any cost
Unlimited military intervention to be used at LBJ’s discretion

40. The Vietnam War

41. Escalation
LBJ’s advisors wanted 100,000 troops in 1965 & a plan for 100,000 more in 1966; Estimations were 500 U.S. deaths per month
1965 marked the beginning of full-scale U.S. involvement in Vietnam
LBJ was informed that “without U.S. action, defeat is inevitable”
LBJ authorized bombing raids into North Vietnam & requested 50,000 U.S. soldiers sent to Asia
LBJ never explained to the American people how the gov’t planned to win the war in Vietnam
LBJ took middle road of limited U.S. intervention: not a withdrawal & not a full-scale invasion of North Vietnam

42. Stalemate
By 1968, 500,000 U.S. troops stationed to keep Vietnam from falling to Communism
U.S. bombings & “search & destroy” attacks were ineffective
Soviet & Chinese weaponry freely flowed into North Vietnam
Reckless bombings killed thousands of innocent civilians
The bloody stalemate & media depiction of the war led to protests

43. Image of the “My Lai Massacre,” 1968

45. Conclusions
The early 1960s under JFK represented consumer spending, a strong stance on the Cold War, & more social reforms at home
The transition to LBJ in 1963 brought success at home (civil rights & the Great Society)
But, heightened involvement in Vietnam signaled the onset of the counter-culture movement by 1968

46. Class Discussion: To what degree was the USA winning the Cold War from 1945-1963?

47. The Cold War:
The Cold War under Truman:

48. The Cold War:
The Cold War under Eisenhower:

49. The Cold War:
The Cold War under Kennedy:

50. The Cold War:
The Cold War under Johnson: