Chapter 20 Section 1
Kennedy and the Cold War
The Election of 1960
• Voters restless in 1960
• Economy in recession
• Soviets developed
Sputnik I and long range
missiles
• Military power of US
falling behind Soviets
• U2 incident
• Cuba aligned with Soviets
• Seemed like US was
losing the Cold War
The Election of 1960
• Democratic nominee
for President-John F.
Kennedy
• Said nation was
“adrift”
• Promised active
leadership to get
America moving
again
The Election of 1960
• Republican opponentRichard Nixon
• Hoped to capitalize
on Eisenhower’s
popularity
• Both candidates
expresses similar
views on policy issues
The Election of 1960
• 1960 election closest
since 1888
• JFK wins
• 2 issues put him over
the top
– Television
– Views on civil rights
Kennedy the Candidate
• Well organized
campaign
• Backing of his large
and wealthy family
• Looks and charisma
that appealed to
voters
Kennedy the Candidate
• Had to overcome
obstacles
• Only 43-many though
inexperienced
• Catholic- People were
afraid he would be too
influenced by the Pope
• Kennedy stated he would
make decisions based on
national interest, not
outside religious
pressures
Televised Debate
• Nixon/Kennedy
debate was the 1st
televised debate
between presidential
candidates
• Nixon-a foreign policy
expert agreed to
televised debate b/c
he thought it would
show Kennedy’s
inexperience
Televised Debate
• People didn’t seem to
care about
experience-cared
more about looks and
speech
• 70 million people
watched
• Both candidates
seemed
knowledgeable and
articulate
Televised Debate
• Nixon lost the image
battle
• JFK was coached by
TV producers –
looked better than
Nixon
• Nixon seemed sweaty
and nervous
• JFK looked quick,
aggressive and cool
Televised Debate
• Gave JFK a boost in
the polls
• Began attracting large
crowds
• Launched television
age of American
politics
Kennedy and King
• October 1960-Atlanta
police arrest MLK Jr.
• King sentenced to 4
months hard labor
• Eisenhower refused to
intervene
• Nixon took no public
position
Kennedy and King
• JFK phoned King’s
wife to express
sympathy
• Robert Kennedy
convinced judge to
release King on bail
• African American
community supported
JFK
Kennedy Takes Command
• Cold War occupied
much of JFK’s
attention
• Said that the Soviets
were winning the race
for allies in the third
world
– Economically deprived
countries of Africa,
Asia, and Latin
America
Kennedy Takes Command
• Blasted republicans
for allowing
Communism to move
to Cuba
• Kennedy took a hard
line against the
Soviets
• Wanted to redefine
our nuclear strategy
Kennedy Takes Command
• Eisenhower relied on
threat of massive
retaliation
• Using the threat of
nuclear arms over
minor conflicts was
not a risk JFK wanted
to take
Kennedy Takes Command
• Developed a policy of
Flexible response
– Developing American
non-nuclear forces in
case there was a
minor conflict
Believed a stronger
military would give the
President more
options in handling a
crisis
Kennedy Takes Command
• Flexible Response
resulted in an
increase in military
spending
• Boosted conventional
military forces
• Created Special
Forces – Green
Berets
Kennedy Takes Command
• Tripled nuclear
capabilities of the US
• Allowed the US to
fight limited wars as
well as maintain a
nuclear balance with
the Soviets
Crisis Over Cuba
• Cuba 90 miles from
the US
• Eisenhower cuts off
diplomatic relations w/
Cuba 1/3/61
• Revolutionary leader
of Cuba Fidel Castro
openly proclaimed
himself a communist
The Cuban Dilemma
• Castro promised
democracy
• Led a guerrilla war
against dictator
Fulgencio Batista
• Wanted to eliminate
poverty and inequality
and dictatorship
• Revolutionize Cuba
from “the bottom up”
The Cuban Dilemma
• US recognized new
Castro govmt
• Believed Castro was
a freedom fighter
• US/Cuban relations
got worse when Cuba
nationalized oil
refineries own by the
US & Britain
The Cuban Dilemma
• Broke up commercial
farms and made them
communes
• Castro began to rely
on Soviet aid and
political repression to
enact his reforms
• Many liked Castro for
standing up to the US
The Cuban Dilemma
• Others said Castro
betrayed the
Revolution
• Called him a tyrant
that replaced one
dictator with another
• 10% of Cuban
population left
The Bay of Pigs
• Summer 1960Eisenhower gave CIA
permission to secretly
train hundreds of
Cuban exiles
• Hoped their invasion
of Cuba would trigger
a mass uprising to
overthrow Castro
The Bay of Pigs
• Approved the plan
• Promised air support
to Cuban exiles
• April 17, 1961 1,400
Cuban exiles landed
in Southern Cuba
The Bay of Pigs
• Nothing worked
• A prior air strike failed
to knock out the
Cuban air force –
even thought the CIA
said it did
• An advance group
sent to distract Castro
never reached shore
The Bay of Pigs
• The commandos that
did reach the island
were met by 20,000
Cuban soldiers
backed by Soviet jets
and tanks
• All exiles were either
killed or taken
prisoner
The Bay of Pigs
• Castro turned this into
a public relations
triumph
• One American
commentator said we
“look like fools to our
friends, rascals to our
enemies, and
incompetent to the
rest
The Bay of Pigs
• JFK embarrassed
• Questioned how the
CIA could have
screwed up so bad
• Publicly accepted
blame
The Bay of Pigs
• JFK negotiated w/
Castro for the return
of the captured
commandos
• Had to pay Castro a
ransom of $53 million
in food and medical
supplies
Cuban Missile Crisis
• Cuba had a powerful
ally in the Soviet
Union
• Khrushchev promised
to defend Cuba w/
Soviet weapons
– Including nuclear
weapons
Cuban Missile Crisis
• JFK told Soviets the
US would not tolerate
offensive nuclear
weapons in Cuba
• October 14, 1962photos provide
evidence the Soviets
were building missile
bases on Cuba
Cuban Missile Crisis
• Some of these sites
contained missiles
ready to launch
• These missiles could
hit US cities in
minutes
Cuban Missile Crisis
• October 22, 1961JFK informs nation of
the Soviet missiles in
Cuba
• Made it clear that a
missile attack from
Cuba would trigger an
all-out attack on the
Soviet Union
Cuban Missile Crisis
• For the next 6 daysthe world faced the
possibility of nuclear
war
• Soviet ships w/ more
missiles were heading
for Cuba
• US Navy quarantined
Cuba-ships could not
come w/in 500 miles
of the island
Cuban Missile Crisis
• 20,000 US troops
assembled in Floridalargest invasion force
ever assembled in the
US
Cuban Missile Crisis
• Soviet Ships suddenly
stop to avoid
confrontation
• Khrushchev offered to
remove missiles if the
US pledged not to
invade Cuba
• JFK agreed
• Crisis over
Cuban Missile Crisis
• Crisis damaged
Khrushchev’s prestige
• Criticized for backing
down from the US
• His own people as
well as the Chinese
accused Khrushchev
of being weak
Cuban Missile Crisis
• JFK criticized as well
• Criticized to
exercising
brinkmanship when
private talks may
have resolved the
crisis w/out a threat of
nuclear war
Cuban Missile Crisis
• Others believed JFK
had been too soft
– Said he passed up an
opportunity to invade
Cuba and oust Castro
• This would have been a
mistake- Soviets had
more troops and
weapons in Cuba than
the CIA had estimated
Effects of the Cuban Missile Crisis
• Many Cuban exiles
blamed Democrats for
“losing” Cuba and
became Republicans
• Castro closed doors
to Cuban exiles
– Banned all flights to
and from Miami
The Berlin Crisis
• Crisis emerged
shortly after bay of
Pigs fiasco
• West Berlin became a
showcase for
Democracy by 1961
• Economically
prosperous
The Berlin Crisis
• In 11 years since
Berlin Airlift- 3 million
east Germans (20%
of the E. German
population) fled to
West Berlin
• Showcased the failure
of E. German
communist
government
The Berlin Crisis
• Khrushchev
threatened to close
off West Berlin
• JFK refused to give
up US access to West
Berlin
• Pledged that
Communism would
not drive US out of
West Berlin
The Berlin Crisis
• US nuclear power
prevented the Soviets
from closing off Berlin
• Instead…August 13,
1961 began building a
massive wall to divide
East and West Berlin
The Berlin Crisis
• Berlin wall ended
Berlin crisis
• Further aggravated
Col War tension
• Reduced flow of east
Germans into west
Berlin
• Became an ugly
symbol of Communist
oppression
Searching for Ways to Ease
Tensions
• April 1963- JFK proposed the creation of a
hotline between Washington DC and
Moscow
• The 2 leaders could now communicate
directly should a crisis arise
Searching for Ways to Ease
Tensions
• Limited Test Ban
Treaty- barred
nuclear testing in the
atmosphere