KENNEDY TO NIXON1960S

FOREIGNVietnamizationPentagon Papers

DOMESTICSouthern Strategy

FOREIGN• Vietnam

• War Powers Act

• Tet Offensive

• Cold War• Space

Race• Arms Race

DOMESTICGreat SocietyCivil RightsCredibility Gap

FOREIGNCuban Missile CrisisBay of PigsVietnamSpace RaceArms Race

DOMESTICNew FrontierCivil RightsAssassination

60-63Kennedy

63-69Johnson

69-74Nixon

KENNEDY – JOHNSON – NIXON

50s spills into the 60s

• US financial support of Southern Vietnamese democracy

• Civil Rights• Cold War spills into western

hemisphere. • Space Race • Arms Race

Leading in to the 60s

Civil Rights Movement• Boycotts & protests to

desegregate public facilities leads in the south leads to an all out equality movement throughout the nation.

Domino Theory• The U.S. sends money

& advisors and weapons to Vietnam to help support the southern democratic government.

Leading in to the 60s

• Cuban Revolution– Fidel Castro begins a

revolt in 1953 to overthrow Fulgencio Batista.

– Jan 1 1959 Batista ousted and Communism & Castro take control in Cuba.

Space & Arms Race

• Soviet union the first launch– Intercontinental

Ballistic Missile 1957– Launch a satellite

• Sputnik 1958

– Human in space• Yuri Gagarin 1961

• Resulted in NASA & American schools pushing Math & Science courses.

Election of 1960Kennedy v Nixon

• 1st Televised Presidential debate

• Winner?– TV= Kennedy– Radio = Nixon

• Kennedy looked– Younger– Cool– Relaxed– Smiled

Kennedy Wins

Kennedy 1st catholic ever elected….Youngest at 43 years old

Kennedy’s New Frontier

Increased – Education

• Especially science & math

– Equal Pay for women– Dept. of Urban Affairs

Bay of Pigs• La Brigada- anti-

communist Cuban exiles & CIA attempt to overthrow & kill Castro.

• Invasion was a disaster

• Made Kennedy & the US look weak & unorganized.

Berlin Wall• Khrushchev wanted to

stop East Germans from escaping to the West.

• Khrushchev also wanted all democratic nations out of Germany

• Was a visible symbol of Cold War division

Cuban Missile Crisis

• 13 day Nuclear faceoff between US & Soviet Union

• U2 Spy planes discovers Soviet missiles in Cuba…

Cuban Missile Crisis

U2 plane spots

soviet missiles

Kennedy meets with advisors

to discuss options

U2 planes spot Russian

Migs & Bombers in Cuba

Soviet tells U.S. that Cuba

is a defensive position only

Kennedy orders US destroyers to blockade Cuba from Soviet Ships

Soviet ship ignores

blockade

US-Soviet nuclear war closest its ever been.

Cuban Missile Crisis

Why are you putting your nukes in my

backyard?

Because you have Nukes in Turkey…Its self

defense

Don’t you realize how close we are to

going to nuclear war?

Then get your nukes out of

TurkeyThat’s not gonna

happen

Ok, then how about you promise to not invade Cuba & I will remove all

my nukesAgreed!

NOVEMBER 22, 1963• Kennedy was loved by the

majority of Americans• Refused to send troops to

Vietnam• Family investigated the

mafia• Kennedy proposed new

bills that upset congress• Challenged the Federal

Reserve

• His assassination and the assassination of his “killer” sparked conspiracy theories.

• Death shocked Americans when Americans were starting to trust government again.

• LBJ & Nixon’s office full of lies & corruption

LBJ & the Great Society

• LBJ swears in aboard Air Force One shortly after JFK is killed.

• Great Society promised to expand on Kennedy’s New Frontier– Health– Education– Poverty– Social

Great SocietyHealth & Welfare

Education War on Poverty Consumer & Environmental Protection

Medicare-Health insurance for the elderlyMedicaid-health care for low income families

Head Start – Preschool for disadvantaged & low income families

Housing & Urban Living

Office of Economic Opportunity

Highway Safety Act

Water Quality

Fair Packaging & Labeling

LBJ’s Legacy• Good Domestic Policy• Southerners referred to

him as “Judas” because of his civil rights legislation

• Lies & corruption surrounding Vietnam killed his credibility

• In March of 1968 Johnson announced he would not run again.

1968Worst year in American History ?

• Riots• Rebellion• Assassinations• Political Distrust• Economic Downturn

• MLK assassinated • Robert Kennedy assassinated• Riot at the Democratic

National Convention• Tet Offensive• Nixon becomes President

Richard Nixon

Democrats• R. Kennedy’s

assassination left DEMs leaderless.

• Democratic national Convention riots left DEMs looking weak

Republicans• Nixon uses his Southern Strategy

– Promise to overturn civil rights legislation

• Vietnamization- U.S. policy of transferring fighting and directing the war to the government and forces of South Vietnam