Chapter 28: The New Frontier Chapter 28: The New Frontier and the Great Societyand the Great Society

1960 Presidential Election• Mass. Senator John F. Kennedy

(Demo.)• Vice-President Richard Nixon (Rep.)JFK Issues• Age: 2nd youngest president

inexperienced/terrible health• Religion: first catholic president• Father: Joseph Kennedy/money

2 Events Impact Election2 Events Impact Election

Four televised debates: first time in U.S. history

• Message: Nixon won• Image: JFK won (70 million viewers)Civil Rights/Dr. King arrested in Atlanta in

October• No action by Nixon• JFK calls Coretta King• RFK got judge to release Dr. King on bail• Wins black vote for JFK

Election ResultsElection Results

• JFK: 303 (34,227,000) 49.9%• Nixon: 219 (34,108,000) 49.8%

Kennedy Administration: New Frontier

• Cuba1959: Fidel Castro overthrows

Fulgencio Batista and establishes Cuba as a communist nation

April 17, 1961: The Bay of Pigs April 17, 1961: The Bay of Pigs InvasionInvasion

• CIA trained Cubans try to invade Cuba and overthrow Castro

• 1,400 commandos overwhelmed by 20,000 Cuban troops. Kennedy refuses to use U.S. military as promised. Complete failure!

• JFK and U.S. embarrassed. U.S. pays $53 million in supplies for return of captured commandos

October 14-28, 1962: Cuban October 14-28, 1962: Cuban Missile CrisisMissile Crisis

• October 14: U-2 photographs show USSR nuclear missile bases in Cuba

• October 22: JFK announces missile bases in Cuba to U.S. public

• October 24: JFK declares a naval quarantine (blockade) of Cuba

• October 25: Soviet ships on their way to Cuba stop and turn around

• October 28: JFK & Khrushchev Deal– USSR: remove missile bases– USA: promise to not invade Cuba/overthrow Castro– USA: secret deal to remove U.S. missiles in Turkey– Closest that US/USSR came to nuclear war

November 22, 1963: Dallas, November 22, 1963: Dallas, TexasTexas

• President Kennedy assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald. Lyndon B. Johnson becomes the new president.

LBJ Administration: The Great Society• Former Senate majority leader from

Texas• Excellent politician and dealing with

Congress

Great Society: War on Great Society: War on PovertyPoverty

• End poverty and racial injustice• Create a higher standard of living• Promote a richer quality of lifeImpact of Great Society• Helps millions of Americans (many

programs still in effect today)• Destroyed by Vietnam War