Chapter 20 p. 698The New Frontier and the Great SocietyScience and Technology: By the 1960s, the US and the USSR had built up a stockpile of nuclear weapons. During periods of crisis, including the Cuban

missile crisis, the American people feared that these powerful weapons would be used. The US and the USSR also competed in the space race.

After the Soviet Union successfully launched the first human into space in 1961, President Kennedy announced that it would be America’s goal to

send a man to the moon by decade’s end.Economic opportunity: With legislative agenda of the Great Society, President Johnson sought to aid the poor and others in need. The

Economic Opportunity Act (EOA) provided funds for job training, education, and the war on poverty.

Immigration and migration: The Great Society brought profound changes to the nation’s immigration laws with passage of the Immigration Act of

1965. This act allowed many non-European immigrants to settle in the US. Essential Question: What were the achievements and challenges of the

Kennedy and Johnson administrations?

Section 1 p. 700 Kennedy and the Cold War

• Main Idea: The Kennedy administration faced some of the most dangerous Soviet confrontations in American history. • Why it matters now: America’s response to Soviet threats developed

the US as a military superpower.• Obj: Summarize the crises that developed over Cuba, and explain the

Cold War symbolism of Berlin in the early 60s. • Vocabulary: John F. Kennedy, flexible response, Fidel Castro, Berlin

Wall, hot line, Limited Test Ban Treaty.

• The election of 1960: In 1960 Eisenhower’s second term as president was ending. The economy was in a recession. The USSR had launched Sputnik in 1957 and its development of long-range missiles had sparked fears that the American military was falling behind the Soviets. Further setbacks including the U-2 incident and the alignment of Cuba with the USSR had Americans questioning whether the US was losing the Cold War. • Republican nominee: Richard M. Nixon – the Republican vice president who hoped to

win by riding on the coattails of Eisenhower’s popularity. Both candidates had similar positions on issues. • Democratic nominee: John F. Kennedy – senator from Massachusetts who promised

active leadership to get America moving again. His advocacy of Civil Rights won him Af/Am votes that would help him carry key states in the Midwest and the South. • John F. Kennedy. He came from a wealthy family, was handsome and charismatic,

and at 43 he would be the second youngest president. Americans were worried about having a Roman Catholic in the White House – would he be influenced by the Pope on American policies? One event that determined the course was the first televised debate between the presidential candidates. • Two factors that helped put Kennedy over the top was 1. television, and 2. the civil

rights issue.

• Televised Debates Affects Votes:Kennedy and Nixon took part in the first televised debate between presidential candidates. It was viewed by 70 million tv viewers on Sept. 26, 1960. Nixon was an expert on foreign policy and hoped to expose Kennedy’s lack of experience. However, Kennedy was coached by tv producers, looked better (wore makeup) – therefore looked better and spoke better. Kennedy’s success in the debate launched a new era in American politics: the television age. That image replaced the printed word as the natural language of politics. Running a political campaign now demanded tapping into the power of television to gain an advantage.• What effect would televised debates have on American politics?

Voters would begin making decisions based on a candidate’s perceived image rather than on his or her stand on the issues.

• The Camelot Years: Kennedy won the election in 1960 by fewer than 119,000 votes. In his inaugural speech he called for hope, commitment and sacrifice - “And so my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you-ask what you can do for your country.” The young, energetic, eloquent Kennedy couple captured and fascinated the public with their eye for fashion and culture and the arts. They were America’s royalty and compared to fictional King Arthur – whose world was marked by chivalry and magic and his court at “Camelot.”

Kennedy surrounded himself with “the best and the brightest” – even his own brother Robert (Bobby) was appointed attorney general.

• What factors help explain the public’s fascination with the Kennedys’? The press portrayed the Kennedys as a young attractive energetic, and stylish couple; they gave attention to the arts and culture; they had young children. They were eloquent and had an admiring press.

• A New Military Policy: Before leaving office Eisenhower saw a trend in which Defense Department suppliers were becoming more dominant in the American economy. He warned against the danger of what he called the “military-industrial complex” – Industry and the military would become too powerful eclipsing the government, BUT the military had to be strengthened to counter the Soviet threat. • KENNEDY from the beginning focused on the Cold War and felt the

Eisenhower administration had not done enough about the Soviet threat. He saw the Soviets gaining loyalties in economically less-developed countries (third world) of Asia, Africa, Latin America. He blasted the Republicans for allowing communism to develop in Cuba at America’s doorstep. • He believed his most urgent task was to redefine the nation’s nuclear

strategy. The Eisenhower administration relied on the policy of massive retaliation of the nuclear level to deter the Soviet aggression and imperialism. Kennedy felt that threatening to use nukes over a minor conflict was not a risk to take.

• Instead his team developed a policy of flexible response – it involved preparing for a variety of military responses to international crises rather than focusing of the use of nukes. He increased defense spending in order to boost conventional military forces – nonnukes such as troops, ships artillery, and in the army created Special Forces (Green Berets). He tripled the overall nuke capabilities of the US. These changes enabled the US to fight limited wars around the world while maintaining a balance of nuclear power with the USSR. Even though he hoped to reduce the risk of nuclear war – he came close to it as a crisis arose over the island of Cuba.

• Crisis over Cuba: Cuba – it is just 90 miles off the coast of Florida. 2 weeks before Kennedy took office Eisenhower cut off diplomatic relations with Cuba – it revolutionary leader Fidel Castro openly declared himself a communist and welcomed aid fro the Soviet Union. In his revolution against dictatorship (Fulgencio Batista)in Cuba – we quietly backed him and helped him gain power because he promised democracy. From 1956 – 1959 he led a guerrilla movement and won control in 1959. But Castro had other intentions. He seized 3 American and British oil refineries. He broke up commericial farms into communes, took over American sugar companies. When they appealed to the US government for help, congress set in place a trade embargo against Cuban sugar. This led Castro to use Soviet aid. He put people in jail if they did not agree with him. About 10% of Cuba’s population went into exile – mostly to the US – Miami, where a counterrevolutionary movement took shape.

• The Bay of Pigs: In March of 1960, Eisenhower gave the CIA permission to secretly train Cuban exiles for an invasion of Cuba. They hoped it would trigger a mass uprising that would overthrow Castro. Kennedy learned of the plan only 9 days after his election. He had his doubts, but approved it. Apr. 17, 1961, 1,300 – 1,500 Cuban exiles with support of US military landed on the island’s southern coast as Bahia de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) – nothing went as planned. The sir strike failed to knock out the Cuban air force – even through the CIA declared a success. A small advance group sent to distract Castro’s forces never reached shore. When the main unit landed, it lacked American air support as it faced 25,000 Cuban troops backed up by Soviet tanks and jets. Some of the invading exiles were killed or imprisoned. Cuban media sensationalized the defeat of “North American mercenaries.”

• The US looked like fools to its friends and rascals to its enemies and incompetent to the rest. The disaster embarrassed Kennedy – he took the blame.• What were the consequences of the failed invasion for the US?

Failure to oust Castro, loss of world prestige, embarrassment for JFK, and ransom for captured commandos - $53 million for ransom and food and medical supplies. The US faced both a military and major foreign relations disaster from which it took years to recover. In Cuba: the haphazard support given to the invasion created an opening for Khrushchev to send missiles to Castro to defend Cuba, and also gave the Soviet leader mixed signals about US resolve. • By 1960 the US and USSR had built stockpiles of nuclear weapons.

Many scientists warned against their use. Both countries followed a strategy of nuclear deterrence for it would lead to destruction. The idea that each side could annihilate the other kept each side from launching a first strike.

• The Cuban Missile Crisis: Cuba’s power ally was the USSR and Khrushchev promised to defend Cuba with Soviet arms. In 1962 Soviet weapons along with nuclear weapons flowed into Cuba. Kennedy responded that these nuclear weapons would not be tolerated in Cuba. On Oct. 14 aerial photos revealed Soviet missile bases in Cuba – some had missiles ready to launch. They could reach US cities in minutes! Kennedy informs the nation of this and of his plans to remove them. He made it clear that any missile attack from Cuba would trigger an all-out attack on the USSR. For a few days nuclear was and massive destruction was possible for every American. People built bomb shelters stocking them with supplies, practiced air raids in schools. Millions of Americans listened to the radio and TV for news. The president even called back his wife and children to the White House where they could be protected in the presidential nuclear shelter, if necessary. For 6 days the world faced the terrifying possibility of nuclear war. • (We really did almost have a nuclear war!!)

• Soviet ships – presumed to be carrying more missiles – headed toward Cuba while the US Navy prepared to quarantine (a blockade) Cuba and prevent ships from coming within 500 miles of it. In Florida, 100,000 troops waited – the largest invasion force ever assembled in the US. • Soviet ships suddenly stopped to avoid a confrontation at sea –

eyeball to eyeball and the Soviets blinked first. A few days later, Khrushchev ordered the removal of the missiles, in return – the US pledged not to invade Cuba and remove its missiles from Turkey. • RESULTS? Khrushchev’s prestige in the USSR and world was severely

damaged; Kennedy was criticized for practicing brinkmanship instead of privately working it out, while others thought he passed up on an opportunity to invade and oust Castro. • NEW KNOWLEDGE: It was learned in the 1990s that the CIA

underestimated the numbers of Soviet troops and nuclear weapons on the island.

• LASTING EFFECTS: many Cuban exiles blamed the Democrats for “losing Cuba” – a charge that Kennedy leveled earlier at the Republicans. Cuban Exiles switched their allegiance to the GOP (Republicans).• CASTRO’S REACTION: He closed Cuba’s doors to exiles – Nov 1962 –

banning all flights to and from Miami. Three years later, hundreds of thousands of people took advantage of an agreement that allowed Cubans to join relatives in the US. Cuban population in the US increased to about 300,000.• What were the results of the Cuban Missile Crisis? Kennedy staved

off war; Khrushchev’s prestige is tarnished; many Cuban exiles blame Democrats for “losing Cuba” and switched political parties; Castro limited exiles’ access to Cuba.

• Crisis over Berlin: in 1961 Nikita Khrushchev ordered the Berlin Wall built to stop the flow of refugees from East to West Berlin. Most were seeking freedom from communist rule. The wall isolated West Berlin from the hostile German Democratic Republic. No one could pass from east to west without the communist government’s permission.

• In 1961 Berlin was a city in great turmoil. In 11 years (since the Berlin airlift) nearly 3 million East Germans fled into West Berlin – that’s about 20% of its population. They fled to be free from Communist rule. This in a way advertised the failure of the East German communist government – also – their departure dangerously weakened that country’s economy.

• One of Kennedy’s highpoints in his foreign travels was a trip he made to Berlin in 1963 to dramatize America’s commitment to West Berlin and West Germany. In a speech at the Berlin Wall, Kennedy electrified an audience of 150,000 Germans stating “I am a Berliner,” thus declaring the solidarity of all free people with West Berlin. He pledged not to permit the communists to drive the Americans out of Berlin. • Kennedy’s determination and America’s superior nuclear striking

power prevented Khrushchev from closing the air and land routes to West Berlin. Khrushchev’s decision was to build the Berlin Wall separating east and west Germany. The construction of the wall ended the Berlin crisis but also aggravated Cold War tensions. The Wall stopped the flow of refugees from east to west solving its main problem and became an ugly symbol of Communist oppression.

Berlin Wall

What led Khrushchev to erect the Berlin Wall? The communists wanted to stop the flow of East German refugees into West Berlin isolating the city. Also, losing people weakened their economy which gave the appearance of failure of the communist government.The showdowns between Kennedy and Khrushchev made both leaders aware of the gravity of split-second decisions that separated Cold War peace from nuclear disaster. In 1963 Kennedy announced that the 2 nations had installed the “hot line” between the White House and the Kremlin. This dedicated phone enabled the leaders to the 2 countries to communicate at once should another crisis arise. Later that year, the US and USSR also agreed to a Limited Test Ban Treaty that barred nuclear testing in the atmosphere.

Section 2 p. 709The New Frontier

• Main Idea: While Kennedy had trouble getting his ideas for a New Frontier passed, several goals were achieved.• Why it matters now: Kennedy’s space program continues to generate

scientific and engineering advances that benefit Americans. • Terms and Names: New Frontier, mandate, Peace Corps, Alliance for

Progress, Warren Commission• Obj: summarize the New Frontier and describe the events

surrounding Kennedy’s assassination.

On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard was the first American astronaut to travel into space aboard the Freedom 7 rocket ship. The entire trip lasted only 15 minutes – BUT it reaffirmed the belief in American ingenuity.

The Promise of Progress: The New Frontier is when Kennedy called Americans as New Pioneers to explore uncharted areas of science and space. Kennedy had difficulty turning has vision into reality. He offered Congress proposals to provide medical care for the aged, rebuild blighted urban areas, and aid education – BUT he couldn’t get enough votes. Conservatives blocked his efforts to push his domestic reform. Because he was elected by the slimmest of margins, he lacked a clear indication that voters approved of his plans – a mandate. As a result, he often had to play it safe politically. He did persuade Congress to enact measures to boost the economy, build the national defense, provide international aid, and fund a massive space program.MANDATE: a command or authorization to act in a particular way on a public issue given by the electorate to its representative: Example: The president had a clear mandate to end the war.

• Why did Kennedy have difficulty achieving many of his New Frontier goals? Because he lacked the votes in Congress and a popular mandate.• Peace Corps: a program of volunteer assistance to the developing

nations of Asia, Africa, and Latin America – many of these volunteers were young-just out of college age. It became a huge success. People of all ages and backgrounds signed up to work as agricultural advisers, teachers, or health aides or to do whatever work the host country needed. By 1968, it had over 35,000 volunteers and served 60 nations around the world. It was a foreign aid program.• Alliance for Progress: a second foreign aid program that offered

economic and technical assistance to Latin American countries from 1961 – 1969. The US invested in Latin America in part to deter these countries from becoming communist like Cuba. While the money brought some development – it didn’t bring fundamental reforms.

Warren Commission: a group headed by Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Earl Warren – it investigated the assassination of President Kennedy and concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald alone was the assassin.What effect did the space program have on other areas of American life? It improved education – particularly in the areas of science and math. It also spurred many businesses and industries. Addressing Domestic problems: While progress was being made on the new frontiers of space exploration and international aid, many Americans suffered at home. In 1962, there was a problem with poverty in the US. Over 50 million people in America lived on less than $1,000 per person in a year. While fighting poverty, the fight against segregation was taking place across America. In 1963, Kennedy began to focus more closely in issues at home. He called for a national assault on the causes of poverty and ordered Robert Kennedy’s Justice Department to investigate racial injustices in the South.

In the fall of 1963, he was losing popularity in the polls because of his advocacy of civil rights. November 22, 1963, he lands in Dallas, TX with his wife to mend political fences with Texas Democrats. He was warmly received. As his motorcade drove through the city, rifle shots rang out, Kennedy was shot in the head, He was raced to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Lee Harvey Oswald was charged with killing the president. He was a 24 year old ex-Marine dishonorably discharged, briefly lived in the Soviet Union and supported Castro. As millions of Americans watched him being transferred between jails, Jack Ruby ( a night club owner) walked up to him and shot and killed Oswald. UNANSWERED: Was is a conspiracy? This bizarre chain of events had many wondering.

In 1963, the Warren Commission investigated and concluded that Oswald shot the president while acting on his own. Later in 1979, a reinvestigation concluded that Oswald was part of a conspiracy. Investigators have also Hasid that 2 people may have fired at the president. There have been numerous of people who have investigated and so there are many conspiracy theories. They range from anti-Castro Cubans, to a Communist sponsored attack, even a conspiracy by the CIA. Johnson was sworn in a President on the plane flight back to Washington DC with Kennedy’s body on board. Because of Kennedy’s death, Johnson was able to drive through Congress the most ambitious domestic legislative package since the New Deal.

Section 3 p. 716The Great Society

• Main Idea: The demand for reform helped create a new awareness of social problems, especially on matters of civil rights and the effects of poverty.• Why it matters now: Reforms made in the 1960s have had a lasting

effect on the American justice system by increasing the rights of minorities.• OBJ: Summarize the goals of Johnson’s Great Society and the reforms

of the Warren Court• Terms: Lyndon Baines Johnson, Economic Opportunity Act, Great

Society, Medicare and Medicaid, Immigration Act of 1965, Warren Court, Reapportionment.

• Lyndon Baines Johnson: LBJ, succeeded to the presidency after the assassination of JFK. His ambition and drive had become legendary. He was a 4th generation Texan who grew up in the dry Texas hill country of Blanco County.

He entered politics in 1937 when he won a special election to fill a vacant seat in the US House of Representative. He styled himself as a New Dealer and a spokesperson for the small ranchers and struggling farmers of his district. Pres. Roosevelt liked him and helped him secure key committee assignments in Congress steering much needed electrification and water projects to his Texas district. Johnson idolized FDR and imitated his leadership style.Once in the House, he sought the Senate seat. He was a master politician, maneuvering behind the scenes and rose to the position of Senate majority leader in 1955. His leadership led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. His knack for achieving legislative results captured John Kennedy’s attention

Johnson captured Kennedy’s attention during his run for the White House. He needed Johnson’s congressional connections and his Southern Protestant background – and he asked him to be his running mate ( vice president). Kennedy needed Johnson to help him win key states in the South – especially Texas.Why did Kennedy choose Johnson to be his running mate? Johnson brought balance to the ticket because of his experience and influence in Congress and his Southern Protestant background. Johnson’s Domestic Agenda: When Kennedy was assassinated, LBJ went to Congress and reminded them that Kennedy has inspired Americans to begin to solve national and world problems. He urged Congress to pass the civil rights and tax-cut bills Kennedy had sent to Capitol Hill. In Feb. 1964, Congress passed the tax reduction bill – which spurred economic growth. In July, Johnson pushed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 persuading Southern senators to stop blocking it. It prohibited discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, sex, and granted the government the power to enforce it.

• War on Poverty: LBJs own agenda was to alleviate poverty. Early in 1964 he declared “unconditional war on poverty in America: and proposed sweeping legislation designed to help Americans that needed it. • August,1964 Congress enacted the Economic Opportunity Act (EOA).

It provided youth programs, antipoverty measures, small-business loans, and job training:• Job Corps Youth Training Program• VISTA ( volunteers in service to America)• Project Head Start – educational program for underprivileged

preschoolers• Community Action Program – encouraged poor to participate in

public-works programs

• 1964 election: LBJ ran against the Republican nominee – Barry Goldwater of Arizona who felt the government should not help business and try to right social and economic problems such as poverty, discrimination and lack of opportunity. He also thought we should use nuclear weapons in Cuba and Vietnam.• In 1964, most Americans were in tune with Johnson and that the

federal government should help solve the nation’s problems. Johnson won by a landslide and the Democrats seats increased to a majority in Congress. Now Johnson could launch his reform program.• Building the Great Society: In May 1964, Johnson had summed up his

vision for America in the phrase: the Great Society. Outlining his program, it would end poverty and racial injustice. He envisioned that it would create a higher standard of living and equal opportunity – promoting a richer quality of life for all.

• Education: The key to unlock the door to the Great Society was the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. It provided more than $1 billion in federal aid to help public and parochial schools purchase textbooks and new library materials. This was the first major federal aid package for education in the nation’s history.• Healthcare: LBJ and Congress changed Social Security by establishing

Medicare – (hospital insurance and low-cost medical insurance for Americans 65 or older) and Medicaid (extended health insurance to welfare recipients). Both provided government-sponsored health insurance. • Housing: Money appropriated to build 240,000 units of low-rent

public housing and help low and moderate – income families pay for better private housing; establishing the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

• Immigration: Profound changes to the immigration laws. Old quotas established earlier that discriminated against people from outside Western Europe changed. The Immigration Act of 1965 opened the door for many non-European immigrants to settle in the US by ending quotas based on nationality.• Environment: in 1962 the book Silent Spring exposed hidden dangers

with the effects of pesticides on the environment. Public outcry resulted in the Water Quality Act of 1965 – required states to clean up rivers. The gov’t searched for the worst polluters – chemical companies and oil refineries using our major rivers as pipelines for toxic wastes. The environmental movement in the US begins.• Consumer Protection: Congress passed major safety laws – truth in

packaging law that set standards for labeling consumer goods. Congress now established safety standards for cars, tires, foods.

Reforms of the Warren Court-The Great Society was characterized as a wave of liberal reform that also swept through the Supreme Court of the 1960s. Chief Justice Earl Warren took an activist stance on the leading issues of the day. The Warren Court banned prayer in public schools and declared state-required loyalty oaths unconstitutional. Limited the power of communities to censor books, films – and said that wearing black armbands to school by antiwar students was free speech. His court also brought about change in federal and state reapportionment and th criminal justice system.• Congressional Reapportionment: reapportionment- the way in which

states redraw election districts based on the changing number of people in them. The court rules that congressional district boundaries should be redrawn so that districts would be equal in population and it extended the principle of on person, one vote to state legislative districts.

• Rights of the Accused: The Warren Court also greatly expanded the rights of people accused of crimes. Evidence seized illegally could not be used in state courts – called the exclusionary rule. Justices required criminal courts to provide free legal counsel to those who could not afford it. A person has the right to have a lawyer present during questioning. A person must have their rights read to them before questioning.

What were the differing reactions to the Warren Court decisions on the rights of the accused? Liberals supported the decisions for protecting individual rights, while conservatives criticized the Court for protecting criminal suspects and limiting police power.

Impact of the Great Society – The Great Society and the Warren Court changed the US. No president in the post-WWII era extended the power and reach of the federal government more than Lyndon B. Johnson. War on Poverty – did help – the number of poor fell from 21% to 11% in 10 years. Many of his proposals proved difficult to accomplish because they were not well thought out. Funding the Great Society contributed to a growing budget deficit – a problem that continues. There were questions about government finances and debates over the effectiveness of programs and the role of the federal government leaving some disillusioned. There was a conservative backlash as a new group of conservative Republican leaders rose to power. The increase of Communist forces in Vietnam began to overshadow the goals of the Great Society and drew funds away from it. In 1964 Johnson was a “peace candidate” for president but would be labeled a “hawk” for supporting on of the most divisive wars in recent US history – Vietnam-

• What events and problems may have affected the success of the Great Society?

Some programs contributed to the budget deficit; federal spending; deficits, and intervention sparked conservative backlash; the Vietnam War drew away funds and attention.