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Kennedy and the Cold War
John F. Kennedy vs. Richard Nixon
1960 Election
Do looks effect the way a person is judged?
The 1960 Debate
1st ever televised
Nixon led all polls until the first of four televised debates
1st of 4 debates Nixon had spent the last 2 weeks in the hospital, lost 20 pounds
Refused to wear makeup and wore a gray suit
Kennedy had spent the last few weeks in Ca.- tan and well rested
Wore a blue suit
Those who listened on the radio- believed Nixon was the better choice
Those who watched the debate on TV- believed Kennedy was the better choice
Kennedy- “We wouldn’t have a had a prayer without that gadget”
Kennedy wins by less that 120,000 popular votes
Bay of Pigs (Cuba)
1959- Fidel Castro led an uprising that established a communist dictatorship with ties to the Soviet Union
A communist country 90 miles off the coast of the U.S.
While Eisenhower was president the C.I.A. was secretly training and financing a group of anti- Castro refugees to invade Cuba
Kennedy gave approval for theplan to proceed
April 1961, the invasion takes place
1500 rebels came ashore at Cuba’s Bay of Pigs- naval and air support was supposed to follow the invasion
Kennedy calls off the strikes
In less than 72 hours, the rebels were taken prisoner
The bay of Pigs embarrassed the United States and pushed the Cubans closer to the Soviets
Berlin Wall1961-1989
Built to stop people from East Berlin from leaving to West Berlin
Soviet built wall separating East Berlin from West Berlin
East- Soviets West- American/Allies
Berlin Wall
After 1989- End of the Cold War
Cuban Missile Crisis
To prevent an invasion, Castro asked the S.U. for defensive weapons
Soviets complied and offered defensive and offensive weapons
Including nuclear missiles
Oct. 14 1962- U-2 spy planes Revealed missile buildup in Cuba
U-2 Spy Plane
Oct. 22, 1962- Kennedy appears on TV to announce that a blockade is now in place around Cuba and demanded the S.U. remove all missiles from Cuba
What should Kennedy do?
Nuclear War was on the vergeAll Soviet Missiles were armed
B-52 bombers prepared for war
Oct.28- Khrushchev agreed to dismantle and remove nuclear missiles in Cuba
Kennedy agreed not to invade Cuba
U.S. Nuclear facts
Total number of nuclear missiles built, 1951-present: 67,500
Total number and types of nuclear warheads and bombs built, 1945-1990: more than 70,000/ 65 types
Peak number of nuclear warheads and Bombs, year: 32,193/ 1966
First and last test: July 16, 1945 ("Trinity") and September 23, 1992 ("Divider")
Number of U.S. nuclear bombs lost in accidents and never recovered: 11
Estimated 1998 spending on all U.S. nuclear weapons and weapons-related programs: $35,100,000,000
NORAD- Defense headquarters
Operation Airborne Alert
Operation Chrome Dome
1961-1980- B-52’s loaded with nuclear weapons were always in the air ready to attack
Operation Looking Glass
1961-1998 –
Mishaps that could have started a nuclear War
•April 1962, A B-52 loaded with nuclear weapons travels into Soviet Airspace
•Oct. 1962, A soviet satellite was launched and then exploded leading the U.S. to believe a ICBM was launched at the U.S.
•Oct. 1962, an intruder climbed a wall at a SAC base, the wrong alarm went off and instead was a nuclear attack alarm
•Oct. 1962 An ICBM was launched from Florida to the South Pacific, Americans thought a Soviet Missile was launched
•Oct. 1962, A satellite orbiting over the U.S. was Mistaken for 2 soviet missiles
•Nov. 1962, A C.I.A spy in the Soviet Union, sent a message saying that an attack was coming
•Nov. 1965, a power outage caused bomb alarms to be activated, leading to the belief an attack was coming
•Jan, 1968- A B-52 with nuclear weapons crashes over Greenland, crew had to bale out and left no time to radio HQ
•Oct 1973, A Defcon 3 alarm is activated at a SAC base, accidentally activated
•Nov. 1979, the Pentagon, NORAD, and SAC HQ all reported Soviet missiles heading towards the US, just an exercise tape (Hot Line)
•Nov. 1980- faulty computer chip, B-52 crews were ready to take off and missile ready to launch
