JFK and the Cold War 17-2

JFK and the Cold War17-2

Flexible Response Thought Eisenhower

put too much emphasis on nuclear weapons

Pushed for an increase in troops as well as Special Forces

Felt this would be better for helping countries defend against communism

Aid to other Countries Kennedy felt that we needed to improve

our relationship with Latin America and look to give aid, ($20 billion over 10 year span)

Peace Corps- gave aid less fortunate countries

The Space Race The Soviets had beaten

us into Space with Sputnik and Yuri Gagarin

JFK went before Congress to push for funding to spur growth in the NASA program

1962- John Glenn became first American to orbit the earth

First Moon Landing! 1969- Apollo 11 first human beings to land on the

moonBuzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong

Cuba Fidel Castro overthrew the corrupt Cuban

dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959 Almost immediately aligned himself with the

Soviet Union and the communist regime

The Bay of Pigs Invasion CIA plot, trained 1,400

Cuban exiles Exiles would help start

a revolution and overthrow Castro from power, or even kill him

Mission was a disaster!Looked terrible for JFK,

only months into presidency

Berlin Wall Goes Up July 1961- Khruschev had a wall built along the border of east and west Berlin

Built to stop Eastern Germany from escaping to West Berlin

Became a visible symbol of the Cold War

Cuban Missile Crisis

Cuban Missile Crisis Oct ‘62- Soviets moved long range

missiles into Cuba that were pointed at the U.S.

Kennedy demanded they be removed

U.S. had missiles in Turkey, pointed at SU

13 days of heated debates followed

Finally both Khrushchev and Kennedy agreed to remove nuclear weapons Both sides removed nucs

Both sides agreed to lessen nuclear testing

Led to demise of Khrushchev and made SU appear inferior to US

Death of a President Nov 22, 1963- Dallas Texas JFK campaigning for 2nd term Motorcade came through Dealey Plaza 3 shots fired by Lee Harvey Oswald

1 miss, 2 through his neck and into Governor, 3 hit his head

Warren Commission put together by President Johnson to investigate assassination

Has since led to many conspiracy theories

JFK’s Legacy Only president for a little more than

1,000 days, he was loved by the American people

A symbol of youth and optimism, hope and strength

LBJ set out to promote many of JFK’s policies