John F. Kennedy (Research Paper)
... Kennedy was elected senator. On September 12, 1953 Kennedy married Jacqueline Lee Bouvier. Soon after their marriage, Kennedy’s back started to bother him again and he had to undergo surgery. While he was recovering, Kennedy wrote a book called Profiles of Courage, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1957. The Kennedys had four children: a daughter, who was stillborn in 1956; Caroline, who was born on 1957, and two sons, John, born 17 days after the presidential election in 1960, and Patrick Bouvier, who died less than 48 hours after his birth in 1963. (MSN Learning and Research, www.encarta.msn.com) After Kennedy was re-elected to the Senate in 1958, he decided to try and run for the presidency. On January 20, 1961, John F. Kennedy became the 35th president. He was also the youngest president and the first Roman Catholic to serve in office. President Kennedy won with 49.75 percent of the votes over his opponent Richard M. Nixon who had 49.55 percent of the votes. At the time, his salary was $100,000 a year plus $50,000 in expense accounts which Kennedy refused. In his inaugural speech, Kennedy challenged Americans to assume the burden of “defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger.” The words of his address were, “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.” (MSN Learning and Research, www.encarta.msn.com) President Kennedy began his day at 7:00 a.m. and ended it around midnight. He was very interested in what the press had to say about him, therefore, he began his day by reading six different papers while eating breakfast. Peace Corps was the most important thing that Kennedy did for our Country. The Peace Corps consists of volunteers whose job it is to promote world peace and friendships around the world. Kennedy was also very excited about the United States having the opportunity to explore space. He was the first president to ask Congress to approve more than twenty two billion dollars for ‘Project Apollo’. (The White House, www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/jk35.html) During one of his speeches, President Kennedy said a man will walk on the moon “before the end of this decade”. Later, on July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong walks on the moon. One of the most serious problems that Kennedy had to take on was racial discrimination. In 1954 segregation was no longer allowed in public schools. Martin Luther King, Jr. worked with President Kennedy to promote civil rights. A civil rights bill was proposed on June 11, 1963 by Kennedy. Kennedy said ‘One hundred years of delay have passed since President Lincoln freed the slaves, yet their heirs, their grandsons, are not fully free,’ . ‘This Nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds…on the principle that all men are created equal.’ (The White House, www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/jk35.html) During October 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis began. Kennedy learned that the Russians were trying to install nuclear missiles in Cuba and he issued a quarantine of all weapons heading in and out of Cuba. The Russians then decided to dispose of the weapons. Kennedy then felt that the United States and Cuba had a joint interest in stopping all nuclear weapons. This eventually led to the Test Ban Treaty in 1963. However, Kennedy never let down his guard and he decided to get troops ready to invade China to search for any and all weapons. It was believed that Kennedy may have prevented World War III by handling the Cuban Missile Crisis the way he did. On November 21, 1963, President Kennedy flew to Dallas, Texas to attend a political rally to try and gain my support. On November 22 the President and his wife were in a convertible car headed to a luncheon in downtown Dallas. Governor Connally and his wife were in the jump seats in front of the President and his wife and there were Secret Service agents along side and behind the car. The clock read 12:30 p.m. as the first shots rang out and continued for 9 seconds. The first bullet missed but the next shot which was about two seconds later hit Kennedy in the throat and back. The third shot hit Governor Connally as he turned to check on the President. Connally was struck...