Kennedy

’s Career Decisions Essay, Research Paper

Faced with the problem of choosing a career, Kennedy worked for several months in 1945 as a reporter for the Hearst newspapers, covering the conference at San Francisco that established the United Nations. There he noted the “belligerent Russian attitude.” Ultimately he decided on a political career and returned to Boston. In so choosing, he took the place of his brother Joseph, who had seemed destined for politics but had been killed in World War II. His opportunity came when James M. Curley vacated his seat in the House of Representatives from the overwhelmingly Democratic 11th Massachusetts Congressional District to become mayor of Boston. Early in 1946, Kennedy announced his candidacy in the June DEMOCRATIC primary. He began an elaborate and aggressive campaign against nine other candidates. One of his rivals called him “the poor little rich kid,” and others referred to him as an outsider, a carpetbagger. But he campaigned ceaselessly, depending on a strong organization of personal followers rather than on regular Democratic party workers. In the primary he nearly doubled the vote of his nearest opponent, and his election in November was little more than a formality. As a representative–he was reelected in 1948 and 1950–Kennedy had a mixed voting record, diverging sharply at some points from the policies of President Harry TRUMAN and the Democratic party. On domestic affairs he followed the administration’s Fair Deal policies in most matters, fighting for slum clearance and low-cost public housing. As a member of the Education and Labor Committee, he wrote his own temperate report concurring with the minority opposing the Taft-Hartley bill. On foreign affairs he backed the Truman Doctrine, but was critical of the president for not stemming the advance of communism in China. *h2*U.S. Senate

In April 1952, Kennedy announced his candidacy for the Senate against the Republican incumbent, Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. Again depending on his own organization, he based his campaign on the slogan “Kennedy will do more for Massachusetts.” In November, while the Republican Dwight D. EISENHOWER was carrying the state for president, Kennedy defeated Lodge by more than 70,000 votes.

As senator, Kennedy concentrated at first on making good his campaign slogan. At the end of two years he could list a wide array of legislation he had obtained for Massachusetts businessmen. He expanded his program to cover all of New England and succeeded in uniting the senators from the area into an effective voting bloc. At the same time, he supported the St. Lawrence Seaway and the extension of the reciprocal trade program. On the troublesome question of the policies of Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy, who was admired by many of Kennedy’s constituents, he took a middle position. To one McCarthyite he wrote: “I have always believed that we must be alert to the menace of communism within our country as well as its advances on the international front. In so doing, however, we must be careful we maintain our traditional concern that in punishing the guilty we protect the innocent.” In December 1954, when the Senate voted censure against McCarthy, 67 to 22, Kennedy was ill in a hospital and did not vote; however, he reportedly had planned to speak and vote for censure.

Kennedy married Jacqueline Bouvier on Sept. 12, 1953. The couple had two children who survived infancy–Caroline Bouvier, born on Nov. 27, 1957, and John, Jr., born on Nov. 25, 1960. A third child, Patrick Bouvier, died two days after his birth on Aug. 7, 1963. Not long after their marriage, Mrs. Kennedy had to help her husband through a serious illness. Increasingly troubled by his injured back, he underwent spinal operations in October 1954 and February 1955. During his long convalescence he occupied himself by writing a study of notable acts of political courage by eight United States senators. This book, published in 1956 as Profiles in Courage, received the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 1957.

When, in May 1955, Kennedy returned to the Senate after his illness, he shifted his attention more and more toward national and international issues. He had previously told a magazine writer, with reference to critics who complained that he was not a “true liberal,” that “I’d be very happy to tell them that I’m not a liberal at all.” But by 1957 he was taking mildly liberal positions on the difficult question of civil liberties. He helped arrange a compromise between Northern and Southern positions on the civil rights bill passed in 1957. In Jackson, Miss., he frankly asserted that he accepted the Supreme Court decision of 1954 on desegregation of the nation’s public schools.

In 1957 also, Kennedy obtained membership on the powerful Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, where he supported most of the Democratic policies. His emphasis shifted from military programs to economic aid to underdeveloped areas. In 1958 and 1959 he devoted much time and energy to labor reform legislation (soon after becoming a senator he had been appointed to the Labor and Public Welfare Committee), but in the end he was forced to accept theLandrum-In 1957 also, Kennedy obtained membership on the powerful Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, where he supported most of the Democratic policies. His emphasis shifted from military programs to economic aid to underdeveloped areas. In 1958 and 1959 he devoted much time and energy to labor reform legislation (soon after becoming a senator he had been appointed to the Labor and Public Welfare Committee), but in the end he was forced to accept theLandrum-Griffin bill, which incorporated some of his reforms but was less favorable to labThe youngest ever elected to the presidency and the first of the Roman Catholic faith, John F. Kennedy won the ELECTION of November 1960 by a razor-thin margin, but after taking office he received the support of most Americans. They admired his winning personality, his lively family, his intelligence, and his tireless energy, and they respected his courage in time of decision. During his relatively brief term of office–less than three years–President Kennedy dealt with severe challenges in Cuba, Berlin, and elsewhere. A nuclear test ban treaty in 1963 brought about a relaxation in cold war tensions following a time of severe confrontation early in the administration. Domestically, much of the Kennedy program was unfulfilled, brought to fruition only in the Johnson administration. The U.S. space program, however, surged ahead during the Kennedy administration, scoring dramatic gains that benefited American prestige worldwide. An assassin’s bullet cut short Kennedy’s term as president. On Nov. 22, 1963, the young president was shot to death while riding in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas. As the nation joined in mourning, dignitaries from around the world gathered at his funeral in Washington to pay their respects. Mayor Willy Brandt of West Berlin expressed the world’s sense of loss when he said that “a flame went out for all those who had hoped for a just peace and a better life.”

Griffin bill, which incorporated some of his reforms but was less favorable to labThe youngest ever elected to the presidency and the first of the Roman Catholic faith, John F. Kennedy won the ELECTION of November 1960 by a razor-thin margin, but after taking office he received the support of most Americans. They admired his winning personality, his lively family, his intelligence, and his tireless energy, and they respected his courage in time of decision. During his relatively brief term of office–less than three years–President Kennedy dealt with severe challenges in Cuba, Berlin, and elsewhere. A nuclear test ban treaty in 1963 brought about a relaxation in cold war tensions following a time of severe confrontation early in the administration. Domestically, much of the Kennedy program was unfulfilled, brought to fruition only in the Johnson administration. The U.S. space program, however, surged ahead during the Kennedy administration, scoring dramatic gains that benefited American prestige worldwide. An assassin’s bullet cut short Kennedy’s term as president. On Nov. 22, 1963, the young president was shot to death while riding in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas. As the nation joined in mourning, dignitaries from around the world gathered at his funeral in Washington to pay their respects. Mayor Willy Brandt of West Berlin expressed the world’s sense of loss when he said that “a flame went out for all those who had hoped for a just peace and a better life.”

33b