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National Convention in Los Angeles



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3.9National Convention in Los Angeles


John Kennedy was nominated the Democratic candidate for President at the National Democratic Convention in Los Angeles. He narrowly won the nomination on the first ballot. His position was strong in all regions apart from the South. Despite a certain disagreement in Kennedy’s team, Kennedy offered Lyndon B. Johnson to run for vice-presidency with him. Kennedy was well aware of the fact that running together with a Texan would certainly increase his chances in the South. In addition, Kennedy needed someone more mature than him and someone with a different religion. Johnson was older than Kennedy, he was a Protestant and he was from the South.

In his acceptance speech, delivered in Los Angeles on July 15, 1960, Kennedy insisted on a strong civil rights plank in the party platform, which was adopted by the Democrats. Apart from enforcing voting laws (by eliminating literacy tests and payments of poll taxes as requirements for voting) and supporting federal actions to end discrimination at schools and in housing, the plank stressed the need to amend congressional procedures – reforms of filibuster and House Rules Committee (Kennedy, “Address of Senator John F. Kennedy”). Democrats in their platform claimed: “The time has come to assure equal access for all Americans to all areas of community life, including voting booths, schoolrooms, jobs, housing, and public facilities” (Wooley sec. 85). In addition, the Democratic platform stressed the need for “strong, imaginative, and persuasive leadership by the President” (ibid.). Kennedy expressed his disapproval with the performance of the Eisenhower administration in the speech. He said: “...it is time for a new generation of leadership – new men to cope with new problems and new opportunities” (Kennedy, “Address of Senator John F. Kennedy”).


3.10 After the Convention


The Republicans nominated Richard Nixon a candidate for the presidential office at the Republican Convention in Chicago. Nixon was a member of the House of Representatives since 1947 and in 1952 he was elected Vice-President of the United States. Henry Cabot Lodge37 was nominated as the Republican candidate for the Vice-Presidential office. On one hand Kennedy and Nixon had much in common. They had been active on the American political scene for about fourteen years. Both had been elected first to the House of Representatives and then to the Senate. They were both fairly young – Kennedy was forty-three and Nixon forty-seven. On the other hand, they were very different in their appearance. Kennedy gave the impression of a young energetic man who loved sports, socializing; he enjoyed communication with media unlike Nixon who did not seem to have any desire for sports or socializing.

Kennedy’s nomination revived the Catholic issue again. According to the National Conference of Citizens for Religious Freedom, “Roman Catholic Church with its dual role as both a church and a temporal state, made Kennedy’s faith a legitimate issue in the campaign” (Dallek, Unfinished Life 282). Kennedy decided to confront the issue of religion again. He agreed to talk in front of a group of Protestant ministers in Houston on September 12, 1960. Despite his advisors’ objections, he also agreed to answer any questions without a previous preparation. At the beginning of his speech, Kennedy emphasized that although religion was “the chief topic” of the discussion, there were “far more critical issues to face in the 1960 election” (Kennedy, “Speech of Senator John F. Kennedy, Greater Houston”). He named the problem of spreading Communism, problems with poverty and health care in the USA and the struggle to keep pace with the Russians – there was a general fear that the United States were falling behind the communist countries in technology and science. He asked to be judged on the basis of his “record of 14 years in Congress” instead of judging him on the basis of pamphlets and publications which were launched against him (ibid.). All the questions asked by the ministers were answered by Kennedy with “confidence and poise” (O’Brien 477). According to O’Brien, this speech was one of the most “powerful” and important in his career and it even led to certain positive changes (478). Christian Century (Christian magazine based in Chicago) became neutral and did not oppose Kennedy any more. Christianity in Crisis (journal focused on modern theology) even became supportive.

Kennedy’s opponents often emphasized that Kennedy had very little experience in the foreign affairs and Republicans kept pointing out that Kennedy was unsuitable for the White House due to his young age. His wife Jacqueline was also in their eyes “too young to be the First Lady” (Dallek, Unfinished Life 281). Kennedy decided to use his youth as a benefit. In many of his speeches he stated that a new, more energetic generation was needed to govern the country in order to deal with numerous domestic and foreign affair issues.

3.11Phone Call to Coretta King


Many historians see the phone call to Coretta King, in October 1960, as one of the key moments of the campaign. On October 22, Martin Luther King was arrested for violation of a parole agreement during a sit-in demonstration. He had been arrested for driving with an Alabama driving license while being a resident of Georgia. He was sentenced to four months of hard labor in a rural jail. King’s wife, pregnant at that time, contacted Harris Wofford worrying about her husband’s life. Kennedy’s top advisor, Louis Martin, suggested Kennedy should make a gesture to express his concern about King. Wofford and Shiver, one of Kennedy’s aids who supported the movement, made a plan. Shiver, who was at that time staying with Kennedy in Chicago, suggested that he call Coretta King. However, he intentionally chose a moment when no other advisors were present because Shiver and Wofford were well aware that other campaign aides would have certainly disagreed with this suggestion. Kennedy agreed and called Mrs. King immediately. He promised her that he would “keep an eye on her husband’s situation” (Williams 142).

Kennedy later commented on his action saying: “She is a friend of mine and I was concerned about the situation” (Kennedy, “Statement by Senator John F. Kennedy on Telephone Call”). Robert and other aides strongly disapproved of Kennedy’s action when they found out. They were afraid of losing votes from white conservative Democrats. However, Robert Kennedy changed his opinion a day later and called Judge Oscar Mitchell (who had sentenced Reverend King) in Atlanta. Robert Kennedy strongly criticized the judge for not allowing King to pay bail. King was released on bail the day after Robert Kennedy’s call. According to Stern, Louis Martin contacted Robert Kennedy and told him that Nixon was about to call a press conference in order to criticize King’s arrest and subsequent punishment by several Democrats who were members of the judiciary (Calculating Visions 35).

O’Brien states that this is the official version; however, there are some other “important facts” to be mentioned (487). According to him, John Kennedy contacted Ernest Vandiver, Governor of Georgia, and asked him to take an action in favor of releasing King. The governor refused any public action but he contacted the judge of DeKalb County who eventually agreed to release King. Then John Kennedy told his brother to call the judge in order to cover up the Vandiver’s involvement. Regardless of the sequence of events, John F. Kennedy’s phone call to Coretta King and Robert F. Kennedy’s phone call to the judge influenced Martin Luther King and he publicly changed his endorsement from Nixon to Kennedy. He appealed to other voters to do so as well. He said: “It’s time for all of us to take off our Nixon button” (Williams 143). King also praised Kennedy for “moral courage of high order” (Stern, Calculating Visions 36).

John Siegenthaler, Robert Kennedy’s administrative assistant during the campaign, noted that “suddenly civil rights was a crucial part of that 1960 campaign...” (ibid. 35). Popular newspapers in African American communities devoted a lot of space to Kennedy’s action. Kennedy’s campaign staff had copied and distributed two million copies of a pamphlet38 describing the phone calls. Kennedy’s advisors on civil rights did not see it as propaganda but rather as “just reporting what had been said” (ibid. 37). According to Brauer, Kennedy’s phone call “demonstrated sensitivity to the black political temper that was missing in Nixon campaign” (51). Nixon did not get involved in the affair. Although Kennedy expressed his concern over the injustice and he did not hesitate to express his support in this matter, he used it very well to his own profit by publicizing the case in media. The publicity which was given to this case was certainly encouraged by his team.



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