1960

For Tuesday, Matthews 15-18, Nelson ch. 1.

Debate transcripts here

Cold War -- for Nixon, both asset (kitchen debate) and liability (U2) -- keep in mind for 1962 gov race.

 JFK v. Hoffa: "I’m not satisfied when I see men like Jimmy Hoffa – in charge of the largest union in the United States – still free.

Teamsters backed Nixon in 1968.  Three years later, Nixon commuted Hoffa’s sentence.

GOP Nomination & campaign

• Rockefeller -- Compact of Fifth Avenue -- alienates the nascent right-wing
• Henry Cabot Lodge -- foreign policy expert, reach to moderates.
• Goldwater
• Ike -- "If you give me a week..."
• Nixon's acceptance speech:
• "That is the great task of the next President of the United States and this will be a difficult task, difficult because at times our next President must tell the people not what they want to hear, but what they need to hear. Why, for example, it may be just as essential to the national interest to build a dam in India as in California."
• Compare & contrast with 1968 speech
• Why travel to 50 states?

The Debates

• First debate restricted to "internal" matters -- were they?
• USSR -- obsession with US prestige and overestimates of Sov strength.
• Nixon's reponse -- me-too and defensive.  WHY???
• Defending Ike 
• Lack of ideology
• Who focused on party?  Look at party id data
• Appearance

Why did RN look so bad?

Why did JFK look so good?

Dogs that did not bark 

• Crime
• Abortion
• Supreme Court

The Cuba issue 

Why did JFK win?

Economy, time for a change

But don't focus too much on makeup or commercials. Unemployment rate by month:

Nov 1, 1960	6.10%
Oct 1, 1960	6.10%
Sep 1, 1960	5.50%
Aug 1, 1960	5.60%
Jul 1, 1960	5.50%
Jun 1, 1960	5.40%
May 1, 1960	5.10%
Apr 1, 1960	5.20%
Mar 1, 1960	5.40%
Feb 1, 1960	4.80%

JFK MLK, and the African American vote (see Matthews 120-121)

		1952	1956	1960	1964	1968
White	R	57	59	51	41	47
	D	43	41	49	59	38
Nonwhite	R	21	39	32	6	13
	D	79	61	68	94	87

Religion

         1956                     1960

      D            R            D            R

Prot        37          63          38          62         

Cath       51          49          78          22

Cold War:  Ike's Farewell:

This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence-economic, political, even spiritual-is felt in every city, every state house, every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.