November 8

This Day in History

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Lead Story
German scientist discovers X-rays, 1895
American Revolution
Washington seeks to make militias into a military, 1775
Automotive
Sun sets on the Ford Rotunda, 1962
Civil War
President Lincoln is re-elected, 1864
Cold War
John F. Kennedy elected president, 1960
Crime
Ted Bundy botches an abduction attempt, 1974
Disaster
Hurricane Gordon is born, 1994
General Interest
Louvre Museum opens, 1793
Beer Hall Putsch begins, 1923
The Republican Revolution, 1994
Hollywood
Dracula creator Bram Stoker born, 1847
Literary
Margaret Mitchell is born, 1900
Music
Salvatore "Sonny" Bono is elected to the U.S. Congress, 1994
Old West
Doc Holliday dies of tuberculosis, 1887
Presidential
FDR broadcasts message to Vichy France leader Marshal Petain, 1942
Sports
Yogi Berra is the AL MVP, 1951
Vietnam War
Lawrence Joel earns Medal of Honor, 1965
World War I
New Russian leader Lenin calls for immediate armistice, 1917
World War II
Hitler survives assassination attempt, 1939

Cold War

Nov 8, 1960:

John F. Kennedy elected president

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John F. Kennedy becomes the youngest man ever to be elected president of the United States, narrowly beating Republican Vice President Richard Nixon. He was also the first Catholic to become president.

The campaign was hard fought and bitter. For the first time, presidential candidates engaged in televised debates. Many observers believed that Kennedy's poised and charming performance during the four debates made the difference in the final vote. Issues, however, also played a role in the election, and the nation's foreign policy was a major bone of contention between Kennedy and Nixon. Nixon took every opportunity to characterize Kennedy as too young and inexperienced to handle the awesome responsibilities of America's Cold War diplomacy. (Nixon was, in fact, only a few years older than Kennedy.) He defended the past eight years of Republican rule, arguing that Soviet power had been contained and America's strength increased. Kennedy responded by portraying foreign policy during the Eisenhower years as stagnant and reactionary. In particular, he charged the Republicans with losing Cuba and allowing a dangerous "missile gap" to develop, in which the Soviets had overtaken the United States in the building of missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads. Kennedy promised to reinvigorate America's foreign policy, relying on a flexible response to changing situations and exploring options ignored by the staid and conservative Eisenhower administration.

Kennedy claimed during the campaign that he looked forward to meeting the challenges facing the strongest nation in the Free World. He did not have long to wait before those challenges were upon him. During the first few months of the Kennedy presidency, Nixon's criticisms seemed to have some validity. Kennedy appeared overwhelmed, first by the catastrophic failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion, then by a blustering Nikita Khrushchev during a summit meeting in Europe, and finally by the construction of the Berlin Wall. And there was also the deteriorating situation in Southeast Asia to consider.

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This Week in History, Nov 8 - Nov 14

Nov 08, 1960
John F. Kennedy elected president
Nov 09, 1989
East Germany opens the Berlin Wall
Nov 10, 1982
Leonid Brezhnev dies
Nov 11, 1973
Soviet Union refuses to play Chile in World Cup Soccer
Nov 12, 1982
Yuri Andropov assumes power in the Soviet Union
Nov 13, 1953
Indiana Textbook Commission member charges that Robin Hood is communistic
Nov 14, 1951
United States gives military and economic aid to communist Yugoslavia

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