November 22

This Day in History

Also on This Day

Lead Story
John F. Kennedy assassinated, 1963
American Revolution
John Hanson, so-called first president, dies, 1783
Automotive
First Mercedes goes for a test drive, 1900
Civil War
Confederate General Hood enters Tennessee, 1864
Cold War
Kennedy assassinated, 1963
Crime
President Kennedy is assassinated, 1963
Disaster
Commuter trains collide in New York City, 1950
General Interest
Blackbeard killed off North Carolina, 1718
Stealth bomber unveiled, 1988
Margaret Thatcher resigns, 1990
Hollywood
Die Another Day released 40 years after first Bond film, 2002
Literary
George Eliot is born, 1819
Music
KC and the Sunshine band top the U.S. pop charts with "That's The Way (I Like It)", 1975
Old West
Jack London dies of kidney disease, 1916
Presidential
Kennedy becomes fourth president to be assassinated, 1963
Sports
Mike Tyson becomes the youngest heavyweight champ in history, 1986
Vietnam War
JFK assassinated in Dallas, 1963
Westmoreland claims U.S. victory at Dak To, 1967
First B-52 shot down over North Vietnam, 1972
World War I
Fighting suspended in Ypres Salient, 1914
World War II
Soviets encircle Germans at Stalingrad, 1942

Cold War

Nov 22, 1963:

Kennedy assassinated

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President John F. Kennedy is assassinated during a visit to Dallas, Texas. His death caused intense mourning in the United States and brought Vice President Lyndon Johnson to the presidency. Kennedy's untimely death also left future generations with a great many "what if" questions concerning the subsequent history of the Cold War.
In the years since Kennedy's death, a number of supporters argued that had he lived he would have done much to bring the Cold War to a close. Some have suggested that he would have sharply curtailed military spending and brought the arms race under control. The most persistent claim, which served as the centerpiece of Oliver Stone's 1991 film JFK, is that Kennedy would have withdrawn U.S. troops from Vietnam after being re-elected in 1964. Stone went on to charge that right-wing militants in the U.S. government coordinated the assassination plot.
It is difficult to say what Kennedy would have done had he not been killed in November 1963, but the arguments raised by Stone and others do not seem supported by the available evidence. During his brief presidency, Kennedy consistently requested higher military spending, asking for billions in increased funding. After the humiliating defeat at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba, his administration approved Operation Mongoose, a CIA program that involved plots to destabilize the communist government in Cuba. There was even discussion about assassinating Cuban leader Fidel Castro. In Vietnam, Kennedy increased the number of U.S. advisers from around 1,500 when he took office, to more than 16,000 by the time of his death. His administration also participated in the planning of the coup that ultimately overthrew South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem, who was murdered by his own military just three weeks prior to Kennedy's assassination. If Kennedy was going to become less of a cold warrior after 1964, there was little to suggest this change prior to November 22, 1963.

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This Week in History, Nov 22 - Nov 28

Nov 22, 1963
Kennedy assassinated
Nov 23, 1981
Reagan gives CIA authority to establish the Contras
Nov 24, 1947
"Hollywood 10" cited for contempt of Congress
Nov 25, 1947
London Council of Foreign Ministers meeting begins
Nov 26, 1950
Chinese counterattacks in Korea change nature of war
Nov 27, 1954
Alger Hiss released from prison
Nov 28, 1989
Czechoslovakian Communist Party gives up monopoly on political power

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