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Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-RFK-02
In this interview Robert F. Kennedy [RFK] discusses the 1961 Berlin crisis; American forces, military and diplomatic, in Germany; John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] recommendation for Americans to have fallout shelters; nuclear testing; problems with the Department of State; the start of the conflict in Vietnam, 1961; the Department of Justice under RFK and organized crime; RFK’s difficult relationship with J. Edgar Hoover; the wiretapping bill; new federal judgeships in 1961 and other presidential appointments; the Alliance for Progress; Red China; crises during JFK’s presidency and how he was an optimist; RFK’s move for an income tax increase during the Berlin crisis; RFK’s disagreements with President JFK; indecisiveness over picking JFK’s running mate, 1960; the missile gap; fighting and UN operations in the Congo; Nikita S. Khrushchev’s speeches; RFK’s 1962 trip to Japan, Indonesia, Germany, and other countries; the release of Allen L. Pope; Dutch disputes in Southeast Asia; the 1961 crisis in the Dominican Republic and the assassination of Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina; the 1962 disarmament conference in Geneva; Edward M. Kennedy’s 1962 campaign for U.S. Senate; the Kennedy family national and political reputation; the Justice Department under RFK and civil rights; and the 1962 steel crisis, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-TGW-01
In this interview Wicker discusses early impressions of John F. Kennedy [JFK], 1952–1961; Lyndon B. Johnson campaigning for JFK in the South, 1960; Richard M. Nixon and Henry Cabot Lodge’s 1960 presidential campaign; JFK and Johnson in the August 1960 special session of Congress; Wicker’s first interview with President JFK for the New York Times, 1961; building a rapport with JFK’s staff; various Times articles, by Wicker and others, about the Kennedy Administration and White House reactions to them; Wicker’s arguments with Pierre E.G. Salinger over certain articles; year-end briefings in Palm Beach; and President JFK’s press conferences, among other issues.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-323-007
This folder contains memoranda from Walt Rostow, Deputy Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and later Chairman of the Policy Planning Council in the Department of State, to President John F. Kennedy and McGeorge Bundy, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. Topics include foreign aid, speech theme suggestions for the President, policy towards the Communist Bloc, and a proposal for domestic and foreign economic policy. Also included in this folder is a transcript of a “Meet the Press” interview with Rostow discussing nuclear weapons, the Soviet Union, Laos, Vietnam, and communism.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-055-008
This folder contains material collected by the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, concerning the President's News Conference of February 14, 1962 (News Conference 24). The President began the press conference with a statement concerning the release of Soviet intelligence officer Colonel Rudolph Abel in exchange for the release of the American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers and American student Frederic Pryor from detention in the Soviet Union and East Germany. Following this statement the President answered questions from the press on a variety of topics including United States involvement in Vietnam, the status of the nuclear test ban treaty, and restrictions on public statements by military personnel. Background materials in this folder include a draft press conference announcement, executive department and agency reports, and briefing papers for the President on domestic and foreign affairs and national security. Topics of the briefing papers include the economy, negotiations for a nuclear test ban treaty, and the situation in South Vietnam. The official White House transcript of the press conference and the stenotype transcript of the press conference are also included.