Introduction
Not since the inauguration of President Abraham Lincoln, exactly a century prior, had an oath of office been taken under such inauspicious circumstances. On January 19, 1961 a United States Air Force B-52 bomber crash landed in Goldsboro, North Carolina, detonating its nuclear payload on impact. Roughly 16,000 perished in the resulting explosion as the south-southwesterly winds of an approaching blizzard dumped the fallout onto Washington D.C. Visitors and dignitaries attending the inaugural ceremony of John F. Kennedy quickly turned to panic, believing that the detonation of a nuclear device on United States soil could only mean the opening salvo of World War III. The Goldsboro Disaster remains the only occasion in which the United States raised its readiness level to DEFCON 1.
For the only confirmed time in U.S. history, B-52 bombers were dispersed to various military and civilian airfields, made ready to take off, fully equipped, on 15 minutes' notice. The irony of launching
additional B-52 bombers as a response to a catastrophic malfunctioning of the same model has not been lost in hindsight, indeed it has become a rallying cry for those opposed to the "military-industrial complex" spoken of so prophetically in President Eisenhower's farewell address.
After frantic calls between the White House and Kremlin saw cooler heads prevail and a nuclear apocalypse averted, the United States government was at last able to take a deep breath and come to terms with the fact that they had accidentally nuked their own country. President Kennedy was reluctant to take drastic action to combat the situation, fearing the inflammation of public paranoia, but the overwhelming panic forced his hand. Martial law was declared in the District of Columbia. Wayne County, home of the irradiated crater of Goldsboro, was evacuated.
Contrary to popular belief, Kennedy enjoyed his highest approval ratings in the aftermath of Goldsboro. It was toxic combination of limited knowledge of nuclear fallout and governmental inexperience in dealing with a disaster of such magnitude that ultimately sealed the fate of the administration. The United States had a history of being woefully inept in handling nuclear catastrophes, the nuclear debacle on Bikini atoll being the most prominent pre-Goldsboro example.
Bikini was used as a testing ground for experimental nuclear weapons. Despite a promise to the inhabitants of the atoll that they would be allowed to return once the testing was concluded, the detonations contaminated the soil and water, made subsistence farming and fishing highly dangerous, and ultimately eliminated any possibility of future habitation. Despite another promise to "protect the inhabitants" the residents of Bikini Atoll were left alone in the aftermath and were later found "literally starving to death" by researchers who happened upon them. In light of these events, it is unsurprising that the handling of the Goldsboro Disaster was less than perfect.
Although the residents of North Carolina were treated with far more humanity than the inhabitants of Bikini, Women who returned to Wayne county experienced miscarriages, stillbirths, and genetic abnormalities in their children. Children as young as eleven died of cancer that was linked to radiation exposure. Declassified records reveal that the government understated the risk of return and the inhabitants had to be evacuated a second time as a consequence. It was under these circumstances that President Kennedy sought his re-election.
Michigan Senator George Romney prevailed in the Republican primaries after New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller and Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater flamed out due to a scandalous divorce and scandalous comments about the supposed necessity of nuclear weapons respectively. Senator Romney selected Kentucky Senator Thurston Morton as his running mate in a bid to bring regional diversity to the ticket and to capitalize on Kennedy's unpopular decision to replace Vice President Lyndon Johnson with North Carolina Governor Terry Sanford. Popularity spikes associated with half-baked assassination attempts on the president notwithstanding, Kennedy/Sanford consistently trailed in the polls.
Going into the final weeks, forecasts showed the Republican ticket ahead of President Kennedy with enough wiggle room to prevent Lister Hill's third-party candidacy from spoiling the election. Former Senator Hill embraced Strom Thurmond's States' Rights brand in an effort to whip up popular anger over the supposed mistreatment of southerners afflicted by the Goldsboro fallout. Kennedy, knowing he needed the Solid South to propel him to victory as it did in 1960, was forced to spend an inordinate amount of time beating back's Hill's candidacy while Romney crisscrossed the Northeast. The reasons for Kennedy's defeat are manifold. That being said, the results speak for themselves...
