Launches, Law, Lionisation

Prologue: The Letter

On Oct. 10, 1975, in the massive office atop Rockefeller Plaza, Robert F. Kennedy sat behind his neatly arranged oak desk. Reading the President's letter for the umpteenth time, he was shocked that it happened so soon. His relationship with the President, the man who had reached out to him a few years earlier, after he had already become a public figure, was complicated, though cordial. Unlike his famously vitriolic one with Lyndon Johnson. Whenever the late President was mentioned, Robert laughed harshly, and in the words of his protege "was one of the few things which provoked him to intense anger". "The unprincipled S.O.B." was perhaps the most printable. Bobby was not a man to regret decisions, and he did not now. The painful decision he had made many years earlier was now behind him. His visitor was less weighed down. The young Conservative MP, just completing his first eighteen months in Parliament, was jubilant at the rise of the man who became his mentor, and eventually repaid his debts "with interest and extras", Robert gleefully mentioned later. "What's your opinion?" The thirty year-old opposite him had been a transatlantic protege since they had first met in 1966. An Oxford Law graduate, Magna Cum Laude, like Bobby, also valedictorian, participant in clubs, including the Young Conservative Association, where he met the dynamic junior minister who was now Leader of the Opposition and poised to become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. "Well, you've gotten everything you could possibly want and more. A first-name relationship with the President of the United States, a large and happy family, great wealth, and membership among all the prominenti clubs. I'd say take it." As he knew, Robert Kennedy had always believed that there was more to life than "adding zeros to bank accounts", or as he once said to an offending reporter: "I could be sitting poolside drinking tequilas all day, being a stay-at-home father. When you've been so blessed, you have to give back. After all, whether I drive another Mustang or Jaguar, will that cure the ills of the country?" He chuckled, then spoke up: "Would you like a light?" As the Cuban cigar ignited, as it did only on special occasions, he thought of Jackie. During May 1962, in a rage, she had forbidden the "contraband" in the house. What did a man have to do to indulge some guilty pleasures? The road he had wished to take had been closed. By an idiotic gaffe committed by a man he had revered, the actions of another with whom he had only recently recovered their former close friendship, and pure bad timing. At the time the President had extended him the initial offer, many were shocked, though not his close friends, including, as of recently, the man sitting across from him. Like Bobby, he had gone through exile, though not the personal sort, rather political. At one point, his protege had referred to Sir Robert Walpole, the Mackenzie King-like first Prime Minister, who would later surpass his record in 1948. Bobby had said then "he was the real Ruthless Robert". As another acquaintance, like Bobby, a lawyer who had graduated from law school Magna Cum Laude, President Ferdinand Marcos, had said: "Robert, as you and I know, ruthlessness is a virtue, not a vice in politics." That man personified it more than most. As he sent his visitor away with good wishes, Robert Kennedy thought back to the day when he made the choice that had narrated his adult life. It was when he was still at Harvard. That day, Feb. 10, 1946. The "most confused, hectic one of my life", as he would write later, after his protege had repaid all his debts "with interest and goodwill".
 
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Chapter One: Ghastly Gaffes, Brutal Betrayal

"Democracy is finished in Britain. Perhaps in the United States as well."

- U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Joseph P. Kennedy, Dec. 4, 1940

KENNEDY SAYS "DEMOCRACY FINISHED" IN UK, PERHAPS IN THE U.S.

"Joe, there is only one option, and we both know what that is. I was considering you for another position, however that is moot as of yesterday. Goodbye."- President Franklin Roosevelt, Dec. 5, 1940

"Hardly unpredictable. The man is obsessed with his heritage, and little else. The mask has been thrown down."

- British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to President Franklin Roosevelt, Dec. 9, 1940

"Joe's extravagant hopes were demolished in a single sentence. This would not be the last demolition of the family's hopes..."

- The Fall, Kennedys Vol. 1, Doris Kearns Goodwin, 2003

On Dec. 8, 1941 the United States went to war against Japan. Two days later, it went to war against Hitler's Germany, vindicating President Roosevelt's policies of armed neutrality.

Robert Kennedy badly wanted to enlist in the Navy like his two older brothers, but Joe had exploded: "Bobby, get it out of your head. You just turned sixteen, and I will not even consider it until you turn eighteen!". A distraught Robert continued to avidly follow the war news, until Oct. 10, 1942- forty days before his seventeenth birthday. On that day "my whole world collapsed like a pack of badly placed cards."

At the Justice Department in Washington, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover was lunching with his boss, Attorney General Francis Biddle, when an aide came in with an urgent message for the Director. As Biddle remembered it many years later: "Mr. Hoover turned white, and said "That was part of the crown jewels! You know the policy on that! Sir, they brought it home for redaction, and were planning to return it on Monday, when their housekeeper took the file. From what we know, the Post has it now. "Get an injunction!" screamed the red-faced Director. That'll ruin him!

Unbeknownst to the Director, Press Secretary Stephen Early had been alerted, as had President Roosevelt. Though they thought such things utterly distasteful, "True, isn't it? Can't keep it under control?" the President said while puffing on a cigarette while Biddle briefed him on the potential scandal. And explosive it was...

YOUNG KENNEDY HAD AFFAIR WITH ALLEGED GERMAN AGENT, FBI INVESTIGATING

The Washington Post, in a single headline, had utterly destroyed any political hopes for the Kennedy children. Rose had taken long walks, constantly reciting the rosary. Joe had sunk into depression, though fears of the worst were "patently ridiculous", Robert would later scoff to Doris Goodwin. Joe Jr. was also furious, not at his brother, but at the Post. All the Kennedys knew they could no longer trust Hoover, and rely on no one but themselves or those who "I could look into their eyes and see honesty" as Bobby would later say.

Jan. 12, 1944 was a cold, windless day as Robert Kennedy entered his last semester at Milton, and was inducted into the Naval Officers Training Corps before he began his Harvard studies. A few months later,on Apr. 10, a USN envelope arrived in the mail. He eagerly opened it. The test hadn't been easy, and Bobby expected the worst. The letter read as follows:

"Dear Mr. Kennedy,

We are pleased to inform you that having passed your initial proficiency test, you have hereby earned a place in the Naval Aviation School at NAS Pensacola, Florida. Please report to Pensacola no later than April 30. Upon the successful completion of the course, you will be sent back to complete your Harvard studies as a member of the Naval Reserve."

A jubilant Robert showed the letter to his father, and later that day the final Milton transcript arrived. The grades were good enough to apply straight into Harvard Law. "Lack of desire to be seen in public", as he would wryly describe it, had helped increase his motivation. On June 10, 1944, Ensign Robert F. Kennedy reported to Pensacola. He was assigned to VT-4, commencing primary training on the N2S biplane.

VT-4 N2S Stearman, July 1944

http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgu...8&prev=/images?q=USN+stearman&hl=en&sa=N&um=1


"Been completing the coursework by courier. The training keeps you alert, since a Stearman cannot be flown hands-off if one wishes to stay on this Earth. Once I solo, then we have to practice for another 40 hours, and if we pass the final checkride progress to the Valiant. Once that is done, we are placed into either Helldivers, Cats, Hellcats or Corsairs. Hoping for Corsairs myself."

Robert Kennedy to his father, Sept. 10, 1944

Oct. 6, 1944- "Well Kennedy, that was a perfect solo. Nice easy turns, caught the monkey wrench I threw in, greaser of a landing. You are cleared to proceed to basic training on the Vultee. She's much less forgiving than this old bird. They don't call her the Vibrator for nothing you know."

BT-13 Vultee basic trainer, VT-4, Oct. 1944



On Oct. 12, 1944, Joe Kennedy was at home when he heard the knock at the door. "We regret to inform you that your son, Lt. Cmdr. Kennedy has been reported missing in action and presumed dead. The likelihood of finding his mortal remains is close to nil." Distraught, Joe sank into another phase of depression, and Rose again began reciting the rosaries at every opportune moment. With Joe dead, Jack thoroughly discredited, working as a low-profile stringer with the Times, a good deal of the burden fell on his daughters to maintain a convivial atmosphere.

"At the beginning, hardly anyone would speak to me, but after a few long nights discussing our lives and progress, the situation changed. Being completely isolated from home, I didn't really experience that situation. The information came piecemeal in the mail once every ten days or so."

As the winter term began, Robert began preparing for the final checkride. He expected to get his wings in early spring and deploy to the Pacific theater.

As the Vultee homed in on the Pensacola VOR, approaching RW 06, rain began to spatter the windshield, reducing visibility to near zero. In the cockpit, Ens. Robert Kennedy began an instrument scan: "DME, 4 miles, VS at 0, heading 057, altitude 1500. The aircraft descended through 600 feet, and was cleared for landing. As Robert flared at 65 kts, the aircraft touched the ground. Applying brakes, he felt no deceleration. The hydraulics had suffered a partial failure. As the aircraft rolled down the tarmac, he turned off the nearest taxiway, ran through the shutdown checklist, and dismounted. The next aircraft inbound wasn't so lucky. The Vultee hydroplaned on the wet runway, and while beginning an S-turn, suddenly flipped over. Glass shattered, fuel leaked, and the wreck came to a stop. As emergency equipment roared towards the runway, both occupants were pulled from the shattered cockpit. One was dead, the other barely alive. Cmdr. William Parker, the instructor, was bleeding internally and rushed to hospital. In the front cockpit, Ensign Robert Troutman's skull had been pierced by a piece of the canopy frame, instantly killing the 21 year old Texan.

"As the chaplain explained, life went on, and we continued our training." On Mar. 10, 1945, Robert Kennedy received his wings and Lieutenant J.G's bars, and began the long voyage to the Pacific to join USS Essex as a Corsair pilot.

Once arriving on station, the shipboard life was entertaining, a mixture of carousing and fatalistic songs constantly being composed on the spot. The missions were offensive, protecting strike aircraft attacking Iwo and Chichi Jima, CAP, CAS, and much in between.

Apr. 25, 1945- Over Chichi Jima, a Helldiver begins its bomb run, flak shells bursting all around. Just as the pilot is about to trigger the bomb release, a shell explodes directly under the cockpit. The shrapnel sends the plane into a flat spin. The overstressed, dying Helldiver breaks up in midair, instantly killing all three crew.

DEPT OF THE NAVY
TO: MR AND MRS PRESCOTT BUSH
26/04/45

DEAR MR AND MRS BUSH, YOUR SON GEORGE WAS KILLED IN ACTION OVER CHICHI JIMA STOP SECNAV HAS POSTHUMOUSLY AWARDED HIM NAVY CROSS STOP OUR SINCERE CONDOLENCES STOP

Meanwhile, aboard the Essex, the men of VF-14 were being briefed on the day's mission. Escorting Helldivers to Okinawa. At 0810, the squadron CO's Corsair was launched into the warm Pacific sky. Today, Lt. Kennedy was number three in the flight. A little over two hours later, Okinawa came into sight, and the Helldivers started their bombing runs. Intense AA fire was heard, and over the radio "Shack on the target" was heard numerous times. Two Helldivers were shot down, but the mission was accomplished with a safe return to the carrier. Otherwise, the next few months were more of the same, and on V-J Day, Sept. 2, 1945, Lt. Robert Kennedy returned to Harvard, put on reserve duty while he completed the three remaining years of Harvard Law.

As the sophomore year began...

Opinions, comments, etc? If you want more details of shipboard life, I could provide them, once I find my Flyboy somewhere... Since this is near the end of the war, it would be ASB to include dogfights.





 
Chapter Two: Path to Prominence


As Robert returned home in Sept. 1945, he arrived to a disconsolate household. Jack, though still a stringer for the Times, was on the road to promotion, and therefore relatively happy. Kathleen had begun dating a married British lord, Peter, Lord Fitzwilliam, who was divorced. A furious Rose had severed all contact with her, since as the late President Roosevelt had said, "he and his family are rabid Protestants". Bobby arrived on the Harvard campus for the start of his sophomore year, and immediately applied for the swim and football clubs. Unsurprisingly, Robert was accepted into both clubs. While considering Phi Kappa Alpha, he decided to specialize in corporate law. This all left little time for amusement, which was mostly spent practicing for meets and games. Ted had just been sent to Groton, and was having trouble fitting in.

"Been so busy, and getting out on the weekends, hardly any time here. Miraculous I get to mass as often as I do"

Journal of Robert F. Kennedy, Dec. 4, 1945

"Great news! I'm a junior foreign correspondent! Destination Tokyo!"

Jack to Bobby, Feb. 10, 1946



In Washington, President Truman's veto had been overriden, and the Taft-Hartley act became law. The Democrats suffered devastating losses in November, losing both houses of Congress to the resurgent GOP. Though it wasn't resurgent.

"All the liberals and labor stayed home as a result of the tough anti-union measures. There were no great ideological or personal victories for the Republicans, except for the ancient weapon of anti-incumbency. And one fateful one in California."

CA-10

(R): Richard M. Nixon: 57.3%
(D): H. Jeremiah Voorhis: 42.7%

Wisconsin Republican senatorial primary, June 5, 1946

Sen. Robert M. LaFolette Jr.: 52.3%
Joseph R. McCarthy: 46.7%


"1946 U.S. Congressional elections", Encylopedia Brittanica, 2004

As 1947 began, Robert was halfway through his junior year. With the master's in corporate, it would take until January 1949, but he was enjoying himself immensely.

"I was offered the QBship for the varsity team or the captaincy of the swim team. Chose the latter for now, and since I'm also a linebacker, can't really complain right now. Jack's having a great time in Tokyo, but I've told him quite unlikely he'll get to interview the Viceroy, as everyone calls Gen. MacArthur. The man's more imperial than the Emperor, for heaven's sake!"

Robert Kennedy journal, Apr. 10, 1947

END OF YEAR RESULTS 30/05/47

COMBINED GPA: 3.8/4.0

(OTL is 2.9/3 FYI)

"Summer has arrived, and plan to head to London for a couple of days, and check out the sights. Kathleen's already got me a tour of Parliament."

- Robert Kennedy journal, June 24, 1947

"The sights in London are rather deja vu by now, but everyday news of another nationalization or increase in govt size. NHS just getting on its feet. Looks like Attlee's obsessed with the word planning , as if every variable can be controlled by OIC or legislation. Hope Churchill hangs on till the next election, because Lab is rather hopeless. And they called the ND socialism. This is statism, and they're shouting it from the rooftops, and distributing leaflets."

- Robert Kennedy journals, July 10, 1947

"Tokyo's rather fascinating. Never been here before, but the PM (Yoshida) rather eager to set up what they euphemistically call "comfort houses". As the Viceroy says, "never issue an order that can't be enforced". He's doing a good job, but perhaps going a bit far on demil. Never know if we might need them against the Sovs in the future, especially with the CW in full bloom."

Jack Kennedy diary, Nov. 10, 1947

As 1948 opened, the domestic focus shifted to the presidential election. Many Dixiecrats were angered at Truman's support for civil rights, since as Dick Russell (D-GA) often said: "You'd expect more from a President from Independence, Missouri. One of us in all but name." Meanwhile, the left was splintering into the Progressives led by Henry Wallace. Both President Truman and Gov. Dewey, the presumptive GOP nominee, would be competing for what was later called the "vital center" by then-Rep. Richard Nixon.

Meanwhile, as Robert Kennedy led his team to a hard fought victory over the Yale team at the NCAA swim meet, the British prepared to depart Palestine after only thirty years as the Mandatory Power. On April 30, 1948, Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King surpassed Sir Robert Walpole's record as the longest serving democratically elected leader in British history. Not for long, as the 74 year old Liberal leader planned to resign in the fall.

On May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion and his colleagues signed the Israeli Declaration of Independence. President Truman, in what might have been a diplomatic record, gave de facto recognition within 15 minutes. Full diplomatic relations would be established by late 1949. The Soviet Union also recognized Israel, due to Stalin's short-lived wish to make it a Soviet client state.

Over Lyons...

"Hold her level, that's a storm cloud ahead. Divert around the CB now! Oh damn, I'm losing her!..."

"Get an ambulance, plane, helicopter, anything! If only for a quick burial"

Villagers near Lyon

"Joe, this is Averell. We've just received word from the French authorities that your daughter's Dove crashed near Lyons. No survivors. You will have to fly over here as soon as you can, within the week."

- US Ambassador to France Averell Harriman, June 5, 1948

At the Republican convention in Philadelphia, the GOP gave its first ballot nomination to New York Governor Thomas Dewey on June 21, 1948. The polls showed Dewey a sure winner, with only the South the long blue line against encroachment by "panderers to Negroes" as Strom Thurmond declared in one of his calmer rhetorical flourishes.

"What the public was unaware of was the fact that polling as we know it was in its infancy. There were problems with strategy, methodology, sampling methods, in effect all the essentials. Many blue-collar workers and farmers, reliable Democrats, did not own telephones. Due to this, they were not polled. What Gallup was publishing was as reliable as a weather forecast for Christmas Eve on Halloween."

Rise of the War Room, Karl Rove with Cecil Parkinson, 2006

"End of U approaching. Anxious to marry and find work ASAP. That way can get going with life. Jack's now transferred to Pretoria, which should be interesting since Smuts lost the election to Malan. The difference is rather like Russell and Thurmond. Devil's in the details. Dad thinks Truman'll lose, as does Jack. No one believes me, think I'm over-optimistic. Bet $300 and Bruins tickets on a Truman victory, so hoping for a miracle. "

Robert Kennedy journal, Oct. 10, 1948

Election Day, Nov. 2, 1948. 91% turnout.

genusmap.php




(D): Harry S. Truman/ Alben W. Barkley: 289 ECV, 47.1%
(R): Thomas E. Dewey/ Earl Warren: 214 ECV, 45.5%
(StR): J. Strom Thurmond/ Fielding Wright: 28 ECV, 7.4%

Incumbent President: Harry Truman (D)

"Won the bet. Everyone's so shocked. Graduation's soon, and I've applied to five firms, see which one will take me."

Robert Kennedy journal, Nov. 3, 1948

Dec. 4, 1948

"Graduated MCL from HLS today, and got the response I've been waiting for. Start in January."


"Well, the senior partners are Mudge, Alexander, Guthrie and Rose. Sound OK though hardly exciting. Got assigned as A's junior for the time being. Can't say there isn't enough work though. Trying to get out AMAP on wknds, and Jack might be getting an interview with the Viceroy if he plays his cards right."

- Robert Kennedy journal, Feb. 10, 1949
 
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Chapter Three: Road to Redemption

"Went to a cocktail party Tues. and met a Ms. Bouvier, who's a photographer for the Post in DC. For a second I thought Jack knew her, but don't think so. Discussed more than photography, which is why I'll be in NY on Fri."

Robert's journal, Apr. 4, 1949

The infuriating commute was beginning to get to Bobby, wasting all that time on the train when the din made it near impossible to work. Therefore, he decided to move to New York, a multistory apartment on Fifth and Park.

"Now that this is settled, I've became infinitely more productive, hardly need to do anything on the weekends. We've been secretly engaged for two weeks now, and probably around October, one of the most beautiful times of the year, to get married."

Robert's journal, July 17, 1949

While romance is in the air, Jack was assigned as the Times Diet correspondent in Tokyo. This meant instant access to most MPs, Prime Minister Yoshida, and occasionally General MacArthur. Though he would have to wait for the latter. "One does not ask to interview the Viceroy, the Viceroy summons a journalist."

"Those extra Spanish and French courses I've been taking over two years are proving excellent. Especially since Jackie speaks both. Once I learn them both well enough, I can be sent to one of the overseas offices, say in Paris or Barcelona. Now that would be grandly interesting."

Robert's diary, Sept. 17, 1949

On October 20, 1949 Robert Kennedy wed Jacqueline Bouvier in New York. Many of his friends and family were in attendance, and Jackie began working at a fashion design firm associated with Louis Vuitton. There were more interesting developments abroad, such as Chiang's retreat to Taiwan, Mao gaining control of mainland China, and the explosion of the first Soviet atomic device in the Far East.

In Tokyo, Jack had gotten a major interview with PM Yoshida, which made him a minor celebrity among the local press corps. He began meeting after hours with his colleagues from Asashi Shinbun to discuss the day's developments. Still, he had not received an interview request from the Viceroy. That was an honor granted to few except bureau chiefs or those whom MacArthur had met personally. Though shunned by the General, unbeknownst to Jack, he had been voted "favorite foreign correspondent" by the Tuesday Club, an informal caucus of Liberal Democratic backbenchers and junior Cabinet members...

By January 1950, Bobby and Jackie's first child, Joseph II, had been born on the fifteenth of that month. What attracted the attention of most observers were the upcoming midterm elections, favored for moderate GOP gains at the beginning of that year. The race that most political junkies, including both brothers, was the California Senate race, where Reps. Richard Nixon and Helen Gahagan Douglas were seeking Downey's open seat. Nixon was leading in most polls, and it rapidly became one of the nastiest campaigns on record. Douglas had managed to alienate the Democratic leadership, including President Truman, by her militant New Dealism. On Feb. 24, Britons went to the polls to make the choice they had made five years previously...

UK general election, 1950, 625 Commons seats

Conservative: 323 seats (+126), 45.4%
Labour: 274 seats
Liberal: 10 seats

Incumbent PM: Clement Attlee (Labour)
Subsequent PM: Winston Churchill (Tory)

The calm was shattered on June 25 when...

NORTH KOREA INVADES ROK, TRUMAN SENDS CONTINGENT TO KOREA

Life was proceeding as normal for both Jack and Bobby, whose daughter Kathleen had been born on Aug. 5, 1950. With fast-track lives, everything was calm for the time being. Jack had begun thinking about settling down and marrying, and met an expat originally from Seattle while at a Tokyo restaurant.

"Met a woman named Judy Whittington, who works in the fashion industry over here. She also happens to be a friend of Jackie's. Go figure. Got my 1st interview with Gen. MacArthur, and now I understand why he has that aura around him. He could easily be an absolute monarch, has the perfect personality for it. Fortunately what I got was great copy. Now to interview the BoJ Gov. on Wed..."

- Jack's diary, Oct. 4, 1950

Midterm elections, Nov. 7

House results

Democratic: 233 seats (-30)
Republican: 212 seats

Senate results

Republican: 49 seats (+7)
Democratic: 47 seats

Majority Leader-elect: Kenneth Wherry (R-NE)

Prescott Bush (R-CT) defeats William Benton (D)
Richard Nixon (R-CA) defeats Helen Douglas (D)

At the beginning of 1951, the Korean War had settled into a bloody stalemate, with both the US and PRC slugging it out just above the 38th parallel. Gen. MacArthur, as SACSEA, was constantly requesting a release of tactical nuclear weapons on the Chinese armies. The response was always a firm no, and the public differences with the Administration's war policy took their toll. On April 11, 1951...

TRUMAN SACKS M'ARTHUR AS SAC AND JAPAN VICEROY

"What's new? Nothing much except Michael's birth. This is our last kid, so in a few years I'll be happy as a clam. Jack's engaged to Judy. Maybe they could do a "Jack and Judy Show" like Punch and Judy. Au moins, a good laugh once in a while. This case is going much faster than expected, I found an excellent source within the company who's giving me all that's required. When I win this, it'll be a leg up, that's for sure. Gotta go, J says he's on Line 2."

Robert's diary, July 5, 1951


Boston Globe, Aug. 7, 1951

Married: John F. Kennedy, 37 to Judith Whittington, 34, of Seattle.

FROM: LADY'S LAIR
TO: JOHN KENNEDY, TOKYO BUREAU
15/08/51

REPORT TO NEW POST AT LONDON AS PARL'T REPORTER STOP MUST ARRIVE WITHIN WEEK STOP ENJOY THE VOYAGE STOP

Time For A Change: Campaign '52

While President Truman ushered in the New Year at the White House, he was contemplating the option of running for a third term. The political weather forecaster was not forecasting CAVU, but rather below minimums.

Gallup polling, Jan. 1952

PRESIDENT'S JOB APPROVAL

APPROVE: 35%
DISAPPROVE: 50%
UNDECIDED: 15%

GENERIC CONGRESSIONAL BALLOT

REPUBLICAN: 56%
DEMOCRATIC: 44%

MATCHUPS:

TRUMAN/BARKLEY: 46%- 240 ECV
TAFT/ KNOWLAND: 44%- 295 ECV

MOE: 2.5%

"I don't think we could survive another term. Last time we had no choice. Now we do." - Bess to Harry Truman, Feb. 5, 1952

"I am a candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination."

Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower- Feb. 15, 1952

"I do not feel it my duty to stay in the White House for another four years. Our party can pick another candidate."

- President Truman's remarks at Jefferson-Jackson dinner, Mar. 29, 1952

"The key was to prevent Taft getting the nomination. Otherwise Truman would've won, and we'd be out even longer. I might've missed my train."

Memoirs, Richard Nixon

Republican National Convention- Chicago, July 23

1st ballot

Dwight Eisenhower- 610
Robert Taft: 490

"I ask you to join me on this crusade to restore this great nation!"

- Gen. Eisenhower's acceptance speech

"Washington will not be our only target."

- Sen. Richard Nixon's VP acceptance speech

"No reasons to complain with how things are going. Got promoted again, now I'm in a managerial position. At this rate, I'll be running it before I turn 35!"

Robert's diary, Sept. 19, 1952


"Gotten two interviews with Churchill, three with Eden and two with Attlee. It seems Tories are more likely to leak, since I get instant access to the Cons. parliamentary smoking room. Labs make you haggle. Wonder why..."

Jack's diary, Oct. 30, 1952

Election Day, Nov. 4, 1952

genusmap.php


(R): Dwight D. Eisenhower/Richard M. Nixon: 452 ECV, 57.3%
(D): Adlai Stevenson II/ Estes Kefauver: 79 ECV, 42.7%

Incumbent President: Harry Truman (D)
President-elect: Dwight Eisenhower: (R)

House results

Republican: 235 seats (+23)
Democratic: 200 seats

Speaker-elect: Joseph Martin (MA-14)

Senate results

Republican: 51 (+2)
Democratic: 45

Henry Cabot Lodge (R-MA) retains seat
Zale Ecton (R-MT) retains seat
 
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