Nov. 22, 1963 - President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas, Texas. At almost the same instant, a plane carrying Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Secretary of the Treasury C. Douglas Dillon, Four other Cabinet Members, and White House Press Secretary Pierre Salinger, crashes in the Pacific.
In Washington, D.C., Secretary of Defense McNamara brings the military to full alert, and makes it clear to the Joint Chiefs of Staff that he believes there is a coup underway.
He orders Vice President Johnson flown back to Washington without him taking the oath of office. The public reason is given as security, but McNamara secretly asks FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover to investigate the possibility that Johnson lured Kennedy into an ambush in Dallas.
Rumors of Johnson's complicity leaks out, and McNamara makes a public statement from the White House that the matter is being investigated thoroughly. Johnson demands to take the oath of office when he reaches the White House, and attempts to fire McNamara. The Secretary of Defense accuses LBJ of being behind the assassination, and in a shouting match Johnson has a massive heart attack, and dies.
Speaker of the House John W. McCormack is quickly sworn in. Seventy two years of age President McCormack is the oldest President in history, and McNamara offers his services to help in the transition.