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Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-BBH-01
In this interview Hickenlooper discusses various meetings with President John F. Kennedy [JFK] on foreign relations; Soviet and American nuclear testing; the nuclear test ban treaty; the Bay of Pigs invasion; Laos and Vietnam; the Punta del Este Conference in 1962; the Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962; Hickenlooper's 1962 reelection campaign; traveling with JFK to Costa Rica; the 1961 Berlin crisis; JFK's congressional relations; and social occasions at the Kennedy White House, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-ROWK-05
In this interview Komer discusses working with McGeorge Bundy; the “inner circle” of the Bundy State Department; Komer’s major contacts; the intelligence system; the power and responsibilities of the State Department; how Bundy screened what President John F. Kennedy [JFK] would see; relations with other key officials; Robert F. Kennedy and foreign policy issues; the Bundy State Department and White House staff; the “little State Department” in the White House; the bureaucratic role of the State Department; U.S. foreign policy in Asia; relations with key U.S. Ambassadors; handling Arab-Israeli issues; domestic pressures of American-Jewish community on JFK; Arabists in the Kennedy Administration; working with Myer Feldman on Israeli issues; the United States, Saudi Arabia, and oil; filling the power vacuum left by the British; dealing with Congress on foreign aid matters; counterinsurgency; and looking back at programs during the Kennedy Administration, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-RFK-03
In this interview Robert F. Kennedy [RFK] discusses the 1962 steel crisis; some major issues and accomplishments of John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] presidency; choosing the U.S. Ambassador to Russia; foreign aid and treaties; the military coup in Peru; the space race during the Kennedy Administration; the 1962 congressional and gubernatorial campaigns; JFK’s dinner for the Nobel Prize winners; the Polaris submarines; problems with the New York Herald Tribune; New York politics; various pieces of federal legislation, 1961–1963; the Dominican Republic; Department of Justice investigations under RFK; the difficulties of being Attorney General; congressional issues in early 1963; the Vietnam War escalation in 1963; American support of the coup in Vietnam; Henry Cabot Lodge as the U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam; the prisoners from the Bay of Pigs invasion; American actions in Cuba; unemployment and civil rights; RFK’s meeting with James Baldwin; JFK’s trips to the South and speeches on civil rights; the nuclear test ban treaty; and JFK’s trip to Ireland and Rome, among other issues.
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-RFK-01
In this interview Robert F. Kennedy [RFK] discusses beginning John F. Kennedy's [JFK] presidential Administration with no political obligations; carefully picking Cabinet members, specifically Secretaries of State, Defense, and Treasury; RFK’s decision on what role to play in JFK’s Administration; JFK’s unhappiness with Dean Rusk as Secretary of State; JFK’s advisers and other presidential appointments; Cabinet meetings; Department of Justice organization under RFK; the first 100 days of the Kennedy Administration; the role of the Vice President, according to RFK; JFK’s relationship with Lyndon B. Johnson and why JFK put Johnson on the ticket in 1960; what JFK was most concerned with as President; domestic programs versus foreign affairs in the Kennedy Administration; Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr.’s role during JFK’s presidency; the Bay of Pigs, the aftermath, and its effect on JFK; how JFK approached problems as President; dealing with Georgi Bolshakov; negotiating with the Soviet Union in Vienna, over Laos and Cuba, etc.; JFK’s relationship with foreign heads of state; State Department staff and U.S. Ambassadors; the military coup in Vietnam; the Berlin crisis of the summer of 1961 and the Berlin Wall; RFK’s 1961 trip to the Ivory Coast; and Soviet and American nuclear testing, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-EMZ-06
Zuckert discusses issues with the Tactical Experimental Fighter [TFX] program and the conclusion of the Skybolt program. He also discusses his trip to Vietnam in December of 1962, his thoughts on going to war with Vietnam, and his visits with major Asian leaders, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-JKR-01
In this interview Ruina discusses the Nike-Zeus antiballistic-missile-missiles; briefing President John F. Kennedy [JFK] on the Nike-Zeus missiles; JFK’s comprehension of the briefing material and the type of questions he asked; Project Defender; the background and organization of the Advanced Research Projects Agency; the leadership and organization of the Department of Defense; interactions with Robert S. McNamara; competition between the military and the Defense Department on research and development and for resources and congressional funds; the period of new, advanced—but not always useful—technology; and Project AGILE and counterinsurgency efforts in Vietnam, among other issues.
Oral history
Robert F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
RFKOH-WAH-01
In this interview Harriman discusses his role in the State Department and how it developed over time; Robert F. Kennedy’s [RFK] work on the Special Committee for Counter Insurgency in Latin America; various criticisms of RFK’s travels and his work on the counter insurgency committee, especially by the younger generation; how Lyndon B. Johnson supported RFK in his 1964 Senate campaign; RFK’s trip to Africa; and RFK and Vietnam, among other issues.
Sound recording
White House Audio Collection
JFKWHA-071
Sound recording of the President’s News Conference of February 7, 1962 (News Conference 23). The President begins the press conference by discussing United States nuclear disarmament policy and preparations by the United States to resume the atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons. He then expresses his pleasure over the Senate’s decision to retain the scholarship provision in the pending college-aid bill. Following the announcements the President answers questions from the press on a variety of topics including the guerilla war in South Vietnam, atmospheric nuclear testing, nuclear disarmament, and the status of negotiations for a test ban treaty.
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. National Security Files
JFKNSF-323-006
This folder contains memoranda from Walt Rostow, Deputy Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, to President John F. Kennedy and McGeorge Bundy, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. Topics include the threat of communism, guerilla warfare, Vietnam, and policy planning. Also included in this folder is a copy of a speech given by Rostow on disarmament at the 6th Pugwash Conference held in Moscow. Of note is a letter to Rostow from Massachuetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Professor Leon Trilling regarding the Soviet Union’s space program.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-055-007
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 7, 1962 (News Conference 23). The President began the press conference by discussing United States nuclear disarmament policy and preparations by the United States to resume the atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons. He then expressed his pleasure over the Senate's decision to retain the scholarship provision in the pending college-aid bill. Following the announcements the President answered questions from the press on a variety of topics including the guerilla war in South Vietnam, atmospheric nuclear testing, nuclear disarmament, and the status of negotiations for a test ban treaty. Background materials in this folder include a draft press conference announcement and briefing papers for the President on domestic and foreign affairs and national security. Topics of the briefing papers include the Punta de Este conference resolutions, Cuba, and nuclear testing and disarmament. The official White House transcript of the press conference and the stenotype transcript of the press conference are also included.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-058-007
This folder contains background material collected by the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, for the President's News Conference of January 24, 1963 (News Conference 47). Materials primarily consist of department and agency reports, memorandums, and briefing papers for the President on domestic and foreign affairs and national security. Topics include Cuba, the economy, disarmament, and Vietnam. Of note are copies of correspondence between the President and Soviet Prime Minister Nikita Khrushchev.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-405-014
This folder contains memoranda to President John F. Kennedy on various topics including East Berlin, atmospheric nuclear weapons testing, Vietnam, and a meeting between President Kennedy and British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in Bermuda.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-404-003
This folder contains carbon copies of McGeorge Bundy's outgoing correspondence on various topics, including nuclear weapons testing and Vietnam, as well as responses to letters from the public and members of the press. The folder also contains carbon copies of Bundy's memoranda to President John F. Kennedy.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-064a-008
This folder contains memoranda between the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, and Walt W. Rostow, Deputy Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. Topics include foreign aid and nuclear weapons. Of note is a book review by the President of "Deterrent of Defense" by B.H. Liddell Hart. Also included in this folder is a copy of a speech by Brigadier General Edward G. Lansdale titled "Civic Action", and a letter from Wolf Ladejinsky concerning Vietnam.