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Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-RH-01
In this interview Hilsman discusses his initial interactions with John F. Kennedy [JFK]; Hilsman’s appointment to the Department of State during the Kennedy Administration; Foreign Service officers and “hot-seat” jobs; issues with Dean Rusk as Secretary of State; reorganizing the Bureau of Intelligence and Research; the flow of information between the State Department and the White House; staffing the State Department; the use of satellite intelligence; John A. McCone; working with and around Robert F. Kennedy [RFK]; JFK, RFK, and Vietnam; Edward G. Lansdale; Maxwell D. Taylor; the connection between Vietnam and Laos; U.S. action in Laos; the Buddhist crisis in Vietnam; the impact of WWII on Hilsman and JFK’s generation; and the 1963 coup in Vietnam, among other issues.
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-LCH-02
In this interview Heinz discusses his primary contacts in other government agencies; the Vietnam task force; the different political trips and survey missions to Vietnam; the Maxwell D. Taylor-Walt W. Rostow mission to Vietnam and subsequent report; the Ngo Dinh Diem regime; the rise in interest in the concept of counterinsurgency; problems with working in Vietnam; changing the terrain in Vietnam with the use of defoliants; the Strategic Hamlet program; how to measure success in warfare; the International Control Commission; General Paul D. Harkins; the various agency reports coming out of Vietnam and interagency meetings; the Buddhist crisis in the summer of 1963; the appointment of Henry Cabot Lodge as Ambassador; and the military coup in Saigon and the rumors leading up to it, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-WAH-03
In this interview, Harriman discusses American opinion on negotiations in Laos; U.S. negotiations and objectives in Indonesia; American relations with Achmed Sukarno; friction between the State Department and the Pentagon over who should control the situation in Vietnam, civilians or the military; Ngo Dinh Diem and the military coup that overthrew him; problems with and for newspapermen in Vietnam; and his opinion on where the United States went wrong in Vietnam, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-WCB-02
Battle discusses the internal politics of the Virginia delegation to the Democratic National Convention in 1956 and 1960; his appointment as ambassador to Australia; conflicts, both active and political, that arose in the South Pacific during his tenure as ambassador, including West New Guinea (West Irian), Malaysian independence, and the Vietnam War; Australian politics and politicians; and military cooperation between the U.S. and Australia.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-HCL-01
Lodge discusses his 1952 Senate race against John F. Kennedy, his appointment as Ambassador to Vietnam in 1963, and the final months of the Ngo Dinh Diem regime in Vietnam, 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-ROWK-03
In this interview Komer discusses negotiating disengagement with Gamal Abdel Nasser and Faisal, King of Saudi Arabia; John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] involvement in the Yemen crisis and the negotiations with Nasser and Faisal; U.S. New Guinea policy and the Dutch-Indonesian conflict; JFK and counterinsurgency; Komer and police programs as part of U.S. counterinsurgency efforts; JFK’s policy towards and involvement with India and Pakistan; U.S. military assistance to India, 1962; and U.S. missions to Pakistan and India, 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-MVF-01
Forrestal dicusses his recruitment to the White House, calls from JFK regarding news items in Vietnam, and Secretary of State diplomatic appointments, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-KTY-01
In this interview Young discusses issues with American policy in Southeast Asia and the need for more informed decision makers; the process of his appointment as Ambassador to Thailand; Thai distrust over French actions in SEATO [South East Asia Treaty Organization] and inaction in Laos; and the various debates over U.S. actions in Laos and Thailand in the early 1960s, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-CWY-01
Yost discusses Adlai Stevenson’s ambassadorial role with the United Nations during John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] presidency. He discusses Stevenson’s reactions to issues such as the Bay of Pigs operation, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Vietnam War. Yost also describes his own responsibilities with the United Nations, among other issues.
Sound recording
Edward M. Kennedy Senate Files
EMKSEN-AU0009-033-009
Sound recording of the radio program "Face Off." Senator Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy of Massachusetts and Senator Alan K. "Al" Simpson of Wyoming debate a proposal to end the trade embargo against Vietnam and reestablish diplomatic ties. The episode aired on Tuesday, September 14, 1993, on the Mutual Broadcasting System. The recording begins with a brief fragment (false start).
Sound recording
Edward M. Kennedy Senate Files
EMKSEN-AU0007-024-003
Sound recording of the radio program "Face Off." Senator Edward M. "Ted" Kennedy of Massachusetts and Senator Alan K. "Al" Simpson of Wyoming debate legislation introduced in Congress to begin restoring U.S. relations and diplomatic ties with Vietnam, noting it has been 13 years since the end of the Vietnam War. The episode aired on Friday, June 17, 1988, on the Mutual Broadcasting System.
Photograph folder
White House Photographs
JFKWHP-1963-08-15-B
AR39, KN38
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-113a-005
This folder contains material collected by the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, concerning Ceylon. Materials concern the new Ceylonese Ambassador to the United States William Gopallawa, and correspondence between the President and Prime Minister of Ceylon Sirima R.D. Bandaranaike regarding U.S. nuclear testing. Also included in this folder is a letter to the President from Prime Minister Bandaranaike concerning the Buddhist community in South Vietnam.
Photograph
White House Photographs
JFKWHP-AR8072-A
President John F. Kennedy (in rocking chair) meets with newly-appointed U.S. Ambassador to South Vietnam, Henry Cabot Lodge. Oval Office, White House, Washington, D.C.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-062-015
This folder contains memoranda between the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, and Chester Bowles, the President's Special Representative for Asian, African, and Latin American Affairs. Topics include ambassadorial appointments, relations between the United States and Portugal regarding Africa, and recommendations for improving the situation in Vietnam. Of note are two letters from Holden Roberto, President of the Union of the Populations of Angola, to President Kennedy regarding policies of the United States and Portugal in Angola.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-117-004
Sound recording of a meeting about Vietnam held on October 25, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John McCone, and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. Topics include an intelligence report on Vietnam, United States Embassy staffing in South Vietnam, planning, and instructions for United States Ambassador to South Vietnam Henry Cabot Lodge. Seven segments of the recording totaling 1 minute and 35 seconds have been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 13526. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 117/A53, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding this one. See Related Records to access Tape 117/A53 in its entirety.
Collection
WKLPP
Papers, 1925-1996. Diplomat, government official. Foreign Service Officer, State Department (1944-65, 1969-71); deputy Chief of Mission, Tokyo, Japan (1959-62); Ambassador to Tanganyika (later Tanzania) (1962-65); Ambassador to Yugoslavia (1969-72); Special Assistant to the President, National Security Council Planning board (1966-68); Deputy Commandant for International Affairs, National War College (1971-75); Vice President, National Defense University and adviser to the Department of State (1977-79); Chairman, Senior Intelligence Review Panel, Central Intelligence Agency (1979) Appointment diaries, personal journals, business and personal correspondence, subject files, speeches, publications, news clippings, photographs, financial papers relating to his foreign service. Includes extensive materials related to his interest in Asian art and his career as a college lecturer.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-104-004
Sound recording of a meeting held on August 15, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy and newly appointed United States Ambassador to South Vietnam Henry Cabot Lodge. Shortly before Ambassador Lodge is to depart for Vietnam, he and President Kennedy discuss plans he would like to implement as Ambassador and his opinions on the political situation in Vietnam with President of South Vietnam Ngo Dinh Diem and the Nhus. Photographs are taken of President Kennedy and Ambassador Lodge and the recording continues with a discussion that is difficult to hear between President Kennedy and Ambassador Lodge concerning Republican Party politics and New Hampshire. After Lodge departs, there is a brief telephone conversation with Special Counsel to the President Theodore Sorensen on education legislation; only President Kennedy’s side of this conversation can be heard. One segment of the recording totaling 38 seconds has been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 12958. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 104, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding and following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 104 in its entirety.
Photograph
White House Photographs
JFKWHP-KN-C29679
President John F. Kennedy (in rocking chair) meets with newly-appointed U.S. Ambassador to South Vietnam, Henry Cabot Lodge. Oval Office, White House, Washington, D.C.