Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-057-006
This folder contains material collected by the office of President John F. Kennedy's secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, concerning the President's News Conference of August 22, 1962 (News Conference 41). The President began the press conference with a statement concerning the historic rendezvous under the Arctic ice pack between two nuclear powered submarines, the USS Skate and the USS Sea Dragon. He then stated the importance of five measures Congress was to act upon within the next seven days: the farm bill that extended the current feed grain program an additional year and repealed the 1958 Benson feed grain approach; the drug bill; a constitutional amendment to outlaw the poll tax in federal elections; the trade expansion bill; and the United Nations (UN) bond bill. Following these statements the President answered questions from the press on a variety of topics including domestic and foreign affairs, the space program, the economy, the delay in the approval of Thurgood Marshall to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and an increase in supplies and technicians into Cuba from the Soviet Union. Background materials in this folder include weekly department and agency reports summarizing activities and briefing papers for the President on domestic and foreign affairs. Of note is a memorandum to the President from the Director of the United States Information Agency Edward R. Murrow concerning the alleged suspension of high altitude nuclear tests by the United States at the request of the Soviet Union, and the status of the space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. The official White House transcript of the press conference and the stenotype transcript of the press conference are also included.