His Father's Son: The Life and Times of Joe Kennedy Jr.

[Historico]

Awesome update HC, although I would have liked so have seen more information about the 1960 Republican Nomination like did Nixon get a challenge from either Rockefeller or Goldwater or who was his running mate? Can we also get a quick electoral map 2? But anyway's im looking for the 1964 race...Keep it comming.

[hcallega]

Now is a good time to take a pause from the Biography of Joe Kennedy to note about what happens under Richard Nixon's first term as President. Much of this is based on a post on Alternate History.com

Foreign Policy:
Nixon's overall foreign policy was anti-communist and somewhat aggressive. In 1961 he provides stronger aerial support to the Cuban invasion force at the Bay of Pigs, who in turn are able to push forward slowly but surely to Havana. Once there they proclaim that they are the true Cuban government and Pepe San Roman is named President. The US quickly recognizes the government and sends in the Marines to "protect the government from any communist threat to the government." Castro flees to South America and flies to Moscow, where he and Khrushchev strongly condemn the invasion. The international world is also very critical of the attack and call it imperialism. At home however it is considered a success initially, but a guerrilla war develops between the Cuban Communists (led by Che Guevara) and Russia advisors and the US marines and small force of anti-communist Cubans. This becomes a full on quagmire and US casualties become quite high, while the occupation becomes unpopular.

In Vietnam the US stays in the roll of advisors and no ground troops are ever committed. By 1964 it looks as if Saigon will fall within a year. In Europe the conflict greatly escalates in large part due to Cuba. In 1962 the Berlin Wall goes up. War almost breaks out with China over Taiwan. Tensions are so high between the US and Soviets that many predict a full on war in the next decade. Nixon puts the emphasis on military capabilities with the space race, and focuses his nuclear arsenal on bomber aircraft and not ICBMs. The B-70s and B-52s are the faces of the nuclear potential. Both Fail Safe and Doctor Strangelove are Box Office Hits due to greater fears over the war.

Domestic/Social Issues: Nixon takes a moderate roll in terms of social issues. In 1964 he passes a somewhat weak civil rights act, but is able to gain almost universal GOP support. It gives voting rights and civil liberties but no national integration. Nixon does appoint a Conservative to the Supreme Court but the Warren liberalism still persists.

Economic Issues: Nixon is unable to really stimulate the economy so it still remains soft and many believe that it is heading towards a recession in 1964.

Note: 1960 GOP convention no different, his running mate was still Lodge, and electoral maps will be comming soon for all of Kennedy's early elections.

[Historico]

Shoot, I was really hoping Ol'Tricky Dick would be Assassinated ITTL, that way Henry Cabot Lodge would have to run against the Kennedy Machine(which he never did IOTL, and knowing how lackluster of a campaigner he was, it would be a Democratic Landslide). Joe with a strong record as a two term Governor of a Northern State is automatically the front runner. I am interested in whether or not an Carteresque Nixon(In terms of approval ratings) would face a challenge from Goldwater or Rocky in '64(Im thinking theyll wait for '68 or 72)...Keep it comming

[Senator Jefferson John C. Breckinridge Dent IV (D-AL)]

Hcallega, once again you proved you're in a top of this forum timeline writers, keep it coming

Just two things:
 
Wasn't there two-years gubernatorial term in Massachusetts?

Also, was Johnson re-elected to the Senate in 1960, or had to retire?

[hcallega]

Thanks Kalwejt, you are probably the top if not one of the top two or three.

To answer ur question, yeah MA did have elections every two years, and Kenendy won reelection in 1958. The only issue was whether or nor he would pursue the presidency or run for reelection. Also he did run for reelection while also being the VP nominee. Johnson was reelected in 1960 as well, and is still Majority Leader. He initially supported Nixon's foreign policy and strongly supported his civil rights plan but opposed his economic plans and grew to oppose his foreign policy.

[Senator Jefferson John C. Breckinridge Dent IV (D-AL)]

JPK seems to have a shot at 1964 nomination. After all, he's still pretty young as of politician.

If he's not going to be President in this timeline, I would not be suprised to see him going to Senate.

Btw, what's up with Jack, Robert and Ted?

[hcallega]

The New King

   Going into 1964, Governor Joe Kennedy had absolutely no question in his mind as to what his plans for the next year would be. He already had two beautiful young children (Rose, born in 1962) and a gorgeous wife. He had been Governor of one the most important states in the Union for almost eight years, and he had been the Vice-Presidential Nominee for his party just four years earlier. While his previous two terms had been relatively uneventful, he had balanced the state’s budget and continued to see the Bay State’s economy outperform the national average. It was obvious he could accomplish nothing more from the Governor’s Mansion.
   
   Kennedy would declare his candidacy from the historic Faneuil Hall in downtown Boston before heading directly to church with his family. Kennedy would focus his speech on his own achievements, rather than going negative and attacking the unpopular incumbent, Richard Nixon. Kennedy would cite his record as Governor, focusing on the economy: “Over the past eight years, Massachusetts has been the trail blazer for the American economy. While I cannot take credit for these measures, I do believe that my actions did help stimulate growth.” Kennedy also talked greatly about his faith: “My faith does not define me, but it does guide me. Yes, I am a Catholic. But at the same time I believe strongly in the separation of church and state. It is clear to me that every President that this country has ever known has been guided by their faith, but they have not used it as a weapon for oppression. They have used their faith to guide their hand. I will do the same, and I will always be sure to consult both the Bill of Rights and the Bible.” The speech was generally well received, and Kennedy was instantly a frontrunner for the race. He would select his brother Robert to run his campaign, with liberal author Arthur Schlesinger Jr. signing on to be the head of P.R. and Pierre Salinger signing on as Press Secretary. Senator John Kennedy was chosen as Joe’s personal national security advisor, with economist John Kenneth Galbraith signing on to help Joe with his economic message. The campaign was a star studded affair, and it was only the controversial Papa Joe and Brother Ted (running for Massachusetts Attorney General) who stayed out.

   The contest quickly became a three horse race between Kennedy, Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson, and Minnesota Senator Eugene McCarthy. Whereas Kennedy focused his campaign on his achievements as Governor, Johnson and McCarthy both ran much more negative campaigns. Johnson focused on his support for liberal social and domestic programs, and spoke of creating a “Great Society” where “America will never again see poverty, discrimination, or inequality.” However Johnson also ran as an opponent of Nixon first and foremost: “The President has abandoned all sense of logic and reason. Right now he’s running on guts, and to be honest he doesn’t have a lot of them.” McCarthy was far more negative. He focused his campaign on rapid fire attacks on Nixon’s foreign policy. A strong cold warrior, McCarthy accused Nixon for “putting us on the brink of nuclear war. He’s really weakened our position and he’s shown our hand.” He also supported traditional New Deal policies, but was far less eager than either Kennedy or Johnson to support more big government intervention. The one candidate who many thought would run but did not was Hubert Humphrey, who badly broke his leg during the winter in Minnesota. Humphrey would throw his support behind his fellow Minnesotan. Other candidates included Governor Pat Brown of California and Governor George Wallace of Alabama.
   
   The first primary contest was in New Hampshire on March 10th. Here the favorite was Kennedy, but McCarthy was also polling quite well among the independent-minded voters of the state. The biggest question was not if Kennedy would win, but by how much. The Kennedy campaign would hit the state with an aggressive media blitz as Joe attempted to portray McCarthy as weak on national security: “The big difference between myself and Senator McCarthy is that I want to win the wars were in, he wants to cut and run.” Kennedy’s aggressive campaign would pay off, and he would win the state with 58% of the vote to McCarthy’s 35%. The next series of primaries would be far more competitive, as they were mostly in the blue-collar rust belt. While Kennedy played well among the white working class back home, there was no guarantee that he, a Harvard educated elite, could win them over on the road. The first fight was in Wisconsin, where McCarthy was projected to do quite well. The polls showed a three way dead heat, but the surprising factor was Wallace, who would rack up 8% of the vote, primarily from rural precincts and the protestant working class. This would hurt Johnson badly, who was counting on “The farmers and working families” to rally behind his candidacy. Once again Kennedy’s media machine would be the X-Factor, as he would edge McCarthy by just 1%, winning 38%-37%.

   While it looked like a Kennedy-McCarthy race after the first two primaries, the reality was quite different. While Kennedy would win again Illinois (due in large part to the support of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley), it would be Johnson and not McCarthy who would finish in second place, just five points behind Kennedy. The same would occur in New Jersey, where Johnson would finish just three points behind Joe Jr. The major reason for this was that Johnson would draw large numbers of black voters, due to his positioning as the most liberal candidate on civil rights. Kennedy would waffle on the issue, finally deciding to “stand by what the courts and congress say. Once I’m President I’ll look at the issue with the needed detail, but that’s not the most pressing issue right now.” Next up Kennedy would run unopposed in Massachusetts, as would Johnson in Texas. But in Indiana, Ohio, and Washington D.C. it would be LBJ, not JPK, who would prevail. These victories were attributed to a combination of strong African-American support and large rural areas (outside of D.C.) that would lead Johnson to his victory. Johnson would win the next two races as well in Nebraska (only beating Kennedy by 2%) and West Virginia. All of a sudden the race was anybody’s game.

   The next two races in Oregon and Maryland would be key. Both states looked good on paper for Kennedy, but the polls were too close to call. Kennedy’s mass media strategy had worked well, but so had Johnson’s rural focused campaign. However in both cases it would be other candidates who would define the race. In Oregon it was McCarthy’s surprisingly strong third place (12% of the vote) that would once again throw off Johnson as Kennedy would pick up a win. Maryland was also very close in the polling, but here it was Wallace’s 15% (especially on the rural and conservative Eastern Shore) that would doom Johnson and give Kennedy the win. With this momentum, Kennedy would go on to finish second in Florida to Wallace (a surprising result, given that Johnson was a southerner) and win big in California. Johnson would win North Dakota, but at that point it was too late.

   At the convention, Kennedy would call on Democrats to “Unite around the party that has delivered so much good. It’s time we lay down our divisions and make America a greater country.” Kennedy would choose conservative Florida Senator George Smathers as his running mate, and promise that “together we WILL win, and I am confident that nothing President Nixon does can change that.”

   
   

[Luóbótè Bèiĕrdé]

Looking forward to Kennedy's VP pick. Good TL!

[Historico]

Awesome...I see HC, that you couldn't help yourself having an alt Johnson vs. McCarthy vs. Kennedy race lol. Can't wait to see what happens in the General Election with Nixon/Lodge(who might have declined reelection due to his advanced age and lackluster campaigning...Scranton would be a much better pick up) vs Kennedy/Smathers...Keep it comming.

[hcallega]

“Gerry was a lot friendlier than President Nixon.”

   The 1964 Presidential race was shaping up to be a classic. After a see-saw primary campaign and nominating contest, Governor Joe Kennedy Jr. was now the Democratic nominee. On the Republican side, Vice-President Lodge would drop from the ticket due to old age: “I’ve had the pleasure of serving my country in the role of Vice-President and in the Senate for many good years. But now I feel that it is best if I return home to Massachusetts and let a younger man take my place.” Nixon would be forced with a difficult choice. The Republican delegates at the convention were split between Governor Nelson Rockefeller of New York and Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona. Rockefeller was a popular choice for two reasons. The largest factor was that he was the de facto leader of the party’s northeastern liberal wing. He was a strong supporter of civil rights and was critical of Nixon’s “overly hostile” foreign policy. The second factor was that he would be a strong candidate for 1968. Goldwater on the other hand was supported by the parties growing conservative wing. A lukewarm supporter of the Civil Rights Act and Nixon’s domestic policies, Goldwater was the Senate’s strongest supporter of the operation in Cuba, calling it “the defining showdown against communism.” However for Nixon it was clear that either choice would lead to tension and opposition from the other man’s backers. Therefore Nixon took the middle ground, choosing Pennsylvania Governor Bill Scranton, a moderate.

   On the Democratic side, Kennedy was looking strong in the polls, but had yet to climb into the lead. His dynamic campaigning style and loads of cash on hand were driving factors in his candidacy, but at the same time voters were not impressed by his middle of the road stances on the issues. The most prominent issues in the election were Cuba, the threat of Nuclear War, and Civil Rights Legislation. On all three Kennedy staked on a non-polarizing middle ground position. His speech writer, Arthur Schlesinger, was the major proponent of this and believed that Kennedy had to cling to the “Radical Center” to win. However on economic issues and other domestic issues Kennedy took the party line, supporting labor unions, New Deal domestic programs, and continued support for small farms. Nixon on the other hand swung further to the right. Recognizing that Kennedy’s “New England Liberalism” could be used against him in the Midwest and South, Nixon attacked the Governor for his support of “tax and spend economics” and “the fundamentally flawed belief that government is the answer.” With the polls in a dead heat, it was clear that both campaigns were at each others throats.

   It was at this time that Robert Kennedy would propose to his brother that he challenge President Nixon to a series of debates the week before the election. He believed that Nixon’s lackluster charisma and Kennedy’s superior lingual skills could tip the balance and not leave Nixon enough time to recover. The Governor liked the idea of a risky gamble to break open the campaign, and went to the President with the idea. Nixon was initially uncomfortable with the idea. Never a risk taker, the incumbent feared that Kennedy would win the debates and thus the elections, and that with his low approval ratings he could be put on the defensive and loose a great deal of undecided’s. But it would be Nixon’s media adviser Roger Ailes who would tip the balance in favor of debating. Ailes would write on the decision in his autobiography The Right Fight:
   “I told the President that his only choice was to debate Kennedy. As the incumbent he could control the issues and he had the aura of leadership and collected thought that most Americans prided him on. But the true reason why we had to debate was that we were backed into a corner. Americans wanted to see a true battle over the issues, and the reality was that the new media was going to decide every election from here on out. If we didn’t debate, we would have conceded every young undecided in the country to Kennedy. We bit the bullet.”

   There would be three debates, each with their own focus. The first would be on foreign policy, the second on economics, and the third on the major domestic and social issues of the day. Each debate would last on hour and the questions would be asked by a changing series of journalists. The debates would be broadcast in black and white on TV, as well as being broadcast on the radio. Both sides held debate camps the weekend before, as both candidates knew just how important their performances would be. Going into the debates the Kennedy team was exuding confidence, personified by VP nominee and Florida Senator George Smathers: “The Governor’s ready to go. He knows the issues, he’s got the words and the looks, and he’s got that drive.” However the Nixon campaign was not as positive and it was clear that they did not like the position that they were in.

   

[hcallega]

The major focus of the first debate was on Cuba and increased nuclear tension with the Soviets. The following are some highlights:
Questioner: Governor Kennedy, you have repeatedly criticized the President for his decisions internationally, but you have not specified what exactly you would do differently. Would you care to specify?
Kennedy: Of course. The big difference between my foreign policy views and those of the President’s are that I want to make America safer, and keep freedom alive internationally. The President’s focus is on repeatedly attacking, without any concern for the consequences. We have become engaged in a quagmire in Cuba, are on the brink of loosing Southeast Asia, and are at our most strained relations with the Soviets yet. As President I will step back and evaluate what we need to do, but what’s clear is that there will not be more of the same.

Questioner: Mr. President, you have focused this nation’s nuclear capabilities on bombers. Governor Kennedy has said that that’s very limiting and we should also focus on missiles and a larger ground army. What do you have to say in response to those critics of your plan?
Nixon: Well I can’t disclose specific details here, but I understand the concern. The reality is that we need a strong nuclear arsenal to combat the Soviet’s, and we need one that is reliable and safe. As of now, bombers fit all of the criteria. The B-52s and B-70s are very difficult to shoot down and can carry a large enough payload to win any nuclear war. They are also directly human operated and therefore aren’t as risky as missiles which are largely computer operated and can misfire. In these times we need to go with what works, not what doesn’t.
Moderator: Governor Kennedy, would you like a chance to respond?
Kennedy: Yes I would. The President is correct that nuclear bombers are the most reliable and safe way to deliver a deadly payload. But he fails to address what I said. Over the past four years we have over invested in one area of technology. Rather than have a balanced arsenal of bombers, missiles, and submarines, we have decided to invest in a known property. But I guarantee you that the Soviets are spending a great deal of their money on missiles and other various technologies. So while we might have the strongest bomber fleet, that does us no good if the Soviet’s can hit our cities and military bases around the world in 30 minutes, while our bombers take an hour or more to respond. We need balance, and that’s what you’ll get with my Presidency.

Questioner: Cuba has been the consuming conflict of the past several years, at least in the Americas. I would like to hear what the candidates would due to about the situation, which the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Maxwell Taylor, called a “dangerous quagmire in our backyard” before a congressional committee.
Moderator: Governor Kennedy, you can go first.
Kennedy: Well this is a very complex issue. I applaud the efforts of Mr. San Roman for restoring democracy to the Cuba and the President has done the right thing in supporting his besieged nation. But at the same time we have clearly done something wrong here. The number of young American men coming home in caskets is too high. What I believe we need to do is focus our efforts on training a competent and effective Cuban army that can defeat the Communist insurgents in our stead. We can’t leave now of course, but we need to have a plan, an exit strategy, so that we aren’t stuck in this quagmire for a decade.
Moderator: President Nixon?
President: We have done the right thing in Cuba. We supported the efforts of the Cuban refugees in taking back their country, and we have done the right thing by helping their regime survive. This is a fight we will win, but we have to stay the course. I guarantee every viewer and listener, this is a righteous fight, and it’s one that we WILL win.

Other issues included Vietnam (“The President has completely abandoned one of our few allies in Southeast Asia to Communism”-Kennedy), Europe (“Under my term as President the free peoples of Europe have stood firm against the Iron Curtain of Communism”-Nixon), and wasteful spending (“we have put in far too many taxpayers dollars for a plan which is not needed”-Kennedy in reference to the B-70). The responses to the debates were mixed.  Kennedy was given high grades for being sharp and concise, but the American people thought Nixon was his normal decisive self. Kennedy did much better among TV viewers, as his good looks outshined the war-torn Nixon.

   The economic and domestic debates were far less exciting. Nixon attacked congress for not adopting his economic plans which “are proven, tried, and tested. If I am reelected and given a Republican Congress these plans will be implemented, and the economy will turn around” and also praised the Civil Rights Act as “a huge leap forward for America.” Kennedy articulated his economic plan (“We need to get this economy moving, and just like I did in Massachusetts, I’m going to spend money. But I’m going to do it on the right things, and I’m going to cut taxes. This will work, as it did under President Roosevelt and under my administration as Governor.”) and his stance on civil rights (“The President did the right thing passing the Civil Rights Act. As President my focus will be on enforcing the laws and decisions of the courts and congress, as they are fair, just and right.”) With all of the debates concluded, Kennedy led Nixon by approximately 1-2 percentage points. Election Day itself was very tense and exciting and it would come down to the wire before Governor Joseph Patrick Kennedy Jr. was elected President of the United States.

[hcallega]

Election Results

I figured nows as good a time as any to give you all of the election maps that are really important for Kennedy. The first is 1964:


Kennedy/Smathers (D)-277 EVs, 49.67% of the Popular Vote
Nixon/Scranton (R)-261 EVs, 49.28% of the Popular Vote
Other candidates: 1.15% of the Popular Vote

1964 Democratic Primaries

Red=Kennedy
Blue=Johnson
Green=Wallace

1960 Election

Nixon/Cabot Lodge (R)-314 EVs, 54% of the PV
Johnson/Kennedy (D)-223 EVs, 45% of the PV
(I Know this is different, but it's a minor detail so deal with it!)

1956 Massachusetts Gubernatorial Election

Kennedy (D)-51%
Whittier (R)-48%

1956 Massachusetts Democratic Primaries

Kennedy-49% (Red)
Furcolo-40% (Pink)
Buckley-11%

1950 Mayoral Election

Kennedy-39% (Red)
Curley-32% (Blue)
Hynes-24% (did his best in the downtown and affluent neighborhoods)

[Senator Jefferson John C. Breckinridge Dent IV (D-AL)]

Hcallega, you maps are amazing, esspecially of course local one. Keep it coming.

It's easy to kill a politician in TL (which I did frequently), but it's really difficult to give one dead more live. You're great in this

[Historico]

Awesome update with the installments, I wasn't expecting the '64 race between Nixon and Kennedy to be such a close race due to Dick's unpopularity...love the maps so Keep this TL going

[hcallega]

1965

   

Eight years earlier he had been inaugurated Governor of Massachusetts. Now Joseph Kennedy Jr. was being inaugurated as the first Catholic President of the United States of America. The cold January morning was made much warmer by the joy and excitement of the thousands of men and women attending the inauguration, and many expected a new era in Washington to be ushered in. Kennedy’s inaugural address focused on foreign policy and invigorating American ingenuity at home.

   “Today we stand at the base of a great mountain. This mountain stands for many things, some good and some bad. And we must climb this great mountain, both to accomplish the good and conquer the bad. It is my goal to see this mountain climbed under my term as President of the United States, and I will do everything in my power to ensure it.”

   Kennedy would unveil several plans for the future in the beginning of the year. The first was change of focus in the Cold War. Kennedy would redirect funds from nuclear bombers to nuclear missiles to close the “missile gap” with Russia. Kennedy would also officially change the focus of the War in Cuba to “training and preparing the Cuban Defense Force to fight for and protect they’re own nation.” He would also develop a secret timetable with Secretary of State Dean Rusk for a US withdrawal that he hoped to have finished “by 1970 at the latest.” Finally, Kennedy would also increase the number of military advisers sent to South Vietnam to aid the ARVN forces against the increasingly strong communist threat. Kennedy would also send a company of Marines to Saigon to “protect US interests in the capital, as well as to provide greater security to the South Vietnamese Government.”

   At home Kennedy’s new proposals were far less grandiose. He proposed an increase to the minimum wage and the creation of Medicare, a government run program to provide senior citizens with health care. Both plans would easily pass congress with support from both the northern and southern wings of the Democratic Party. Party unity was a key part of Kennedy’s first term, as he attempted to hold together a rapidly fracturing party. Kennedy would also call for a new economic stimulus package to “head off any potential recession.” The package included a large across the board tax cut, greater government funds for public works projects, and a focus on urban renewal (including “free enterprise zones”). Several economists would call Kennedy “The President of the Economic Center” between socialism and capitalism. Kennedy’s speech writer Arthur Schlesinger would praise the President for this stating that “President Kennedy understands that true economic success, not just GDP and economic indicators, lies in between the two extremes.” However conservatives such as economist Milton Freidman called Kennedy’s plans “the artificial stimulation of an economy that does not need it. By getting the government so deeply involved in our pocket books and well being we risk creating a true welfare state.”

   However Kennedy’s focus was soon forcefully shifted to the issue of Civil Rights, ironically the one issue that “I have no interest in confronting. It’s political suicide.” With an increasing number of murders by white supremacists combined with increased police brutality against Civil Rights marchers, the public began to feel greater sympathy for the cause. While Nixon’s Civil Rights Act had been a solid stepping stone, it had done little to provide the actual means for universal integration. Kennedy would act aggressively in response, sensing an opportunity to bring in an entirely new voting bloc. First, he would demand the rapid passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1965 (it had been floating in congress since the start of the new legislative session) which would ban any segregation of public facilities. It would also permit the federal government to intervene in issues of civil rights violations in voting or integration. Kennedy would publicly address the nation on Civil Rights in mid-march: “My fellow Americans, it’s clear to both you and me what needs to be done here. Firstly, we must make it illegal to discriminate based on the color of one’s skin. Also, we must give the federal government the power to prevent Civil Rights Violations from occurring in these United States. Now I understand your concerns over these issues, but now is the time to act and act aggressively.” While the bill would pass congress, it would receive strong opposition from Southerner’s and conservative Republicans such as Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater who called the bill “an encroachment on state’s rights and a massive expansion of the role of the federal government.” The implementation of the act would lead to a showdown between Attorney General Nicholas deKatzenbach and Alabama Governor George Wallace in Alabama. deKatzenbach would be forced to send in federal troops to implement integration, and to many in the South Wallace would become a hero. However Kennedy would also take a hard-line against race rioters, claiming that “it’s one thing when Rev. King marches peacefully, but it’s entirely different when angry young men firebomb grocery stores.”

   In the spring, Kennedy would be forced to change his focus to foreign policy. India and Pakistan had been wagging an on-and-off border war for the greater part of the last two years, but in 1965 it turned nuclear as both sides hit each other with strategic nuclear attacks against military installation. This led the UN and Kennedy to intervene, ordering that both sides “end all hostilities, lest the world erupt into a nuclear firestorm.” The peace agreement had both sides sign a non-proliferation agreement, and the UN would place peacekeepers in the disputed territory of Kashmir. Kennedy would also send troops to the Dominican Republic. The war in Cuba would also continue to drag on, as the first major offensive by the Cuban Army against Communists in the Santiago region proved disastrous. It was clear that the war on the island would drag on for some time. In more positive news, Kennedy would also prioritize the space race and the US reaching the moon within the next 15 years.