Election of 1960• John F. Kennedy (D) vs. Richard

M. Nixon (R). • JFK (Kennedy) won• It was the first televised

presidential debate.• JFK’s calming appearance on

TV helped him get many swing votes.

• Nixon refused to wear makeup• The main issue was the Cold

War.

History of JFK• Born into a wealthy family. His dad was the U.S.

ambassador to England…mom was the daughter of mayor of Boston

• Wife -- Jacqueline Bouvier.• Only Catholic president• He was 43 when he became President.• On November 22nd 1963, he was shot in Dallas

Texas.• His time in the White House as President became

known as Camelot.

Kennedy and Khrushchev in 1961

Important Key Issues• He hoped to improve education and provide health

care for the elderly. • Increased minimum wage to $1.25.• Equal Pay Act for women.• Created the Peace Corps• Wanted to put a man on the moon by the end of

the 1960s

• Focused on foreign policy and the Cold War with the USSR.

Peace Corps• This was created to

help less developed nations fight off poverty.

• This organization sent young people to foreign countries to help the poor. – Built hospitals– Served food– etc Eleanor Roosevelt and JFK worked

together to create the Peace Corps.

Earl Warren• He was appointed Chief

Justice of the Supreme Court by Eisenhower.

• His role as Chief Justice would have a profound impact in the 1960’s.

• Two examples are: desegregation of schools and the reading of Miranda rights.

Space Race

Space Race• With the Cold War getting hotter, JFK wanted to be

better than the USSR.• The “Space Race” was between the U.S. and USSR

for control of space.• JFK recommended that a man land on the moon

before the decade was over.• That came true when Neil Armstrong landed on the

moon in 1969.

The Berlin Wall• Built by the USSR in the middle of the night in

August 1961 (won’t come down until 1989).• Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev was tired of

people leaving East Berlin.• The walls purpose was to keep East Berlin

(Communist) and West Berlin (Democratic) separate.

• major physical symbol of the Cold War.

1961 construction of the Berlin Wall

Tunnel of an East German

Checkpoint Charlie standoff – October 1961

• 18 year old East German soldier tried to escape

• Shot and falls into barbed wire and slowly bleeds to death in “no man’s land”

• Protest begin and it escalates to tanks pointed at each other waiting to fire

Russian tanks