Transcript The Cold War in the 1960’s - Madera Unified School

The Cold War: 1960’s Version
A. The Election of 1960
The Nominees
Both born in the 20th century!
• Richard Nixon (Rep)
• Vice President
• “Kitchen Debates”
• John F. Kennedy (Dem)
• Called on a “New
Frontier”
• Problem: Catholicism
The Debates
• A series of 4
debates
• 1st time debates
aired on television
•Kennedy took the
lead because of
appearance
The Results
• Kennedy barely won – 0.1% victory
• IL & TX were contested states
• Nixon refused to call for a recount – it would
cause a “Constitutional Crisis”
Kennedy’s Inauguration
"Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can
do for your country."
B. Flexible
Response
Eisenhower’s New Look Program
• Ike concentrated
on the buildup of
nuclear weapons
• Cut government
spending on more
conventional (nonnuclear) weapons
• Part of “Massive
Retaliation”
Flexible Response
• Felt the “New Look”
limited the U.S.
• Wanted to be able
to respond without
resorting to nuclear
weapons
• Increased spending
on conventional
armed forces
• Mutually Assured
Destruction (MAD)
C. Bay of Pigs (1961)
Bay of Pigs – April 15-21, 1961
• Planned by Eisenhower
• Kennedy approved
• 1400 CIA trained Cuban
Exiles invaded Cuba to
overthrow Castro
• Most either captured or
killed by Castro
• Huge embarrassment for
Kennedy
• Cuba now wary of the U.S.
Giron. First defeat of (the)Yankee Imperialism in Latin America.
D. Operation Mongoose
The Plot (a.k.a. The Cuban Project)
•
•
•
•
CIA planned attack to sabotage Castro
Either to overthrow and/or kill him
Kennedy approved
Ultimately unsuccessful
E. The
Peace Corps
• Est. in 1961
• Sent volunteers to
3rd world nations
• Alternative to
military
containment
• One of Kennedy’s
most popular and
lasting program
• Since 1961, over
187,000 have served
F. Alliance for Progress
“Latin American Marshall Plan”
• Created in 1961
• Provided $20 billion to Latin America
• Goal was to contain Cuban communist
threat
• Close the gap between rich and poor
• Ultimately failed
– Too few Latin American govts helped
– Too few dollars ($10/Latin American)
– After Kennedy, no presidential support
G. The Berlin Wall
• Constructed in August 1961 to stop the flee
of Berliners from East to West
• Feared there was a “Brain Drain”
Kennedy’s Visit
• Visited June 1963
• Speech given
criticizing communism
• Used Wall as an
example of its
failures
– “Ich bin ein Berliner"
“Freedom has many difficulties and
democracy is not perfect, but we have never
had to put a wall up to keep our people in."
H. Cuban Missile
Crisis
• October 14, 1962 – American U-2 plane
spied missiles in Cuba
• Kennedy alerted on Oct 16 – begins 13
days where the U.S. feared a nuclear
war would begin
• October 22 - Kennedy decided to blockade
Cuba from the Soviet Union to avert war
End of the Crisis
• October 26 – Khrushchev stated the
missiles would be removed if the U.S.
would not invade Cuba, end blockade, &
remove missile from Turkey
• Oct 28, Kennedy agrees but only
publicly agrees to first two conditions
• War was averted, but changed
Kennedy’s attitude toward the Cold War
Establishment of the Hotline
• Direct phone line from Washington to
Moscow
• 24 hour access to avert crisis
• First used in 1967
I. Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
• Banned atmospheric testing of nuclear
testing
• Developed to slow the arms race and
stop the excessive rate of nuclear fall
out in the atmosphere