Under Construction @ Keele 2017 Under Construction @ Keele Vol. III (3) | Page 49

1. Cuba
The Sabato poll identified Kennedy's handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis as his
greatest achievement as president. Cuba was a constant concern for Kennedy's
administration. Fidel Castro, after overthrowing US-backed dictator Fulgencio
Batista, expressed support for communism. 24 In April 1961, Kennedy authorised a
plan, later known as the Bay of Pigs, that had been conceived during the final
months of Eisenhower’s presidency, in which Cuban exiles attempted to invade the
island and overthrow Castro. The mission failed as many of the soldiers were
imprisoned or killed. 25
In October 1962, US intelligence showed the Soviet Union was placing
nuclear missiles in Cuba which led to a confrontation popularly known as the Cuban
Missile Crisis. 26 After the showdown was resolved, Kennedy enjoyed an increase in
his approval rating from 61% to 74% in-between October and November 1962. 27
After Kennedy’s assassination, the Sorensen and Schlesinger memoirs contributed
further to this strong appraisal of the late president’s handling of the crisis. Sorensen
emphasised Kennedy's strong leadership during the showdown, particularly his
decision not to invade Cuba (despite pressure to do so) and his ordering of a naval
quarantine of Cuba to prevent further missiles being delivered to the island.
Sorensen claimed that this forced Soviet ships travelling to Cuba with more missiles
to reverse direction. 28 Kennedy then engaged in a diplomatic conversation with
Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev that saw the removal of the missiles and ended the
crisis. 29 Sorensen believed Kennedy's resolution of the crisis was his ‘greatest
success’, mirroring the Sabato poll. 30 He recalled speculating on a number of factors
that contributed to the peaceful end of the crisis, particularly what would have
happened if Kennedy ‘had not been President’. 31 In other words, Sorensen was
claiming only Kennedy could have solved the crisis peacefully.
Schlesinger was no less favourable towards Kennedy. He described his
Richard Nixon, Six Crises (London: WH Allen, 1962), 351-352.
Salinger, With Kennedy, 148-149.
26
Anthony Lewis, “U.S. Imposes Arms Blockade on Cuba on Finding Offensive-Missile Sites;
Kennedy Ready for Soviet Showdown,” The New York Times, October 23, 1962, 1.
27
Gallup, “Presidential Job Approval Center.”
28
Sorensen, Kennedy, 694, 710-711.
29
Ibid., 714-716.
30
Ibid., 717.
31
Ibid., 717.
24
25