Kennedy. Theodore Sorenson.

Kennedy
Theodore C. Sorenson
New York: Bantam Books. 1966.

Why read it? Sorenson presents a comprehensive view of Kennedy's ideas and methods of leadership. His relationship to his advisers is particularly important because those same advisers, when working with LBJ, helped to escalate the Vietnam War. For Kennedy, all decisions were his. He questioned everything, sought minority and contradictory points of view on issues, and, ultimately, made the decision. Kennedy distrusted the experts, something he learned from the Bay of Pigs fiasco in Cuba. Although the Bay of Pigs program had been established by the Eisenhower administration, Kennedy took full responsibility for its failure, which came because he did not question the experts who recommended it carefully enough. For LBJ, decisions were the result of consensus among his advisers. This book gives insight into Kennedy the President and the man.

My review is "impressionistic," a series of ideas, not necessarily related, except that they, together, add up to a vivid portrait of Kennedy the man and President.

JFK recognized that one of his most important roles was to elucidate, educate and explain. He cut through prevailing myths and bias to the heart of problems. Interested in ideas for their practical uses.

JFK listened and learned more than he spoke. The myths of military efficiency. Good fortune creates obligations. He was an idealist without illusions (Jackie K.). Could find the essence of a complex subject with speed. Willing to learn, inquire and profit by experience. Remembered and applied what he read. Accustomed to disappointment in plans and criticism in print. Didn't start out with answers; started out with questions. Never saw his father read a serious book. Inequity in life: some killed in war, some wounded, some never leave the country; life is unfair.

Preparing speeches: discussed the topic, approach and conclusions in advance. Used quotations. JFK altered, deleted, added phrases, paragraphs or pages. Believed in short speeches, short clauses, short words; series of points in numbered and logical sequence. Test of text was how it sounded to the ear. Fond of alliterative sentences to reinforce recollection. Rejecting extremes led to parallel constructions. Positive and definite, no "suggest," "perhaps" and "possible." Humor in the beginning. Kept file of appropriate speech endings. Never shared openings and closings in released texts so that he could use them again. Staff research preceded every speech. Always wooing opponents while remembering his supporters.

Sought Presidency to get things done. Polls fashion questions to get preconceived answers. Could not afford to be defensive, angry or impatient. Speech-making trips became opportunities to listen and learn. Used local illustrations and specifics. JFK supporters were "political leaders"; opponents were "bosses." New Frontier: not a set of promises but request for contributions. Sometimes transcript of speech was not as eloquent as the original speech. Briefed daily on Nixon's speeches and responded immediately. Did not worry if there was nothing more he could do. Some of the best inaugural speeches were by some of our worst Presidents. Lincoln's Gettysburg Address: one-syllable rather than two- or three-syllable words; one word instead of two or three. Wanted his Inaugural Address to be the shortest in the twentieth century.

Civility not a sign of weakness. Both sides explore problems that unite them rather than those that divide them. Take the first step. Didn't want a cross-section of America in his Cabinet; wanted the best. Cabinet members could make recommendations, but only the President made decisions. Impatient with being bored; disliked long memorandums that did not offer specific recommendations. Cool under pressure; pragmatic, not dogmatic. Diplomats trained in the language, culture and problems of their countries. Encouraged divisions of opinions. Not interested in views of Cabinet members outside their jurisdictions. No collective decisions. Bay of Pigs reinforced what he had always known--never trust the experts. Sensitive to criticism; hurt by one paragraph of criticism in ten paragraphs of praise. Retractions had much less effect than the original story.

Time and Newsweek condensed hindsight more influential than newspapers. Time: loaded adjectives, clever picture captions and quotations out of context showed Eisenhower and Kennedy in different lights, the former positive, the latter negative. Nation's foes learn more from newspapers than their agents could learn through theft, bribery or espionage. He was patient with long statements concealed as questions. Answers in press conferences were brief. Deplored extremism with its simple solutions. Loaded up on statistics on issues.

Presidency: chance to exercise judgment on matters of importance. Took problems seriously, but never himself. The more people he could see, the more he could learn. Absorbed detail while keeping in view the whole picture. "Country cannot afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor." His focus was on acting. Wanted truth in order to act on it.

JFK respected artistic excellence, but his appreciation of art was limited. Read Guns of August on the origins of WWI to warn his own generation of the effects of a similar misunderstanding. U.S. will be remembered for its contributions to the human spirit. Beyond legislation, the President has a number of tools to accomplish his goals. The Constitution must be made to work in a world entirely different from the world in which it was written. He delegated work but never responsibility. Liked alternatives and challenges to assumptions. Fashioned first steps. Conscious of the limitations of power. FDR: Lincoln sad because he couldn't have it all at once. JFK asked the right questions about economics.

Budget a set of estimates; budget was for loans to farmers, small business, aid to education and conservation, urban renewal and redevelopment. The effectiveness of "jawboning," direct persuasion to people who could bring about the desired result. A few strikes made headlines, but peaceful settlements in labor vs. management were increasing. When he won, he immediately turned attention to reconciliation. No gloating by anyone in the administration. Tried to understand problems of business people. Law alone can't make men do what is right. Tried to create climate that allowed a law to succeed. Amazed that otherwise rational people could be so irrational on certain issues.

Myths of foreign policy: good, bad and backward nations; effectiveness of withdrawing diplomatic recognition; democratic way of life will inevitably win. Always wanted to know everything about a problem from its origins. There can't be an American solution to every world problem. Wanted to use both the olive branch and the arrows in the eagle's grasp on the Presidential coat of arms. Must be prepared for war in order to maintain the peace. Because of the ingenuity of science and the inability of people to control their relationships with one another, this is the most dangerous time in the history of the human race. "We have to proceed with care in an age when the human race can obliterate itself." Total solution is not possible in the nuclear age. Didn't expect the Cold War to be lost or won, but only wanted to gain time to outlast it. [This book was published in 1966.]

A world made safe for diversity. The Communist bloc was not a monolith. It's a dangerous world and we have to live with it. Summit is not the place to work out details. Soviets and we give wholly different meanings to the same words--war, peace, democracy, and popular will. When Khrushchev wrote a letter, JFK looked for points on which the two agreed. Told Izvestia that the great threat to peace was the Soviets' desire to Communize the entire world. Before meeting with leaders of other countries, he learned all available facts about the country, its politics, its problems and its personalities. Cited local statistics. Wanted State Department to meet face to face with counterparts, not to communicate through mail and ambassadors. Wanted to change the stereotyped view of the U.S.

Tried not to let situations get out of control. Sought no perfect solution. Rusk used prolonged discussions to avert deadlines and disaster. Wanted more military choices than nuclear weapons. Needed to meet the strategies of the opponents. Military conflicts needed more than military solution, i.e., negotiation. Lenin: strike steel, pull back; strike mush, keep going.

Cuban Missile Crisis: RFK kept asking questions, eliciting arguments and alternatives as different participants came in and went out. Wanted to give the Soviets a way out. Sorenson prepared four-page memorandum with areas of agreement and disagreement, a full list of possible actions and unanswered questions. Subcommittees plotted out each possible course of action in full detail. Start at a low level of action and move up. Don't lock adversary into an either/or choice. Be careful of language: used the term "quarantine" rather than "blockade." No talk of total victory or unconditional surrender. When crisis had been averted, JFK issued a statement welcoming Khrushchev's statesmanlike actions: no dramatic TV appearance. Khrushchev had learned that JFK did not want to inflict total humiliation on his adversary.

Peace does not rest in charters or covenants alone, but in the hearts of the people.

Recognized life's risks, but was too interested in opportunities and obligations to be intimidated by risks. He had so much potential that nothing can rationalize his death as serving some purpose. The world's loss was what might have been. Extraordinary quality was continuing growth. Believed that one man can make a difference. He stood for excellence, for hope, for placing public service ahead of private interests and for reconciliation between opposing forces. He had confidence and gave others confidence in the future. Complacency of the people was due partly to a sense of hopelessness that all problems of the modern world were too complex to be understood, let alone solved.