What Were the Repercussions of President Kennedy and his Executive Committees decisions Made During the Cuban Missile Crisis?

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Recommended: John F. Kennedy's role in the Cuban missile crisis

What were the repercussions of President Kennedy and his Executive Committees decisions made during the Cuban Missile Crisis?

A. Plan of the Investigation

This investigation will be an evaluation of President Kennedy’s Executive Committee and the repercussions of the decisions made during the thirteen days of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Tape recordings and files had been deemed classified, but these files are now released and the decisions made by the government can be assessed to the fullest extent. This can produce major implications regarding the relationship between what was then the Soviet Union and the United States. The public was kept in the dark about several courses of action, including the removal of American missiles and many other surprising judgment calls that may be a cause of international security between the two country’s today.

A frequently used source is The Kennedy Tapes by Ernest R. May and Philip D. Zelikow as well as others. This book in particular delves into the tape recordings during those thirteen days between President Kennedy and his advisory committee, revealing information that could provide insight into what really happened in October, 1962.

B Summary of Evidence

President Kennedy was informed at 9.00 AM on Tuesday, October 16, 1962 that the Soviet Union had placed nuclear missiles in Sierra del Rosario, Cuba. This confirmation was made by an authorized U-2 flight over the area on October 14. Kennedy was immediately briefed by CIA director Marshall Carter who explained what the missiles meant and how it affected the United States. By this time, Kennedy had created a council, now referred to as his Executive Committee or ExComm. Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara and Secretary ...

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... Brink of Nuclear War. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2008. Print.

Kennedy, John F. A Nation of Immigrants. New York: Harper and Row, 1964. Print

Kennedy, John F. The Strategy of Peace. New York: Harper, 1960. Print

Kennedy, Robert F., and Arthur Meier Schlesinger. Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Thorndike: G. K. Hall &, 2001. Print.

MAY, ERNEST R., and PHILIP ZELIKOW. The KENNEDY TAPES: INSIDE THE WHITE HOUSE DURING THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS. Cambridge: Belknap of Harvard UP, 2000. Print.

May, Ernest R. "John F Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis." BBC News. BBC, 18 Nov. 2013. Web. 01 Apr. 2014.

Schlesinger, Arthur M. A Thousand Days: John F. Kennedy in the White House. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1965. Print.

Stein, R. Conrad. Cuban Missile Crisis: In the Shadow of Nuclear War. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow, 2009. Print.

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