ONCE AGAIN, two brave Americans have carried the quest for knowledge to the threshold of space. They also take with them our prayers, and our pride.
As they orbit the earth in the days and weeks ahead, Astronauts Frank Borman and James Lovell will broaden our knowledge of space.
But they will do more.
Their voyage will be a continuous reminder that the peaceful conquest of space is the only form of conquest in which modern man can proudly and profitably engage.
In this struggle, all men are allies, and the only enemy is a hostile environment.
The victory over this final enemy will belong not just to Americans but to all the world.
We are proud that these fine young Americans have brought us one step closer to that goal.
Note: On October 28, 1965, the White House made public a memorandum to the President from James E. Webb, Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, announcing plans to retain the Gemini 7 launching pad for use in launching the delayed Gemini 6 project. The memorandum stated that it might be possible to rendezvous the two projects in space before the end of the 14-day Gemini 7 flight (1 Weekly Comp. Pres. Docs. P. 434).
See also Items 647, 651, 656.
The President's statement was released at Austin, Tex.
Lyndon B. Johnson, Statement by the President on the Flight of Gemini 7. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/240949