Dwight D. Eisenhower Event Timeline

Dwight D. Eisenhower (34) Event Timeline

01/20/1953 - 01/19/1961

07/11/1952

Accepts Republican Party nomination for President with Richard Nixon as running mate.

11/04/1952

Election Day. Eisenhower wins 83.2% of the Electoral College and 54.9% of the popular vote.

1953

01/20/1953

Inaugural Address. “We must be willing, individually and as a Nation, to accept whatever sacrifices may be required of us. A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both.”

03/12/1953

By Special Message, transmits a reorganization plan for creating the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. The Department is subsequently established on 04/11/1953.

03/25/1953

By Memorandum directs that all schools operated by the Army will be completely integrated effective September 1953.

04/16/1953

Delivers “Chance for Peace” speech against increased military spending. “This is not a way of life at all, in any true sense. Under the cloud of threatening war, it is humanity hanging from a cross of iron. These plain and cruel truths define the peril and point the hope that come with this spring of 1953.”

03/05/1953

Sends Message of Condolence concerning Death of Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin and expresses hope that everyone will pursue the goal of peace.

05/22/1953

Signs the Submerged Lands Act, which gave states control over the natural resources located within the first three miles of a state’s coastal waters.

06/14/1953

Remarks at Dartmouth College Commencement. Remarks are interpreted as critical of Senator McCarthy.  “Don’t join the book burners. . . .How will we defeat communism unless we know what it is?“

07/26/1953

Broadcast Address to the American People announcing the Signing of the Korean Armistice. U.S. and North Korea sign armistice to end Korean War.

08/01/1953

Establishes the U.S. Information Agency, supports American foreign policy and promotes U.S. national interest through overseas information programs.

08/01/1953

Special Message Proposes Social Security coverage increase.

08/07/1953

Signs the Refugee Relief Act of 1953, which resulted in the admission of 214,000 immigrants to the United States.

08/31/1953

Senator Joseph McCarthy, Chair of Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Senate Government Operations Committee begins investigating Communists in the U.S. Army.

09/30/1953

Announces his intention to nominate California Governor Earl Warren as Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Warren had been the Republican Vice-Presidential nominee in 1948.  In 1946 he had won Gubernatorial primaries in the Democratic, Republican and Progressive parties. Associate Justice Fred Vinson had died of a heart attack on 09/08/1953.

10/08/1953

In a Press Conference, announces Soviet test of hydrogen bomb.

12/08/1953

“Atoms for Peace” speech to U.N. General Assembly. “It is with the book of history, and not with isolated pages, that the United States will ever wish to be identified. My country wants to be constructive, not destructive. It wants agreement, not wars, among nations. It wants itself to live in freedom, and in the confidence that the people of every other nation enjoy equally the right of choosing their own way of life.”

1954

01/07/1954

First State of the Union Message.

01/11/1954

Sends special message to Congress requesting changes in the Taft-Hartley labor law. These included modifying the process of issuing an injunction against a disruptive strike, and clarifying when secondary boycotts are permissible.

03/08/1954

United States and Japan Sign Mutual Defense Assistance Agreement. The US pledges to protect Japan under condition that it can establish permanent bases of Japanese soil. Japan military was allowed only “self-defense” operations. [Link to pdf file of Treaty.]

04/07/1954

In a News Conference, explains the strategic importance of Indochina by reference to “the ‘falling domino’ principle.” In this analogy, the countries of Southeast Asia are linked so that the fall of one quickly predicts the fall of others.

05/13/1954

Remarks on Signing the St. Lawrence Seaway Bill. This project will link the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean via the St. Lawrence River.

04/22/1954

Public hearing begin in the investigation of aspects of security of the U.S. Army by the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.

05/07/1954

Message to Vietnamese Chief of State on the occasion of the utter defeat of French forces by Vietnamese communist insurgents at Dien Bien Phu. (Link to a detailed account of the battle.)

05/17/1954

U.S. Supreme Court unanimously decides Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (I). Separate but equal educational facilities for racial minorities are unconstitutional. Among the attorneys defending segregation (and Plessy v. Ferguson) was former 1924 Democratic presidential candidate, John W. Davis. The lead attorney opposing segregation was Thurgood Marshall, later appointed to the Supreme Court by Lyndon Johnson.

06/30/1954

Resolution of Censure introduced against Senator Joseph McCarthy by Senator Ralph Flanders (R-VT).

07/21/1954

In a News Conference, announces and explains the U.S. refusal to sign the Geneva Agreements of 1954. There were multiple agreements and declarations. Primary among them were for a cease-fire line that effectively divided Vietnam in two at the 17^th parallel. Eisenhower says the US will view any renewed Communist aggression as a “matter of great concern.“

08/02/1954

Statement on Signing the Housing Act of 1954, proposing “slum clearance” and construction of new public housing.

08/24/1954

Statement on Signing the Communist Control Act of 1954 outlawing the Community Party of the United States and prohibiting members from serving in some “representative capacities.” Outlines a variety of Administrative actions to confront “the Communist conspiracy.”

08/30/1954

Statement on Signing the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, updating US atomic energy law and promoting an International Atomic Energy Agency to promote peacetime applications of atomic energy.

09/08/1954

Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty signed in Manilla, creating the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO). Members included France, Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand and Pakistan. The pact aimed at preventing communism in South East Asia. The treaty was transmitted to the Senate on 11/10/1954.

11/02/1954

Democrats gain control of both houses of Congress in midterm elections. Senator McCarthy loses his Subcommittee Chairmanship.

12/02/1954

Mutual Defense Treaty is Signed between the Republic of China [now Taiwan] and the United States;  treaty ratified by Senate on 02/09/1955.  Ratified by the President on 02/11/1955; enters into force 03/03/1955. The President mentions the treaty in his News Conference of 12/02/1954.

12/02/1954

U. S. Senate votes 67-22 to censure Senator Joseph McCarthy. The President in a News Conference stated that this is “a matter of the Senate. . . determining what is required in the preservation of the dignity of the Senate.”

1955

01/06/1955

Second State of the Union Message.

01/19/1955

Television, newsreel, and newspaper camera equipment are present for the first time throughout a Presidential News Conference.

01/29/1955

Statement on Signing the Joint Resolution on the Defense of Formosa (Taiwan). The President had sent a Special Message to Congress on 01/24/1955 asking for a special resolution contemplating “the use of armed forces of the United States if necessary” to defend Taiwan.

02/18/1955

Exchange of Messages between the President and President Chiang Kai-shek of the Republic of China concerning cooperation in movement of armed forces of the Republic of China in conflicts with communist Chinese forces.

02/22/1955

Special Message to Congress Regarding a National Highway Program. Calls for “general recognition of the urgency that presses upon us; approval of a general program that will give us a modern safe highway system.”

03/03/1955

Letter to His Majesty Bao Dai, chief of State of Viet-Nam; reiterates US vigorous opposition to Communist expansion, pledges “to continue and expand support for Free Viet-Nam.”

03/10/1955

Message to the Prime Ministers of the Seven Nations Signatory to the Protocols Establishing the Western European Union.  Praises the agreement reached in Paris on 10/23/1954 and the belief that it will “draw together those whose past differences have led to recurrent war. . . “

03/16/1955

In a News Conference, sees no reason why “tactical small atomic weapons” would not be used on military targets in the event of general war in the Far East.

04/12/1955

Researchers at the University of Michigan report that their massive experimental distribution of Salk Polio Vaccine showed the vaccine is “safe, effective, and potent.”  On 04/22/1955 the President presents a citation to Dr. Jonas E. Salk recognizing his role in developing polio vaccine.

05/10/1955

The Soviet Union proposes a comprehensive test ban to reduce conventional weapons and eliminate nuclear weapons.

05/11/1955

By Executive Order, establishes the Civil Defense Coordinating Board.

05/26/1955

Eisenhower announces that he is delighted that Nixon has notified him that he would accept renomination as Vice President.

05/31/1955

U.S. Supreme Court unanimously decides Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (II), stating that Brown I decision (above) shall be implemented “with all deliberate speed.”

07/15/1955

Address to the Nation before Departure for Geneva Conference.

07/18/1955

Delivers opening statement at Geneva Conference, which is attended by the heads of government of the United States, United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union. Stresses the importance of rapprochement between East and West. First meeting of leaders of “big-four” countries victors in World War II.

07/21/1955

Statement on Disarmament at the Geneva Conference. Known subsequently as the “open skies” concept, Eisenhower urged the development of a mutually acceptable inspection system. He specifically proposes an exchange with the USSR of military blueprints, and providing facilities for aerial photography by the other country.

08/28/1955

Emmett Till lynched in Mississippi following reports that he had whistled at a white woman. On 09/03/1955, his mother displayed his battered body in an open-casket funeral in Chicago, his hometown. The outrage that followed helped ignite the civil rights movement.

09/24/1955

The President was hospitalized at Fitzsimons Army Hospital in Aurora, CO following a massive heart attack. Eisenhower had been Colorado for an extended vacation. He was hospitalized for seven weeks. This incident renewed concern about governing authority when the President is disabled.

09/26/1955

Vice-President Nixon calls a Cabinet meeting to set up mechanics for relaying important matters to the President. In 1981 the Department of Justice reported that a 1955 White House request for an opinion on the temporary delegation of presidential power was not acted upon because Attorney General Brownell felt there were sufficient legal arrangements in place to handle day-to-day operations.

10/10/1955

In Lucy v. Adams the US Supreme Court upholds, by an unsigned order, a lower court injunction holding that that the University of Alabama may not deny access to an applicant (Autherine Lucy) solely on the basis of race.

11/07/1955

On this day, the Interstate Commerce Commission decides a complaint brought by the NAACP, holding that segregation in interstate transport violates the Interstate Commerce Act. The ICC notes recent Supreme Court decisions including Brown v. Board of Education. The decision was reported in newspapers, and thus, presumably published, on 11/25/1955. [Link to a digitized book containing the text of the decision].

11/11/1955

Remarks on leaving Colorado to return to Washington, DC.

12/01/1955

Civil rights activist Rosa Parks is arrested in Montgomery, Alabama for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. In reaction, Montgomery Blacks on 12/05/1955 start  the Montgomery Bus Boycott which goes for 13 months.

12/05/1955

Telephone Remarks to the AFL-CIO Merger Meeting. After long negotiations, two leading labor federations merge. The American Federation of Labor (AFL) merger with the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CLO) is ratified on this date.

1956

01/05/1956

Third State of the Union Message.

01/25/1956

Declares, in a News Conference, contrary to public speculation, that he has never talked to Nixon about Nixon's future “and until I confer with him I wouldn’t have anything to say.”

02/06/1956

By Executive Order, establishes the President’s Board of Consultants on Foreign Intelligence Activities. The Board continued under slightly varying names (President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board and President’s Intelligence Advisory Board) through the Trump Administration.

02/22/1956

Announces a “determination” to make government-produced uranium available for peaceful use

02/29/1956

In a televised Address to the Nation, states that he will be a candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination. He stresses the “favorable” reports from his doctors. Earlier in the day in a News Conference, he declined to say that he sought Nixon as a running mate, saying he is adhering to party tradition.

03/12/1956

Eighty-two members of the House of Representatives and 19 Senators sign the “Southern Manifesto” (“Declaration of Constitutional Principles”) attacking Brown v Board of Education as an abuse of judicial power and interference with states rights.

06/04/1956

The U.S. District Court for the middle district of Alabama ruled 2-1 in Browder v. Gayle that government-enforced bus segregation in Montgomery is unconstitutional under the 14^th Amendment.  

06/21/1956

Approves use of the highly secret U-2 spy aircraft to make overflights of the Soviet Union. [See text of CIA analysis mostly declassified and available as pdf.]

06/29/1956

Signs Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956. This launches the Interstate Highway System, one of the largest and most valued US public works programs.

07/26/1956

Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalizes the Suez Canal Company.  In President Eisenhower’s view, the canal had been established as an international waterway.

08/01/1956

Signs Social Security Act of 1956. Permits women to retire at age 62 and disabled workers at age 50.

08/23/1956

Accepts the Nomination of the Republican National Convention for President.  Nixon continues as running mate.

08/28/1956

Federal District Judge in Arkansas upholds the plan of the Little Rock Board of Education for gradual integration of Little Rock schools. (Austin Statesman, 08/28/1956.) The plan called for desegregation starting in September 1957.

09/09/1956

Elvis Presley appears on the Ed Sullivan Show for the first of three times, causing a national sensation. The New York Times wrote “From his extensive repertoire of assaults on the American ear, Mr. Presley included ‘Hound Dog.’”

10/22/1956

Rioting begins in Budapest, Hungary in protest against the Soviet-dominated government. Within days, martial law is imposed and Soviet military assistance is requested.

10/24/1956

Statement on US policies and actions with respect to nuclear testing and development. Issued in response to criticism from Democratic candidate Adlai Stevenson, reiterates the importance of inspections.

10/25/1956

Statement on the developments in Hungary. Praises the Hungarian desire for freedom; deplores Soviet intervention.

10/31/1956

Addresses nation regarding Suez Crisis and Eastern Europe unrest. (Israel, Britain, and France attack Egypt).

11/04/1956

Soviet military crushes revolt in Hungary; British and French Forces invade Egypt. The President comments on the “shock” caused by the Soviet action.

11/06/1956

Election Day. Eisenhower is reelected with 86.1% of the Electoral College and 57.4% of the popular vote, defeating Democratic challenger Adlai Stevenson.

11/06/1956

The Suez crisis is resolved when, under pressure, the parties accept a UN ceasefire agreement to take effect on 11/07/1956.

11/07/1956

Addresses nation following reelection.

11/13/1956

U.S. Supreme Court affirms Gayle v. Browder ruling of 06/04/1956 (see above) in a “per curiam” decision. Racially segregated transportation systems enforced by the government violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14^th Amendment.

12/20/1956

African-Americans declare an end to the Montgomery bus boycott after the Supreme Court Decision in Gayle v. Browder (see 11/13/1956) takes effect, and bus segregation is ended.

1957

01/05/1957

In a Special Message Address to a Joint Session of Congress, proposes the “Eisenhower Doctrine.” This held that countries could request US economic or military assistance if threatened by armed aggression from another state. This was in response partly to the Suez Crisis (see 10/31/1956 above).

01/10/1957

Fourth State of the Union Message.

01/21/1957

Second Inaugural Address. “So we voice our hope and our belief that we can help to heal this divided world. Thus may the nations cease to live in trembling before the menace of force. Thus may the weight of fear and the weight of arms be taken from the burdened shoulders of mankind.” The President had taken the Oath of Office privately on 01/20/1957, the Constitutionally prescribed date.

02/14/1957

Building on the success of the Montgomery bus boycott, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference is established in a meeting in New Orleans. Martin Luther King, Jr. is named President.

03/09/1957

Statement on Signing a Congressional Joint Resolution endorsing the approach to the Middle East known as the Congress approves the “Eisenhower Doctrine

06/12/1957

US Surgeon General Leroy E. Burney issues a statement that “the weight of the evidence is increasingly pointing in one direction: that excessive smoking is one of the causative factors in lung cancer.”

08/29/1957

The Senate passes the first civil rights legislation since Reconstruction after Senator Strom Thurmond filibusters in opposition to it for 24 hours.

09/02/1957

Following defeat in Federal Court on 08/31/1957, Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus announces he will use Arkansas National Guard to preserve order effectively preventing school integration. He says public order is threatened by enrolling African American students at Little Rock Central High School.

09/09/1957

Signs Civil Rights Act of 1957, empowering federal officials to prosecute individuals who conspired to deny or abridge another citizen’s right to vote. [Link to pdf image of the enrolled bill.]

09/20/1957

Arkansas Governor Faubus gives a televised address outlining his responses to court hearings. He announces that he has withdrawn the Guards. He asks that “the Negroes refrain from [exercising their rights] until such time as there is assurance that it can be accomplished in a peaceful manner. . . . “

09/23/1957

By Proclamation commands “all persons” engaged in obstruction of justice in Arkansas to cease and desist.

09/24/1957

Addresses the Nation in a broadcast speech on the situation in Little Rock. “The very basis of our individual rights and freedoms rests upon the certainty that the President and the Executive Branch of Government will support and insure the carrying out for the decisions of the federal courts. . . “ Earlier in the day, by Executive Order and sent “troops under Federal authority” to enforce court orders for integration.

10/09/1957

Addresses launch of Sputnik I by the Soviet Union, which occurred on 10/04/1957.

11/07/1957

Address to the American People on Science in National Security. Urges more support for basic scientific research. Announces the creation of an office of Special Assistant to the President for Science and Technology, to be filled by MIT President James Killian.

11/25/1957

Suffers a stroke while at work in the White House, but quickly recovers. Later he said that he considered resigning because of concern about his health.

1958

01/09/1958

Fifth State of the Union Message.

01/27/1958

Special Message to Congress on Education proposing aid to education in order to promote defense and scientific advance.

02/01/1958

Announces successful launch of U.S. satellite.

03/03/1958

Agreement between the President and the Vice President as to Procedures in the Event of Presidential Disability.

04/01/1958

Signs housing stimulus bill to combat recession. Urges Congress to provide for VA-guaranteed and direct loans that can be adjusted to market conditions.

04/02/1958

Recommends to Congress the creation of a civilian agency for space exploration.

04/08/1958

Letter to Nikita Khrushchev in which he questions the sincerity of a Soviet proposal to cease nuclear testing conditional on the US also ceasing testing. Reiterates the principles articulated in his “Atoms for Peace” proposal of 12/08/1953; calls for “technical disarmament studies.”

05/08/1958

Releases statement regarding removal of troops from Little Rock, Arkansas.

06/10/1958

Letter to Nikita Khrushchev agreeing to Khrushchev’s communique accepting the idea of technical disarmament discussions.

06/20/1958

Federal District Judge Harry J. Lemley issues an order suspending integration at Little Rock High Central School until 1961.

06/23/1958

Meets with civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr., A Phillip Randolph and Roy Wilkins, who urge him to establish a clear national policy opposed to racial discrimination. They suggested a 9-point program of action for the President. [There was no White House statement relating to this meeting.]

07/07/1958

Signs Alaska statehood bill.

07/15/1958

Orders the U.S. Marine Corps into Lebanon at request of Lebanese government.

07/29/1958

Statement on signing the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958, establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

08/22/1958

Statement by the President Following the Geneva Meeting of Experts Proposing Negotiations on Nuclear Controls.

09/02/1958

Signs the National Defense Education Act.

09/12/1958

Releases statement following Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling in Cooper v. Aaron that Little Rock must continue with its desegregation plan. The School Board orders the high schools to open September 15. The Supreme Court conclusively reversed the 06/20/1958 ruling of Judge Lemley.

09/18/1958

Arkansas Governor Faubus gives speech justifying his decision to shut down Little Rock public high school rather than comply with Court Orders. Proposes turning the schools into private institutions where segregated education will be legal.

09/22/1958

Accepts, “with sadness,” the Resignation of Sherman Adams, Assistant to the President who had been accused of improperly accepting gifts.

10/24/1958

Appoints Lewis L. Strauss as Secretary of Commerce as “recess appointment.” Strauss had served four years as Chair of the Atomic Energy Commission. (see also entry for 06/19/1959).

11/04/1958

The Republicans lost 48 seats in the House and 13 in the Senate. From 1934 to 2018, no incumbent President’s party suffered a bigger midterm loss of Senate seats.

11/07/1958

In a Statement, reports that the US believes the USSR has continued to test nuclear weapons despite talks under way in Geneva. But, the US will continue to suspend testing in hopes that the USSR will reciprocate.

1959

01/09/1959

Sixth State of the Union Message.

02/05/1959

Special Message to Congress regarding civil rights. Urges seven legislative actions to strengthen equality of civil rights including giving the FBI authority to investigate attempted destruction of churches or schools.

03/18/1959

Signs Hawai’i statehood bill.

04/20/1959

Letter to Nikita Khrushchev on discontinuing nuclear weapons tests. Proposes an initial ban on atmospheric tests. Stresses the importance of on-site inspections.

06/19/1959

President’s Statement on Senate’s rejection of Lewis L. Strauss as Secretary of Commerce. Strauss was one of only three nominees rejected during the 20^th century. Strauss had offended Senators during his confirmation hearing and Democrats wanted to “conspicuously oppose” the Eisenhower Administration.

07/15/1959

Refuses to seek a Taft-Hartley injunction to end steelworkers’ strike. The 1947 Taft-Hartley Act allowed the President to appoint a board to investigate labor disputes that threatened to result in a strike that could endanger the economy or public safety. The Department of Justice could seek a court order to stop such a strike.

08/06/1959

In a broadcast Address to the American People, advocates for the Landrum-Griffin Act, a labor bill he ultimately signs into law on 09/14/1959. The bill guaranteed free and fair elections of union officials, among other things.

08/26/1959

Directs the unilateral suspension of nuclear weapons testing be extended through the end of 1959.

09/09/1959

Veto of Second Public Works Appropriations Bill. The veto is overridden on 09/10/1959.

09/27/1959

Releases statement following discussions with the Soviet Union’s Premier Khrushchev at Camp David.

10/06/1959

By Executive Order, creates a Board of Inquiry to investigate a longshoreman’s strike that will “imperil the national health and safety.” On the next day, he instructs the Attorney General to seek an injunction halting the strike.

10/19/1959

Invokes Taft-Hartley and seeks an injunction to halt steelworkers’ strike. (see entry 07/15/1959).

12/29/1959

Statement on the expiration of the voluntary moratorium in testing nuclear weapons. “We shall not resume nuclear weapons tests without announcing our intention in advance. . . “

1960

01/07/1960

Seventh State of the Union Message.

01/18/1960

Balances the nation’s budget for the first time in eight years.

01/26/1960

Releases statement of policy toward Cuba.

02/01/1960

Four college freshmen from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical College conduct a sit-in at a whites-only lunch counter at a Woolworth’s store in Greensboro, NC. The next day 19 students sat in. The following day, 85 participated.

02/13/1960

Lunch counter sit-ins begin in Nashville, TN and last until 05/10/1960. Protesters were met with violence on 02/27/1960. By the end of February there were sit-ins underway in 31 southern cities in eight states.

03/16/1960

Asked about the ongoing protests at a News Conference, states that he is sympathetic with any group seeking their rights under the Constitution, but is not certain whether constitutional rights are involved in “this type of segregation.”

03/17/1960

Authorizes the Central Intelligence Agency to begin training exiles to invade Cuba. In a News Conference on 03/16/1960 he had stated “we are not trying to punish Cuba, particularly the Cuban people or even the Cuban government.”

03/28/1960

Joint Statement with British Prime Minister Macmillan. They agree on a “properly safeguarded agreement.”

05/06/1960

Signs the Civil Rights Act of 1960, which expands the enforcement powers of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. (See 02/05/1959).

05/11/1960

Addresses the issue of a United States U-2 spy plane shot down by the Soviet Union with surface-to-air missiles on 05/01/1960. The pilot had survived and much of the plane recovered by the Soviets.

05/16/1960

Paris Summit on arms control between the U.S., France, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union collapses. The President had refused to make a formal apology for the U-2 spy flight.

06/30/1960

Congo, a previously Belgian colony, begins independence. The first Prime Minister, Patrice Lumumba, was quickly challenged by Moise Tshombe who announced the secession of Katanga province with rich mineral resources.

06/30/1953

Vetoes legislation increasing salaries for Postal and Federal Employees;  the veto is overridden on 07/01/1960; the second of only two vetoes overridden.

07/09/1960

Releases statement regarding Khrushchev’s support for Castro regime in Cuba.

07/15/1960

Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts Accepts the Presidential nomination of the Democratic National Convention.

07/28/1960

Vice President Richard Nixon Accepts the Presidential nomination of the Republican National Convention.

09/07/1960

In a News Conference, reads a prepared statement deploring USSR involvement in conflict in the Congo. Soviet support had been invited by Prime Minister Lumumba, but meanwhile the Congolese government had split.

09/26/1960

Vice President Nixon and Senator John Kennedy hold the first televised presidential debates in Chicago.  Three other debates follow.

11/08/1960

Kennedy is elected President in an extremely close election with 56% of the electoral vote and 49.7% of the popular vote.

11/09/1960

Congratulates Kennedy on presidential election win.

1961

01/03/1961

Severs diplomatic relations with Cuba.

01/12/1961

Eighth State of the Union Message.

01/17/1961

Delivers Farewell Address, warns of “military industrial complex.”