In 1960, John F. Kennedy overcame what was then the political obstacle of his Catholicism when he won the Democratic Party's nomination for President of the United States. His opponent was incumbent Vice-President Richard Nixon, who won his party's nomination with much less opposition.


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An October surprise is a news event that may influence the outcome of an upcoming November Presidential election, whether deliberately planned or spontaneously occurring. Because election day is in early November, events that take place in October have greater potential to influence the decisions of prospective voters and allow less time to take ( Read more... )

On August 27, 1908 (116 years ago today) Lyndon Baines Johnson, the 36th President of the United States, was born in Stonewall, Texas in a small farmhouse on the Pedernales River. His parents were Samuel Ealy Johnson, Jr. and Rebekah Baines. His father served five terms in the Texas legislature.


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Alternate Presidents is a collection of 28 short stories edited by Mike Resnick, speculating on what history might have been like if the outcome of 28 presidential elections would have been different. This anthology was released on February 15, 1992. This book is a delight to read. Resnick, a Hugo Award winning science fiction writer, also ( Read more... )

Some have compared President Joe Biden's recent decision not to run for re-election to that of Lyndon Johnson, who, in March of 1968, announced to the nation his decision not to seek another term in office. But Johnson's decision was not based on concerns of competency or age (Johnson was not yet 60 when he decided not to seek another four years in ( Read more... )

At a time when the next presidential election looked as if it would be between one candidate in his late 70s and another in his early 80s, it seems remarkable that such an accomplished man as Dwight Eisenhower faced criticism for his age when he left the presidency in 1960, having just turned 70. But the nation was in the mood for a younger ( Read more... )

Harry Truman was not a wealthy man before becoming President, and his economic fortunes did not improve much while in elected office. Before holding any elected office, Truman had earned little money, and was in debt from the failure of his haberdashery business. Even though he made more money while holding elected office, the need to maintain two ( Read more... )

Herbert Hoover had gone from hero to goat. Once considered the most brilliant man in America, once elected President in a landslide, Hoover now found himself on the other side of that landslide. He had lost his bid for re-election to Franklin Roosevelt in a bitter contest and many Americans blamed Hoover for the Great Depression that they were in ( Read more... )

It's Canada Day today. On July 1, 1867 (157 years ago today) the Dominion of Canada came into being as four British colonies formed a Confederation and gained nationhood status. Since that time, Canada and the United States have shared the world's longest undefended border. For over sixty years it was a tradition for a new president to make his ( Read more... )

When Lyndon Johnson became president following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, he opted for a different approach to the issue of Vietnam than his predecessor was expected to take. Whereas Kennedy had talked about a decreased US presence in Vietnam, Johnson was a firm believer in what was known as "the Domino Theory" (i.e. the idea that if ( Read more... )