“Ask Not What Your Country Can Do For You…Ask What You Can Do For Your Country” John Fitzgerald Kennedy was the thirty fifth president of the United Sates. He was the youngest ever to be elected and also the youngest to ever die on office. Kennedy changed the way Americans looked at their country and the way the world looked as well. Kennedy was elected on the “New Frontier” in his inaugural address, president Kennedy declared that “A new generation of Americans had taken over leadership of the country. The Unites States White House states that he told Americans “Ask not what your country can do for you…ask what you can do for your country. From his early life to his career in congress and as president of the United States, John F. Kennedy proved himself to be one of the most influential men in US history. Simkin writes that John F. Kennedy’s family was of Irish decent. During the great potato famine of the 1840’s John F. Kennedy’s Great Grandfather, Patrick Kennedy, immigrated to the United States and settled in Boston Massachusetts. It was here that politics entered into the Kennedy gene pool. Patrick Kennedy’s son, Patrick J. Kennedy was a successful saloon owner and a United States Senator. John F. Kennedy’s father, Joseph P. Kennedy, served under President Roosevelt administration as the U.S. ambassador to Great Britain. He also was first chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Joseph P. Kennedy was a very good business man and politician making himself into a self-made millionaire. John F. Kennedy’s mother was of political origins also. Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy’s father John F. “Honey Frits” Fitzgerald served in congress and as mayor of Boston for many years. Joseph P. Kennedy and his wife Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy had their second son, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, on May 29th, 1917 in Brookline, Massachusetts. The president had eight brother and sisters. His older brother Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. was killed in WW II as a combat pilot. The third Kennedy child was Rosemary Kennedy. John had four more sisters: Kathleen, Eunice, Patricia, and Jean. He also had two younger brothers, Robert F. Kennedy and Edward M. “Ted” Kennedy, both who followed him into politics. As Mr. Kennedy’s wealth grew and so did his family he moved them around from place to place; often to move closer to his work interest. Joseph and Rose Kennedy raised their children to possess a sense of competitiveness and also encouraged them to build on their own talents and hobbies (John F. Kennedy Presidential Museum). Education was important to the Kennedy’s. President Kennedy attended elementary school in a number of places. When John Fitzgerald turned thirteen in 1930 his father sent him off to New Milford, Connecticut to attend the Canterbury School. Although less than a year later John would transfer to Choate Academy in Wallingford, Connecticut. Five years later in 1935, John F. Kennedy would graduate from Choate. After his graduation from Choate, Kennedy spent the next few months in England. When he returned from England he enrolled in Princeton University in the fall of 1935, but had to leave the University after Christmas having developed Jaundice. After recovering from Jaundice the president applied to Harvard University. It was at Harvard where John majored in Government and International Relations. During his stay at Harvard Kennedy spent the summer and spring of 1939 in Europe. While he was staying in Europe John would travel and meet with foreign diplomats and statesmen. John would send his father, who at the time was the U.S. ambassador to Great Brittan, elaborate reports of the views of these dignitaries’ on the growing issue of what would turn into World War II. In his senior thesis Kennedy tried to use these interviews to tell why Britain and the rest of Europe were not prepared for the war. His thesis later in life would be published as a book, Why England Slept, and become a best seller. In 1940, Kennedy would graduate “cum laude” from Harvard University. Kennedy’s next applied to Stanford University graduate Business School. Kennedy stayed there for six months but decided to drop out and joined the Navy (Burns 26 – 46). When Kennedy first enlisted in the Navy he was stationed in Washington D.C. After the attacks on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941; John applied for a more active role in the Navy. Towards the end of 1942, John was positioned with a PT boat squadron. It didn’t take the strong willed and motivated Kennedy to learn how to command one of the squadron’s smaller vessels. Kennedy’s patrol boat was assigned to work the coast line around the Solomon Islands. The young navy commander’s boat was attacked after midnight on August 2nd, 1943. A Japanese destroyer rammed into the side of the PT boat cutting it in two. Only two sailors were killed in the attack. Kennedy and ten others survived the first night by clinging to pieces of the ship. The next morning Kennedy regained control of his men and ordered them to swim to a neighboring island. The crew would spend five days on the island before Kennedy persuaded locals to go for help. John F. Kennedy was recognized by the Navy for his leadership and heroism and injuries. He received both the Marine Corps Medal and the Purple Heart. By 1943, the Navy had stationed Lieutenant Kennedy back in the United States. Kennedy returned from his sea duties fighting Malaria and the constant back pain received from the attack on his PT boat. John spent the remainder of his enlistment as a Navy instructor (Simkin). It was in 1946 that John F. Kennedy got into politics. John’s family hadn’t thought that he was going to be a politician. That position was thought to have gone to John’s brother Joseph Jr. Since Joseph had died in combat in World War II, John stepped up to fulfill the position. The first office he ran for was the U.S. House of Representatives. He ran in the eleventh Congressional District of Massachusetts (Burns 57). There were ten people total fighting for that district, Kennedy easily won both the nomination and the election. It was in the 1946 campaign that Kennedy set precedence for his campaigns that made him so politically successful. The presidential family’s support and involvement played an important role in his campaign. His brothers and sisters dedicated their time to traveling to give speeches and hosting teas and luncheons (Martin 131 – 132). John’s father took a behind the scenes role in the political life of his son. Joseph P. Kennedy, because of his wealth and political views could have brought together negative attention. Kennedy started in congress in 1947; he was only twenty nine years old. His young age sometimes proved to be a negative attribute. At age twenty nine Kennedy still had a young look about him. There were times when he was mistaken for a page boy at the capitol. John F. Kennedy voted for a majority of Welfare programs during his term helping with Kennedy to get re-elected in 1948 and 1950 (Burns 71 – 73). In April of 1952, John Kennedy announced that he would run against Henry Lodge Jr. Lodge was more qualified being a popular senator and having experience. Kennedy’s campaign seemed to be ill fated. Once again his family took an active role in his campaign. The Kennedy family spent countless man hours making telephone calls and making speeches on behalf of John. The president proved many people wrong by winning the election by over 70,000 votes (Burns 107). A year prior to his 1952 campaign John met who would become his wife at a dinner party in Washington D.C. Jacqueline Lee Bouvier came from the prominent family of a wealthy Wall Street broker, John V. Bouvier III. When the John first met Jacqueline she was still a student at George Washington University in Washington. The two were married on September 12, 1953. John and Jacqueline had four children two of which died. Caroline their daughter was born in 1957 and their son John F. Kennedy Jr. was born in 1960 (Leaming 214 -229). Once elected, Senator Kennedy first focused on helping Massachusetts and New England. In his term as senator Kennedy served on the Senate Labor Committee and the Government Operations Committee. Senator Joseph McCarthy chaired the Government Operations Committee. At the time McCarthy was the most controversial politician in America. Some liked McCarthy for his attacks on communism while others felt he over stepped his boundaries and violated civil rights. Kennedy felt that McCarthy abused his powers and was endangering the honor of the senate. 1955 proved to be a difficult year for the president; he underwent surgeries for his back injuries. While he was recovering from the operations Kennedy wrote a book. The book, “Profiles in Courage” won the Pulitzer Prize (Leaming 220 – 225). By 1957, Kennedy was gaining respect in congress. John was appointed to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. This was a key assignment (Martin 103). Kennedy also worked with a committee to end racketeering in the labor unions. The president’s brother Robert Kennedy was the president for the committee. While serving on the committee Kennedy and others on the committee went round and round arguing with labor union leaders. Sometimes those leaders were controversial, like James R. “Jimmy” Hoffa (Burns 224 -225). The movement to nominate Kennedy for Vice President was started by democratic leaders. Kennedy and his family campaigned and worked hard for Vice Presidency nomination. John Fitzgerald Kennedy lost that nomination Senator Estes Kefauver from Tennessee (Martin 119). Immediately following the disappointing loss to Kefauver in 1956 Kennedy started working on the 1960 Presidential nomination. Many people in congress thought Kennedy possessed many disadvantages like his religion and age and inexperience in international work. Kennedy targeted his campaign towards winning as many state primaries as possible. John F. Kennedy entered in seven states and won all of them. At the party convention Kennedy won the first ballot (Simkin). In the 1960 campaign for presidency Kennedy seemed to be fighting another uphill battle. Nixon was believed to win the election. Nixon had the advantages of both being Eisenhower’s Vice President and Kennedy’s name not being as well known. John f. Kennedy’s good looks, style, and attractive wife made him a media friendly candidate. This additional media coverage helped out Kennedy in the long run. The television proved to be the most influential to Kennedy in the campaign. During this election for the first time two presidential candidates would debate face to face Nixon ran solely on Eisenhower’s political ticket, while Kennedy ran with the promise of a “new frontier”. Kennedy beat Nixon by 120,000 popular votes and a clear majority in the Electoral College. Kennedy was Inaugurated president on January 20th, 1961 (Leaming 247 – 251). As part of John F Kennedy’s “New Frontier” he implemented many new legislation and programs. Kennedy worked to raise the amount of minimum wage (Kelly). One of the most successful programs to derive from the “New Frontier” was the Peace Corps. This program helped develop a better level of living conditions in other countries. Civil Rights in American were the pressing issue at the time of Kennedy’s term in office. During Kennedy’s administration African Americans saw more change since the Civil War. Demands for equal rights reached to an all high. Many Americans tool racial protest all over the country. Kennedy had to order 3,000 troops to the University of Mississippi to regain control after a riot broke out after the first black student started. In October of 1962 when the US learned about Russian missiles capable of reaching US Cities on the Island of Cuba. Kennedy promptly ordered a naval blockade on Cuba, ordering every ship heading to Cuba to turn back. Kennedy also called into action some 14,000 United States Air Force Reservist. For a week the Country and the World waited for the fate of the crisis. Finally Russian leader, Khrushchev, ordered all soviet missiles to be removed from the island (John F. Kennedy Presidential Museum). On November 22, 1963 President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas Texas. The president had traveled to Dallas to speak at a luncheon in the Dallas Trade Market. He also was in Texas to mind a riff in the Democratic Party. Kennedy needed to ensure a strong party for his re-election campaign. The trip to Dallas included a ride in a motorcade to the Dallas Trade Market. Kennedy chose to ride in an open limousine. At exactly 12:30pm the motorcade approached an expressway for the final stage of the precession. Suddenly the sounds of the crowd that gathered to see Kennedy turned to panic. Three shots rang out of the Texas School Book Depository. The President was hit twice with the assassin’s bullets, once in the head and one in the neck. Jacqueline Kennedy held her fatally wounded husbands head while the limousine raced to the Hospital. At 1:00 pm doctors stopped life saving attempts on the President. Doctors later said that the president had no hope from the time he reached the hospital. John F. Kennedy never regained consciousness. The sudden and unexpected death of an outgoing American President shocked the world (Parmet 343 -348). John Fitzgerald Kennedy projected a strong character that was developed during his early life as a member of the Kennedy Family. His early political work gives an insight to his tireless work ethic and his political ambitions. But during his presidency that his influence impacted not only the American people but also the world. From John Kennedy’s early years to his beginning political career to his presidency I conclude that John Fitzgerald Kennedy is one of the most influential men in history.

Works Cited:
Burns, James. John Kennedy: A Political Profile. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1960. “John F. Kennedy Presidential Museum”. Biographies and Profiles: John F. Kennedy, The 35th President of the United States. John F. Kennedy Presidential Museum. 23 March 2009 <Http://www.jfklibrary.org/historical+resources/biographies+and+profiles/Biographies/John/F.+Kennedy+The+35th.President+of+the+United+States.htm>
Kelly, Martin. “John F. Kennedy – 35th President of the United States”. About.Com : American History. 23 March 2009 < Http://Americanhistory.about.com/od/johnfkennedy/p/pkennnedy.htm>
Leaming, Barbra. Jack Kennedy: The Education of a Statesman. New York: W.W. Norton, 2006.
Martin, Ralph. A Hero for Our Time: An Intimate Story of the Kennedy Years. New York MacMillan, 1983.
Parmet, Herbert. JFK The Presidency of John F. Kennedy. New York: Dial Press, 1983
Simkin, John. “John F. Kennedy: Biography”. Spartacus Educational. April 2009 <http://www.Spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAKennedyJ.htm>
United States. White House. About the White House Presidents. John F. Kennedy. 23 March 2009 <Http:///www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/JohnFKennedy.html>