The Rise of Kennedy
Elected 35th President after Eisenhower's two terms
Wins 1960 election
Defeats Richard Nixon, and becomes the youngest president at 43
Advocate of the Space Race
USSR shot down a U-2 spy plane just before Kennedy takes office
Wins 1960 election
Defeats Richard Nixon, and becomes the youngest president at 43
Advocate of the Space Race
USSR shot down a U-2 spy plane just before Kennedy takes office
Summary
John F. Kennedy was elected as the President of the United States after the 1960 election to take over from Eisenhower. He beat out Richard Nixon and became the youngest man to govern over the United States at 43 years of age. Kennedy supported the space race, and had no intentions of backing down to the USSR. During the start of his term, JFK was forced to make a number of critical decisions in order to maintain the well being of the United States. For example, during the U-2 incident Russia shot down an American U-2 spy plane and took the pilot hostage. By acting in a collected fashion, he was able to handled these issues very well.