Lyndon B. Johnson Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Presidency (1963–1969)== {{Main|Presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson}} Johnson was sworn in as the nation's 36th president, aboard [[VC-137C SAM 26000|Air Force One]] at [[Dallas Love Field]] two hours and eight minutes after Kennedy's assassination, by [[Sarah T. Hughes]], a U.S. District Judge and family friend.<ref>{{harvnb|Walsh|2003|p=74}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1963/Lyndon-B.-Johnson-Sworn-in/12386108698633-4/ |title=JFK Assassination Coverage – Part 2: Lyndon B. Johnson Sworn in |publisher=UPI |date=November 22, 1963 |access-date=December 21, 2011}}</ref> In the rush, Johnson took the oath of office using a Roman Catholic [[missal]] from President Kennedy's desk,<ref>Transcript, Lawrence F. O'Brien Oral History Interview XIII, 9/10/86, by Michael L. Gillette, Internet Copy, Johnson Library. See: Page 23 at {{cite web |title=Lyndon Baines Johnson Library Oral History Collection |url=http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/archives.hom/oralhistory.hom/OBrienL/OBRIEN13.PDF |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080624190806/http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/archives.hom/oralhistory.hom/OBrienL/OBRIEN13.PDF |archive-date=June 24, 2008 |access-date=July 5, 2008}}</ref> despite not being [[Catholic Church|Catholic]],<ref name="AirForceOne"/> due to the missal being mistaken for a [[Bible]].<ref name="AirForceOne"/> [[Cecil Stoughton]]'s iconic photograph of Johnson taking the oath of office as Mrs. Kennedy looks on is the most famous photo ever taken aboard a presidential aircraft.<ref name="AirForceOne">{{cite book |last1=terHorst |first1=Jerald F. |last2=Albertazzie |first2=Col. Ralph |author-link=Jerald terHorst |title=The Flying White House: the story of Air Force One |publisher=Coward, McCann & Geoghegan |year=1979 |isbn=978-0-698-10930-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/flyingwhitehouse00ter_evv}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Walsh|2003|pages=xv, 2, 17, 73–78}}</ref> Johnson was convinced he needed to make an impression of an immediate transition of power to provide stability to a grieving nation.<ref>{{harvnb|Walsh|2003|pp=73–78}}</ref> Johnson and the [[United States Secret Service|Secret Service]] were concerned that he could also be a target of a conspiracy,<ref name="Hardesty">{{cite book |last=Hardesty |first=Von |title=Air Force One: The Aircraft that Shaped the Modern Presidency |publisher=Tehabi Books |location=San Diego, CA |year=2003 |pages=76–77}}</ref> and felt compelled to rapidly return the new president to Washington, D.C.<ref name="Hardesty"/> Some{{Who|date=March 2024}} asserted that Johnson acted with excessive haste in assuming the presidency.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=49–51}}</ref><ref name="Walsh 2003 78">{{harvnb|Walsh|2003|p=78}}</ref> On November 27, 1963, Johnson delivered his [[Let Us Continue|Let Us Continue speech]] to a joint session of Congress, saying that "No memorial oration or eulogy could more eloquently honor President Kennedy's memory than the earliest possible passage of the Civil Rights Bill for which he fought so long."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.upi.com/Archives/Audio/Events-of-1963/Transition-to-Johnson/|title=1963 Year in Review – Transition to Johnson |publisher=UPI |date=November 19, 1966 |access-date=December 21, 2011}}</ref> The wave of national grief following the assassination gave enormous momentum to Johnson's promise to carry out Kennedy's plans and his policy of seizing Kennedy's legacy to give momentum to his legislative agenda.<ref name="Walsh 2003 78"/> On November 29, 1963, just one week after Kennedy's assassination, Johnson issued an executive order to rename NASA's [[Kennedy Space Center|Apollo Launch Operations Center]] and the NASA/Air Force [[Cape Canaveral Air Force Station|Cape Canaveral launch facilities]] as the John F. Kennedy Space Center.<ref>{{cite web |title=The National Archives, Lyndon B. Johnson Executive Order 11129 |url=https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/executive-orders/1963-johnson.html |access-date=April 26, 2010}}</ref> [[Cape Canaveral]] was officially known as Cape Kennedy from 1963 until 1973.<ref>{{cite news |last=Adams |first=Cecil |author-link=Cecil Adams |date=July 26, 1985 |title=Why did they change the name of Cape Kennedy back to Cape Canaveral? |url=http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/613/why-did-they-change-the-name-of-cape-kennedy-back-to-cape-canaveral |newspaper=The Straight Dope |access-date=July 20, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Canaveral Now Cape Kennedy; Johnson Announces Memorial Decision |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1350&dat=19631129&id=KAJPAAAAIBAJ&pg=4120,2689933 |newspaper=The Blade |location=Toledo, OH |agency=AP |page=1 |date=November 29, 1963 |access-date=July 20, 2014}}</ref> Also on November 29, Johnson established a panel headed by Chief Justice [[Earl Warren]], known as the [[Warren Commission]], through [[executive order]] to investigate Kennedy's assassination and surrounding conspiracies.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=51}}</ref> The commission conducted extensive research and hearings and unanimously concluded that [[Lee Harvey Oswald]] acted alone. However, the report remains controversial among some [[John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories|conspiracy theorists]].<ref>{{cite journal |first=Robert D. |last=Chapman |s2cid=153516704 |title=The Kennedy Assassination 50 Years Later |journal=International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence |year=2014 |volume=27 |number=3 |pages=615–619|doi=10.1080/08850607.2014.900300 |bibcode=2014AmJPh..82....5J}}</ref> Johnson retained senior Kennedy appointees, some for the full term of his presidency. He even retained Attorney General Robert Kennedy, with whom he had a notoriously difficult relationship, until Kennedy left in 1964 to run for the Senate.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=58}}</ref> Although Johnson had no official chief of staff, [[Walter Jenkins]] presided over the details of daily operations at the White House. [[George Reedy]], who was Johnson's second-longest-serving aide, assumed the post of [[White House Press Secretary|press secretary]] when John F. Kennedy's own [[Pierre Salinger]] left that post in March 1964.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=66}}</ref> [[Horace Busby]] served primarily as a speechwriter and political analyst.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=67}}</ref> [[Bill Moyers]] was the youngest member of Johnson's staff; he handled scheduling and speechwriting part-time.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=68}}</ref> Johnson assumed the presidency amid a healthy economy with steady growth and low unemployment, and with no serious international crises. He focused his attention on domestic policy until escalation of the [[Vietnam War]] began in August 1964. ===Legislative initiatives=== The new president thought it advantageous to quickly pursue one of Kennedy's primary legislative goals—a tax cut. Johnson worked closely with [[Harry F. Byrd]] of Virginia to negotiate a reduction in the budget below $100 billion in exchange for what became overwhelming Senate approval of the [[Revenue Act of 1964]]. Congressional approval followed at the end of February, and facilitated efforts to follow on civil rights.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=73–74}}</ref> In late 1963, Johnson also initiated his [[War on Poverty]], recruiting Kennedy relative [[Sargent Shriver]], then head of the [[Peace Corps]], to spearhead the effort. In March 1964, Johnson sent to Congress the [[Economic Opportunity Act]], which created the [[Job Corps]] and the [[Community Action Program]], designed to attack poverty locally. The act also created [[Americorps VISTA|VISTA]], a domestic counterpart to the Peace Corps.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=76–80}}</ref> ===Civil Rights Act of 1964=== {{Main|Civil Rights Act of 1964}} [[File:Lyndon Johnson meeting with civil rights leaders.jpg|thumb|Johnson meeting with civil rights leaders [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] (left), [[Whitney Young]], and [[James Farmer]] in the [[Oval Office]] on January 18, 1964]] President Kennedy had submitted a civil rights bill to Congress in June 1963, which met with strong opposition.<ref>{{harvnb|Reeves|1993|pp=521–523}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Schlesinger|first=Arthur|orig-year=1965|year=2002|title=A Thousand Days: John F. Kennedy in the White House|page=973}}</ref> Johnson renewed the effort and asked Bobby Kennedy to spearhead the undertaking on Capitol Hill. This provided adequate political cover for Johnson should the effort fail, but if it were successful, Johnson would receive ample credit.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=115}}</ref> Caro notes that the bill Kennedy had submitted was facing the same tactics that prevented the passage of civil rights bills in the past: Southern congressmen and Senators used congressional procedure to prevent it from coming to a vote.<ref name="Caro, Robert p459">{{harvnb|Caro|2012|p=459}}</ref> In particular, they held up all of the major bills Kennedy had proposed and that were considered urgent, especially the tax reform bill, to force the bill's supporters to pull it.<ref name="Caro, Robert p459"/> Johnson was quite familiar with the procedural tactic, as he played a role in a similar tactic against a civil rights bill that [[Harry S. Truman]] had submitted to Congress fifteen years earlier.<ref name="Caro, Robert p459"/> In that fight, a [[rent-control]] renewal bill was held up until the civil rights bill was withdrawn.<ref name="Caro, Robert p459"/> Believing that the Civil Rights Act would suffer the same fate, he adopted a different strategy from that of Kennedy, who had mostly removed himself from the legislative process. By tackling the tax cut first, the previous tactic was eliminated.<ref name="Caro, Robert p460">{{harvnb|Caro|2012|p=460}}</ref> Passing the civil rights bill in the House required getting it through the [[United States House Committee on Rules|Rules Committee]], which had been attempting to kill it. Johnson used a [[discharge petition]] to force it onto the House floor.<ref name="Caro, Robert p462">{{harvnb|Caro|2012|p=462}}</ref> Facing a growing threat that they would be bypassed, the House rules committee approved the bill and moved it to the floor of the full House, which soon passed it by a vote of 290–110.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=116}}</ref> In the Senate, since the tax bill had passed three days earlier, the anti-civil rights senators were left with the [[filibuster]] as their only remaining tool. Overcoming the filibuster required the support of over twenty Republicans, who were growing less supportive because their party was about to nominate for president a candidate who opposed the bill.<ref>{{harvnb|Caro|2012|p=463}}</ref> According to Caro, Johnson ultimately could convince Republican leader [[Everett Dirksen]] to support the bill that amassed the necessary Republican votes to overcome the filibuster in March 1964; after 75 hours of debate, the bill passed the Senate by a vote of 71–29.<ref>{{harvnb|Caro|2012|p=465}}</ref><ref name="Schlesinger-Pages644-645">{{cite book|last=Schlesinger|first=Arthur Jr.|orig-year=1978|year=2002|title=Robert Kennedy And His Times|pages=644–645}}</ref> Johnson signed the fortified [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] into law on July 2.<ref name="Schlesinger-Pages644-645"/> The following evening, Johnson told aide [[Bill Moyers]], "I think we may have lost the South for your lifetime – and mine", anticipating a backlash from Southern whites against Johnson's Democratic Party.<ref name="Kaiser2023">{{cite news |last1=Kaiser |first1=Charles |title='We may have lost the south': what LBJ really said about Democrats in 1964 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jan/22/we-may-have-lost-the-south-lbj-democrats-civil-rights-act-1964-bill-moyers |access-date=February 20, 2023 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=January 23, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=120}}</ref> Biographer Randall B. Woods has argued that Johnson effectively used appeals to [[Judeo-Christian ethics]] to garner support for civil rights. Woods writes that Johnson undermined the Southern filibuster against the bill: {{blockquote|LBJ wrapped white America in a moral straitjacket. How could individuals who fervently, continuously, and overwhelmingly identified themselves with a merciful and just God continue to condone racial discrimination, police brutality, and segregation? Where in the Judeo-Christian ethic was there justification for [[16th Street Baptist Church bombing|killing young girls in a church in Alabama]], denying an equal education to black children, barring fathers and mothers from competing for jobs that would feed and clothe their families? Was Jim Crow to be America's response to "Godless Communism"?<ref>Randall B. Woods, "The Politics of Idealism: Lyndon Johnson, Civil Rights, and Vietnam". ''Diplomatic History'' 31#1 (2007): pp. 1–18, quote p. 5. The same text appears in Woods, ''Prisoners of Hope: Lyndon B. Johnson, the Great Society, and the Limits of Liberalism'' (2016) p. 89.</ref>}} Woods states that Johnson's religiosity ran deep: "At 15 he joined the Disciples of Christ, or Christian, church and would forever believe that it was the duty of the rich to care for the poor, the strong to assist the weak, and the educated to speak for the inarticulate."<ref>Woods, "The Politics of Idealism", p. 3.</ref> Johnson shared the beliefs of his mentor, FDR, in that he paired liberal and religious values, believing that freedom and social justice served both God and man.<ref>Woods, ''Prisoners of Hope'', p. 90.</ref> ===Great Society=== {{Main|Great Society}} Johnson wanted a catchy slogan for the 1964 campaign to describe his proposed domestic agenda. Eric Goldman, who joined the [[White House]] in December of that year, thought Johnson's domestic program was best captured in the title of [[Walter Lippmann|Walter Lippman]]'s book, ''The Good Society''. Richard Goodwin tweaked it to the [[Great Society]], and incorporated it in a speech Johnson gave at the [[University of Michigan]] in May 1964. The speech encompassed movements of urban renewal, modern transportation, clean environment, anti-poverty measures, healthcare reforms, crime control, and educational reforms.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=81–82}}</ref> ===1964 presidential election=== {{Main|1964 United States presidential election}} {{Further|1964 Democratic National Convention}} [[File:ElectoralCollege1964.svg|thumb|upright=1.3|In the [[1964 United States presidential election|1964 presidential election]], Johnson won 486 [[United States Electoral College|electoral college]] votes to [[Barry Goldwater]]'s 52]] In Spring 1964, Johnson was not optimistic about his prospects of being elected president.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=127}}</ref> A pivotal change took place in April when he assumed personal management of negotiations between the railroad brotherhood and the railroad industry over the issue of [[featherbedding]]. Johnson emphasized to the parties the potential impact upon the economy of a strike. After considerable horse-trading, especially with the carriers who won promises from the president for greater freedom in setting rights and more liberal depreciation allowances from the [[Internal Revenue Service]], Johnson obtained an agreement. This substantially boosted his self-confidence and image.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=124–126}}</ref> [[Robert F. Kennedy]] was widely considered an impeccable choice for Johnson's [[Vice President of the United States|vice presidential]] running mate but Johnson and Kennedy had never liked each other, and Johnson, afraid that Kennedy would be credited with his election as president, consistently opposed the idea of including him as a running mate.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=135–137}}</ref> Kennedy was undecided about accepting an offer as Johnson's running mate, knowing that the prospect rankled Johnson. [[Barry Goldwater]]'s poor polling numbers was perceived as reducing the political significance of Johnson's selection of a running mate.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=140–142}}</ref> Hubert Humphrey's selection as vice president then became a foregone conclusion and was thought to strengthen Johnson in the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]] and industrial [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]].<ref name="Dallek 1998, p. 157">{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=157}}</ref> Knowing the degree of frustration inherent in the office of vice president, Johnson put Humphrey through a gauntlet of interviews to guarantee his loyalty. Having made the decision, he kept the announcement from the press until the last moment to maximize media speculation and coverage.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=157–159}}</ref> In preparation for the [[1964 Democratic National Convention|Democratic convention]] in [[Atlantic City, New Jersey|Atlantic City]], Johnson requested the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] send 30 agents to cover convention activities; the objective of the squad was to inform the [[White House]] staff of any disruptive activities. The squad's focus narrowed upon the [[Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party]] (MFDP) delegation, which sought to displace the white segregationist delegation regularly selected in the state. The squad's activities included wiretaps of [[Martin Luther King]]'s room and the [[Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee]] (SNCC) and the [[Congress of Racial Equality]] (CORE). From beginning to end, the squad's assignment was carefully couched in terms of the monitoring of disruptive activities that might endanger the president and other high-ranking officials.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=161–163}}</ref> Johnson was very concerned about potential political damage from media coverage of racial tensions exposed by a credentials fight between the MFDP and the segregationist delegation, and he assigned Humphrey to manage the problem.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=164}}</ref> The convention's Credentials Committee declared that two MFDP delegates in the delegation be seated as observers and agreed to "bar future delegations from states where any citizens are deprived of the right to vote because of their race or color".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=165}}</ref> The MFDP rejected the committee's ruling. The convention became the apparent personal triumph that Johnson craved, but a sense of betrayal caused by the marginalization of the MFDP would trigger disaffection with Johnson and the Democratic Party from the left; SNCC chairman [[John Lewis]] would call it a "turning point in the civil rights movement".<ref name="lewis">{{cite book|last1=Lewis |first1=John |last2=D'Orso |first2=Michael |author-link2=Mike D'Orso |publisher=[[Harcourt Brace]] |date=1998 |title=Walking with the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement |isbn=978-0-15-600708-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/walkingwithwinda00lewi }}</ref> Early in the 1964 presidential campaign, Barry Goldwater appeared to be a strong contender, with strong support from the South, which threatened Johnson's position as he had predicted in reaction to the passage of the Civil Rights Act. However, Goldwater lost momentum as his campaign progressed. On September 7, 1964, Johnson's campaign managers broadcast the "[[Daisy (television commercial)|Daisy ad]]": it portrayed a little girl picking petals from a [[common daisy|daisy]], followed by a countdown and explosion of a nuclear bomb. The message conveyed was that electing Goldwater risked a nuclear war. Goldwater's campaign message was best symbolized by the bumper sticker displayed by supporters claiming "In your heart, you know he's right". Opponents captured the spirit of Johnson's campaign with bumper stickers that said "In your heart, you know he might" and "In your guts, you know he's nuts".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=170}}</ref> CIA Director [[William Colby]] asserted that [[Tracy Barnes]] instructed the CIA to spy on the Goldwater campaign and the Republican National Committee to provide information to Johnson's campaign.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/05/22/cia-fbi-spy-presidential-campaign-trump-goldwater-218415/|title=When the CIA Infiltrated a Presidential Campaign Politico|first=Steve|last=Usdin|magazine=Politico|date=May 22, 2018}}</ref> Johnson won the presidency by a landslide with 61.05 percent of the vote, making it the highest ever [[List of United States presidential elections by popular vote margin|share of the popular vote]].<ref>Leip, David. ''[http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/ Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections]''</ref> At the time, this was also the widest popular margin in the 20th century—more than 15.95 million votes—this was later surpassed by incumbent President Nixon's victory in [[1972 United States presidential election|1972]].<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=182}}</ref> In the [[Electoral College (United States)|Electoral College]], Johnson defeated Goldwater by a margin of 486 to 52. Johnson won 44 states, compared to Goldwater's six. Voters also gave Johnson the largest majorities in Congress since FDR's election in 1936—a Senate with a 68–32 majority and a House with a 295–140 Democratic margin.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=184}}</ref> ===Voting Rights Act=== {{Main|Voting Rights Act of 1965}} Johnson began his elected presidential term with similar motives as he had upon succeeding to the office, ready to "carry forward the plans and programs of John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Not because of our sorrow or sympathy, but because they are right."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.upi.com/Archives/Audio/Events-of-1964/New-Moscow-Khrushchev-Fired/|title=1964 Year in Review – New Moscow: Khrushchev Fired|publisher=UPI|date=November 19, 1966}}</ref> He was reticent to push Southern congressmen further after passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and suspected their support may have been temporarily tapped out. Nevertheless, the [[Selma to Montgomery marches]] in Alabama led by Martin Luther King ultimately led Johnson to initiate a debate on a voting rights bill in February 1965.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=215}}</ref> [[File:Lyndon Johnson and Martin Luther King, Jr. - Voting Rights Act.jpg|thumb|alt=refer to caption|President Lyndon B. Johnson, [[Martin Luther King Jr.]], and [[Rosa Parks]] at the signing of the [[Voting Rights Act]] on August 6, 1965]] Johnson gave a congressional speech in which he said, <blockquote>rarely at any time does an issue lay bare the secret heart of America itself [...] rarely are we met with the challenge [...] to the values and the purposes and the meaning of our beloved nation. The issue of equal rights for American Negroes is such an issue. And should we defeat every enemy, should we double our wealth and conquer the stars, and still be unequal to this issue, then we will have failed as a people and as a nation.<ref name="Dallek 1998, p.218">{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=218}}</ref></blockquote> In 1965, he achieved passage of a second civil rights bill called the [[Voting Rights Act]] which outlawed discrimination in voting, thus allowing millions of Southern blacks to vote for the first time. Under the act, several states—"eight of the eleven Southern states of the former confederacy" (Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Virginia)—were subjected to the procedure of [[Voting Rights Act of 1965#Preclearance requirement|preclearance]] in 1965, while Texas, then home to the largest African American population of any state, followed in 1975.<ref name="Davidson, C. 1994 p. 3">Davidson, C. & Grofman, B. (1994). ''Quiet Revolution in the South: The Impact Of The Voting Right Act, 1965–1990''. p. 3, Princeton University Press.</ref> The Senate passed the voting rights bill by a vote of 77–19 after 2 1/2 months, and it won passage in the house in July, 333–85. The results were significant: between 1968 and 1980, the number of Southern black elected state and federal officeholders nearly doubled. The act also made a large difference in the numbers of black elected officials nationally; a few hundred black officeholders in 1965 mushroomed to 6,000 in 1989.<ref name="Dallek 1998, p.218"/> After the murder of civil rights worker [[Viola Liuzzo]], Johnson went on television to announce the arrest of four [[Ku Klux Klan]]s men implicated in her death. He angrily denounced the Klan as a "hooded society of bigots," and warned them to "return to a decent society before it's too late". Johnson was the first President to arrest and prosecute members of the Klan since [[Ulysses S. Grant]].{{efn|President Grant, on October 17, 1871, suspended [[habeas corpus]] in nine [[South Carolina]] counties, sent in troops, and prosecuted the Klan in the federal district court.}}<ref>McFeely (2002), ''Grant: A Biography'', pp. 369–371.</ref> He turned to themes of Christian redemption to push for civil rights, mobilizing support from churches.<ref>{{harvnb|Woods|2006|pp=759–787}}</ref> At the [[Howard University]] commencement address on June 4, 1965, he said that both the government and the nation needed to help achieve these goals: "To shatter forever not only the barriers of law and public practice but the walls which bound the condition of many by the color of his skin. To dissolve, as best we can, the antique enmities of the heart which diminish the holder, divide the great democracy, and do wrong—great wrong—to the children of God ..."<ref>''Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Lyndon B. Johnson, 1965.'' Volume II, entry 301, pp. 635–640. (1966)</ref> In 1967, [[Thurgood Marshall Supreme Court nomination|Johnson nominated]] civil rights attorney [[Thurgood Marshall]] to be the first African-American [[list of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States|justice]] of the Supreme Court. To head the new [[United States Department of Housing and Urban Development|Department of Housing and Urban Development]], Johnson appointed [[Robert C. Weaver]], the first African-American federal cabinet secretary. In 1968, Johnson signed the [[Civil Rights Act of 1968]], which provided for equal housing opportunities regardless of race, creed, or national origin. The impetus for the law's passage came from the 1966 [[Chicago Freedom Movement|Chicago Open Housing Movement]], the April 4, 1968, [[assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.]], and the [[King assassination riots|civil unrest]] across the country following King's death.<ref name=Kotz2005P417>{{cite book|last=Kotz|first=Nick|title=Judgment days : Lyndon Baines Johnson, Martin Luther King, Jr., and the laws that changed America|year=2005|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|location=Boston|isbn=978-0-618-08825-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/judgmentdayslynd00kotz/page/417 417]|chapter=14. Another Martyr|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/judgmentdayslynd00kotz/page/417}}</ref> On April 5, Johnson wrote to the [[United States House of Representatives]] urging passage of the Fair Housing Act.<ref name=LBJ5April68>{{cite web|last=Johnson|first=Lyndon Baines|title=182 – Letter to the Speaker of the House Urging Enactment of the Fair Housing Bill|url=http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=28785|publisher=American Presidency Project|access-date=July 19, 2012|date=April 5, 1968|quote=We should pass the Fair Housing law when the Congress convenes next week.|archive-date=March 15, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130315092613/http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=28785|url-status=dead}}</ref> With newly urgent attention from legislative director [[Joseph Califano]] and [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] [[Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]] [[John William McCormack|John McCormack]], the bill (which was previously stalled) passed the House by a wide margin on April 10.<ref name=Kotz2005P417/><ref name=Risen18Jul12>{{cite news|last=Risen |first=Clay |title=The Unmaking of the President: Lyndon Johnson believed that his withdrawal from the 1968 presidential campaign would free him to solidify his legacy |url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/president-lbj.html?c=y&page=3 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130104181743/http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/president-lbj.html?c=y&page=3 |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 4, 2013 |access-date=July 18, 2012 |newspaper=Smithsonian Magazine |pages=3, 5 and 6 in online version |date=April 2008 }}</ref> ===Immigration=== {{Further|Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965}} [[File:President Lyndon B. Johnson Signing of the Immigration Act of 1965 (02) - restoration1.jpg|thumb|President Johnson signs the [[Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965]] as U.S. Senators [[Edward Kennedy]] and [[Robert F. Kennedy]], and others look on]] The sweeping [[Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965]] reformed the country's immigration system and removed all national origins quotas dating from the 1920s. The annual rate of inflow doubled between 1965 and 1970, and doubled again by 1990, with dramatic increases from [[Asia]] and [[Latin America]], including Mexico.<ref name="'70s"/> Scholars give Johnson little credit for the law, which was not one of his priorities; he had supported the [[Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952|McCarren–Walter Act]] of 1952, which proved unpopular with reformers.<ref>{{cite book|last=Lerner|first=Mitchell B.|title=A Companion to Lyndon B. Johnson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kxkcKYMWEcEC&pg=PA211|year=2012|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|pages=211–17|access-date=October 25, 2015|isbn=978-1-4443-3389-3}}</ref> ===Federal funding for education=== {{further|Elementary and Secondary Education Act}} Johnson, whose own ticket out of poverty was a public education in Texas, fervently believed that education was an essential component of the [[American dream]], especially for minorities who endured poor facilities and tight-fisted local budgets.<ref>{{harvnb|Bernstein|1996|pp=183–213}}</ref> He made education the top priority of the Great Society agenda, with an emphasis on helping poor children. After the 1964 landslide brought in many new liberal Congressmen, Johnson launched a legislative effort that took the name of the [[Elementary and Secondary Education Act]] (ESEA) of 1965. The bill sought to double federal spending on education from $4 billion to $8 billion;<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=195–198}}</ref> with considerable facilitating by the White House, it passed the House by a vote of 263 to 153 on March 26, and then it remarkably passed without a change in the Senate, by 73 to 8, without going through the usual conference committee. This was a historic accomplishment by the president, with the billion-dollar bill passing as introduced just 87 days before.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=200–201}}</ref> Although ESEA solidified Johnson's support among K-12 teachers' unions, neither the Higher Education Act nor the new endowments mollified the college professors and students growing increasingly uneasy with the war in Vietnam.<ref>{{harvnb|Woods|2006|pp=563–568}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=196–202}}</ref> Johnson's second major education program was the [[Higher Education Act of 1965]], which focused on funding for lower-income students. In 1967, Johnson signed the [[Public Broadcasting Act of 1967|Public Broadcasting Act]] to create educational television programs to supplement broadcast networks. In 1965, Johnson set up the [[National Endowment for the Humanities]] and the [[National Endowment for the Arts]], to support the study of literature, history, and law, and arts such as music, painting, and sculpture (as the [[Works Progress Administration|WPA]] once did).<ref>{{cite web |title=National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965, 20 US Code § 952 |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/20/952|website=Cornell University Law School Legal Information Institute|access-date=February 18, 2017}}</ref> ==="War on Poverty" and healthcare reform=== [[File:Lyndon Johnson signing Medicare bill, with Harry Truman, July 30, 1965.jpg|thumb|Former president [[Harry S. Truman|Truman]] and wife [[Bess Truman|Bess]] at Johnson's signing of the [[Medicare Bill]] in 1965, as [[Lady Bird Johnson|Lady Bird]] and [[Hubert Humphrey]] look on]] In 1964, at Johnson's request, Congress passed the [[Revenue Act of 1964]] and the [[Economic Opportunity Act of 1964|Economic Opportunity Act]], as part of the [[war on poverty]]. Johnson set in motion legislation creating programs such as [[Head Start Program|Head Start]], [[Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program|food stamps]] and [[Federal Work-Study Program|Work Study]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wps.prenhall.com/wps/media/objects/751/769950/Documents_Library/eoa1964.htm|title=Economic Opportunity Act of 1964|first=G. David|last=Garson|access-date=January 19, 2010}}</ref> During the [[Presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson|Johnson administration]], national poverty declined significantly, with the percentage of Americans living below the poverty line dropping from 23 to 12 percent.<ref name="histeval"/> Johnson took an additional step in the War on Poverty with an urban renewal effort, presenting to Congress in January 1966 the "Demonstration Cities Program". To be eligible, a city was required to demonstrate its readiness to "arrest blight and decay and make a substantial impact on the development of its entire city". Johnson requested an investment of $400 million per year totaling $2.4 billion. In fall 1966 the Congress passed a substantially reduced program costing $900 million, which Johnson later called the [[Model Cities Program]]. Changing the name had little effect on the success of the bill; ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote 22 years later that the program was largely a failure.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=320–322}}</ref> Johnson's initial effort to improve healthcare was the creation of The Commission on Heart Disease, Cancer, and Strokes (HDCS). These diseases accounted for 71 percent of the nation's deaths in 1962.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=204}}</ref> To enact recommendations of the commission, Johnson asked Congress for funds to set up the Regional Medical Program (RMP), to create a network of hospitals with federally funded research and practice; Congress passed a significantly watered-down version. As a back-up position, in 1965 Johnson turned his focus to hospital insurance for the aged under Social Security.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=205}}</ref> The key player in initiating this program, named [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]], was [[Wilbur Mills]], Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. To reduce Republican opposition, Mills suggested that Medicare be fashioned as three layers: hospital insurance under Social Security; a voluntary insurance program for doctor visits; and an expanded medical welfare program for the poor, known as [[Medicaid]].<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=208}}</ref> The bill passed the house by a margin of 110 votes on April 8. The effort in the Senate was considerably more complicated, but the Medicare bill passed Congress on July 28.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=209}}</ref> Medicare now covers tens of millions of Americans.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2000pres/20000712.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080714214416/http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2000pres/20000712.html|archive-date=July 14, 2008|title=Medicare Celebrates 35 Years of Keeping Americans Healthy|access-date=January 19, 2010}}</ref> Johnson gave the first two Medicare cards to former President [[Harry S Truman]] and his wife [[Bess Truman|Bess]] after signing the Medicare bill at the [[Truman Library]] in [[Independence, Missouri]].<ref>Patricia P. Martin and David A. Weaver. "Social Security: A Program and Policy History," ''Social Security Bulletin'', volume 66, no. 1 (2005), see also [http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/ssb/v66n1/v66n1p1.html online version].</ref> ===Transportation=== In March 1965, Johnson sent to Congress a transportation message which included the creation of a new Transportation Department, comprising the Commerce Department's Office of Transportation, the Bureau of Public Roads, the Federal Aviation Agency, the Coast Guard, the Maritime Administration, the Civil Aeronautics Board, and the Interstate Commerce Commission. The bill passed the Senate after some negotiation over navigation projects; in the House, passage required negotiation over maritime interests and the bill was signed October 15, 1965.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=315–316}}</ref> ===Gun control=== Though Johnson had already introduced a gun control bill on June 6, 1968, after the assassination of Robert Kennedy, [[Lady Bird Johnson]]'s press secretary Liz Carpenter, in a memo to the president, worried that the country had been "brainwashed by high drama," and that Johnson "need[ed] some quick dramatic actions" that addressed "the issue of violence." In October, Johnson signed the [[Gun Control Act of 1968]], but did not invoke the memory of Robert Kennedy as he had so often done with his brother–an omission historian [[Jeff Shesol]] has argued was motivated by Johnson's longstanding contempt for Robert.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Shesol |first1=Jeff |title=Mutual Contempt |pages=459–460}}</ref> ===Space program=== [[File:Lyndon Johnson and Spiro Agnew watch the Apollo 11 liftoff.jpg|alt=President Johnson and Vice President Spiro Agnew witnessing the liftoff of Apollo 11.|thumb|Former President Lyndon B. Johnson (center left) and Vice President [[Spiro Agnew]] (center right) witness the liftoff of [[Apollo 11]], the first manned space aircraft to [[Moon landing|land on the Moon]], on July 16, 1969]] During the [[Presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson|Johnson administration]], [[NASA]] conducted the [[Project Gemini|Gemini]] crewed space program, developed the [[Saturn V]] rocket and [[Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39|its launch facility]], and prepared to make the first crewed [[Apollo program]] flights. On January 27, 1967, the nation was stunned when the entire crew of [[Apollo 1]] was killed in a cabin fire during a spacecraft test on the launch pad, stopping Apollo in its tracks. Rather than appointing another Warren-style commission, Johnson accepted Administrator [[James E. Webb]]'s request for NASA to do its own investigation.<ref>{{cite web |title=James E. Webb – NASA Administrator, February 14, 1961 – October 7, 1968 |url=https://history.nasa.gov/Biographies/webb.html |publisher=NASA |work=History.NASA.gov |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090425115407/https://history.nasa.gov/Biographies/webb.html |archive-date=April 25, 2009}}</ref> Johnson maintained his staunch support of Apollo through Congressional and press controversy, and the program recovered. The first two crewed missions, [[Apollo 7]] and the first crewed flight to the Moon, [[Apollo 8]], were completed by the end of Johnson's term. He congratulated the Apollo 8 crew, saying, "You've taken ... all of us, all over the world, into a new era."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://clinton2.nara.gov/WH/glimpse/presidents/html/lj36.html |title=Lyndon B. Johnson |date=1990s<!--specific date unknown--> |publisher=Clinton White House |access-date=November 22, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528021215/http://clinton2.nara.gov/WH/glimpse/presidents/html/lj36.html |archive-date=May 28, 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Freidel |first1=Frank |last2=Sidey |first2=Hugh |title=The Presidents of the United States of America |chapter=Lyndon B. Johnson |chapter-url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/lyndon-b-johnson/ |date=2006 |publisher=[[White House Historical Association]] |via=The White House website |access-date=February 19, 2017}}</ref> On July 16, 1969, Johnson attended the launch of the first Moon landing mission [[Apollo 11]], becoming the first former or incumbent U.S. president to witness a rocket launch.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Shribman|first=David|date=July 11, 2019|title=Column One: 50 years after Apollo 11, the moon's allure still resonates|work=Los Angeles times|url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-col1-moon-landing-apollo-anniversary-20190711-htmlstory.html|access-date=January 22, 2021}}</ref> ===Urban riots=== [[File:Leffler - 1968 Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King, Jr. riots.jpg|thumb|left|The aftermath of a race riot in the nation's capital, [[Washington, D.C.]], in April 1968]] Major riots in black neighborhoods caused a series of "long hot summers." They started with the [[Harlem Riot of 1964|Harlem riots]] in 1964, and the [[Watts Riots|Watts district]] of Los Angeles in 1965, and extended to 1971. The momentum for the advancement of civil rights came to a sudden halt in with the riots in Watts. After 34 people were killed and $35 million (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|35|1965|r=2}} million in {{Inflation-year|US}}) in property was damaged, the public feared an expansion of the violence to other cities, and so the appetite for additional programs in Johnson's agenda was lost.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=222–223}}</ref> [[1967 Newark riots|Six days of rioting in Newark]] in 1967 left 26 dead, 1,500 injured, and the inner city a burned-out shell. In [[1967 Detroit riot|Detroit in 1967]], Governor [[George W. Romney|George Romney]] sent in 7,400 national guard troops to quell fire bombings, looting, and attacks on businesses and police. Johnson finally sent in federal troops with tanks and machine guns. [[Detroit]] burned for three more days, resulting in the deaths of 43 and the injury of 2,250. Approximately 4,000 were arrested, and property damage ranged into the hundreds of millions. In April 1968, following the [[Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr|Martin Luther King assassination]], [[King assassination riots|riots]] erupted in over 100 cities. Johnson called for even more billions to be spent in the cities and another federal civil rights law regarding housing, but his requests had little Congressional support. Johnson's popularity plummeted as a massive white political backlash took shape, reinforcing the sense Johnson had lost control of the streets of major cities and his own party.<ref>Woods, Randall (2006), pp. 790–795.; Michael W. Flamm. ''Law And Order: Street Crime, Civil Unrest, and the Crisis of Liberalism in the 1960s'' (2005).</ref> Johnson created the [[Kerner Commission]] to study the problem of urban riots, headed by Illinois Governor [[Otto Kerner Jr.|Otto Kerner]].<ref name="'70s"/> According to [[George Christian (journalist)|George Christian]], Johnson's [[White House Press Secretary|press secretary]], Johnson was unsurprised by the riots, saying: "What did you expect? ... When you put your foot on a man's neck and hold him down for three hundred years, and then you let him up, what's he going to do? He's going to knock your block off."<ref name=Kotz2005P418>{{cite book|last=Kotz|first=Nick|title=Judgment days: Lyndon Baines Johnson, Martin Luther King Jr., and the laws that changed America|year=2005|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|location=Boston|isbn=978-0-618-08825-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/judgmentdayslynd00kotz/page/418 418]|chapter=14. Another Martyr|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/judgmentdayslynd00kotz/page/418}}</ref> Following the riots in [[Washington, D.C.]] and the [[Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr|assassination]] of [[Martin Luther King]] in April 1968, Johnson concluded that "a condition of domestic violence and disorder" existed in the nation, and he issued an executive order mobilizing combat-equipped troops. ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported that 4,000 regular [[United States Army|U.S. Army]] and [[National Guard (United States)|National Guard]] troops entered the capital "to try to end riotous looting, burglarizing and burning by roving bands of Negro youths". Some of the troops were sent to guard the [[United States Capitol|Capitol]] and [[White House]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=FRANKLIN |first1=BEN A. |title=Army Troops in Capital as Negroes Riot |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/national/race/040668race-ra.html |access-date=July 24, 2020 |work=The New York Times |date=April 6, 1968}}</ref> ===Backlash against Johnson (1966–1967)=== [[File:Marcos visit Johnson 1966.jpg|thumb|[[Lady Bird Johnson]] and Johnson with [[Ferdinand Marcos|Ferdinand]] and [[Imelda Marcos]] on September 12, 1966]] In 1966, the press sensed a [[credibility gap]] between what Johnson was saying in press conferences and what was happening in the [[Vietnam War]], led to less favorable coverage of Johnson and his administration.<ref name="american chronicle">{{cite news|url=http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/6883|publisher=American Chronicle|date=March 15, 2006|title=Happy Anniversary to the first scheduled presidential press conference – 93 years young!|first=Robert|last=Rouse|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080913094418/http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/6883|archive-date=September 13, 2008}}</ref> By the end of 1966, the Democratic governor of [[Missouri]], [[Warren E. Hearnes]], warned that Johnson would lose the state by 100,000 votes, despite winning by a margin of 500,000 in 1964. "Frustration over Vietnam; too much federal spending and ... taxation; no great public support for your Great Society programs; and ... public disenchantment with the civil rights programs "had eroded the President's standing, the governor reported.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Phillips|first=David|title=On This Day|publisher=iUniverse|year=2007|isbn=978-0-595-46288-9|location=|pages=177}}</ref> There were bright spots; in January 1967, Johnson boasted that wages were the highest in history, unemployment was at a 13-year low, and corporate profits and farm incomes were greater than ever; a 4.5 percent jump in consumer prices was worrisome, as was the rise in interest rates. Johnson asked for a temporary 6 percent surcharge in [[income tax]]es to cover the mounting deficit caused by increased spending. Johnson's approval ratings stayed below 50 percent; by January 1967, the number of his strong supporters had plunged to 16 percent, from 25 percent four months before. He ran about even with Republican [[George W. Romney|George Romney]] in trial matchups that spring. Asked to explain his diminished popularity, Johnson said, "I am a dominating personality, and when I get things done I don't always please all the people."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Nelson|first=Phillip|title=LBJ: From Mastermind to the "colossus" : The Lies, Treachery, and Treasons Continue|publisher=Skyhorse|year=2014|isbn=978-1-62873-692-2|location=New York|pages=}}</ref> Johnson also blamed the press, saying they showed "complete irresponsibility and lie and misstate facts and have no one to be answerable to", and "the preachers, liberals and professors" who had turned against him.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=391–396}}</ref> In the [[1966 United States elections|congressional elections of 1966]], the Republicans gained three seats in the Senate and 47 in the House, reinvigorating the [[conservative coalition]], which made it more difficult for Johnson to pass additional [[Great Society]] legislation. However, Congress ultimately passed almost 96 percent of the administration's Great Society programs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ideainfanttoddler.org/pdf/AppA.pdf|title=The Impact of the Great Society Upon The Lives of Families and Young Children|publisher=Infant & Toddler Coordinators Association|date=August 2005|access-date=December 4, 2013}}</ref> ===Vietnam War=== {{Further|United States in the Vietnam War}} At Kennedy's death, there were 16,000 American military personnel in [[Vietnam]] supporting [[South Vietnam]] in the war against [[North Vietnam]].<ref name="Vietnam War">{{cite web |url=http://www.swarthmore.edu/library/peace/conscientiousobjection/OverviewVietnamWar.htm |title=Brief Overview of Vietnam War |publisher=Swarthmore College Peace Collection |access-date=December 4, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803124531/http://www.swarthmore.edu/library/peace/conscientiousobjection/OverviewVietnamWar.htm |archive-date=August 3, 2016}}</ref> Vietnam had been partitioned at the 1954 [[Geneva Conference (1954)|Geneva Conference]], with North Vietnam led by a Communist government. Johnson subscribed to the [[Domino Theory]] and to a [[containment]] policy that required the United States to make a serious effort to stop all Communist expansion.<ref name="scholastic">{{cite news |title=The Sixties |publisher=Junior Scholastic |date=February 11, 1994 |page=4}}</ref> On taking office, Johnson immediately reversed Kennedy's order to withdraw 1,000 military personnel by the end of 1963.<ref>{{harvnb|Reeves|1993|p=613}}</ref> In late summer 1964, Johnson seriously questioned the value of staying in Vietnam but, after meeting with Secretary of State [[Dean Rusk]] and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff [[Maxwell D. Taylor]], declared his readiness "to do more when we had a base" or when Saigon was politically more stable.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=239}}</ref> He expanded the numbers and roles of the American military following the [[Gulf of Tonkin Incident]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2021}} ====1964==== In August 1964, allegations arose from the military that two U.S. destroyers had been attacked by [[North Vietnam]]ese torpedo boats in international waters {{convert|40|mi|km}} from the [[Vietnam]]ese coast in the [[Gulf of Tonkin]]; naval communications and reports of the attack were contradictory. Although Johnson wanted to keep discussions about Vietnam out of the [[1964 United States presidential election|1964 presidential campaign]], he felt obligated to respond, and sought and obtained from [[United States Congress|Congress]] the [[Gulf of Tonkin Resolution]] on August 7. Johnson was determined to embolden his image on foreign policy, and also wanted to prevent criticism, as [[Harry S. Truman|Truman]] received by proceeding without congressional endorsement of military action in the [[Korean War]]. Responding to the purported attack also blunted campaign criticism of Johnson's perceived weakness, which was the political messaging of [[Barry Goldwater]], Johnson's [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] opponent. The resolution gave congressional approval for use of military force by the commander-in-chief to repel future attacks and also to assist members of [[SEATO]] requesting assistance. Johnson later in the campaign expressed assurance that the primary U.S. goal remained the preservation of [[South Vietnam]]'s independence through material and advice, as opposed to any offensive posture.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=144–155}}</ref> The public's reaction to the resolution at the time was positive—48 percent favored stronger measures in Vietnam and only 14 percent wanted to negotiate a settlement and leave.<ref name="Dallek 1998, p. 157"/> In the 1964 presidential campaign, Johnson restated his determination to provide measured support for Vietnam while avoiding another Korea, but privately had a sense that no matter what he did, things were likely to end badly. He had great passion for his [[Great Society]] agenda, and he even felt that his political opponents favored greater intervention in Vietnam to divert attention and resources away from his War on Poverty. The situation on the ground was aggravated in the fall by additional [[Viet Minh]] attacks on U.S. ships in the Tonkin Gulf, and an attack on [[Bien Hoa Air Base]] in South Vietnam.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=240}}</ref> Johnson decided against retaliatory action after consultation with the Joint Chiefs and after public pollster [[Louis Harris|Lou Harris]] confirmed that his decision would not detrimentally impact him in the 1964 presidential election.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=241}}</ref> By the end of 1964, there were approximately 23,000 military personnel in South Vietnam; U.S. casualties for 1964 totaled 1,278.<ref name="Vietnam War"/> Over the winter of 1964 and 1965, Johnson was pressured by the military to begin a bombing campaign to forcefully resist a communist takeover in South Vietnam. A plurality in the polls at the time was in favor of military action, with only 26 to 30 percent opposed.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=244}}</ref> Johnson revised his priorities, and a new preference for stronger action came at the end of January, along with another change of the government in [[South Vietnam]]. Johnson agreed with [[McGeorge Bundy]] and McNamara that a continued passive role would lead to defeat and humiliation. Johnson said, "Stable government or no stable government in Saigon we will do what we ought to do. I'm prepared to do that; we will move strongly. General [[Nguyễn Khánh]] [head of the new government] is our boy".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=247}}</ref> ====1965==== [[File:Robert S. McNamara and General Westmoreland in Vietnam 1965.png|thumb|Secretary of Defense [[Robert McNamara]] and [[William Westmoreland|General Westmoreland]] in [[Da Nang]] in August 1965 as Johnson was preparing to commence a systematic bombing campaign, known as [[Operation Rolling Thunder]], in the [[Vietnam War]]]] Johnson decided on a systematic bombing campaign in February after a ground report from Bundy recommending immediate U.S. action to avoid defeat; also, the [[Viet Cong]] had just killed eight U.S. advisers and wounded dozens in an attack at [[Pleiku Air Base]]. The eight-week bombing campaign became known as [[Operation Rolling Thunder]]. Johnson's instructions for public consumption were clear: there was to be no comment that the war effort had been expanded.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=249}}</ref> Long-term estimates of the bombing campaign ranged from an expectation that Hanoi would rein in the Viet Cong to one of provoking Hanoi and the Viet Cong into an intensification of the war. But the short-term expectations were consistent that the morale and stability of the South Vietnamese government would be bolstered. By limiting the information given out to the public, and even to Congress, Johnson maximized his flexibility to change course.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=250–252}}</ref> In March, Bundy began to urge the use of ground forces—air operations alone, he counseled, would not stop Hanoi's aggression against the South. Johnson approved an increase in logistical troops of 18,000 to 20,000 and the deployment of two additional Marine battalions and a Marine air squadron, in addition to planning for the deployment of two more divisions. More significantly, he authorized a change in mission from defensive to offensive operations; he nevertheless insisted that this was not to be publicly represented as a policy change.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=255}}</ref> By mid-June, the total U.S. ground forces in Vietnam had increased to 82,000 or by 150 percent.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=268}}</ref> That same month, Ambassador Taylor reported that the bombing offensive against [[North Vietnam]] had been ineffective and that the [[Army of the Republic of Vietnam|South Vietnamese army]] was outclassed and in danger of collapse.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=270}}</ref> Westmoreland recommended that Johnson increase ground troops even further, to 175,000. After consulting with his principals, Johnson announced in a press conference that he had decided to increase U.S. troops to 125,000, which was slightly less aggressively than Westmoreland recommended, with additional forces to be sent later upon request. Johnson described himself at the time as boxed in by unpalatable choices: sending Americans to die in Vietnam and being attacked as an interventionist, or giving in to the communists and risking being impeached. He continued to insist that his decision "did not imply any change in policy whatsoever". Johnson jested privately, "If you have a mother-in-law with only one eye, and she has it in the center of her forehead, you don't keep her in the living room."<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=272–277}}</ref> By October 1965, over 200,000 troops were deployed in Vietnam.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=284}}</ref> On November 8, 1965, Johnson underwent surgery at [[Bethesda Naval Hospital]] to remove his [[gallbladder]] and a [[kidney stone]]. After the procedure, Johnson's doctors reported that the president had come through the surgery "beautifully as expected."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Gilbert |first=Robert E. |title=Presidential Disability and the Twenty-Fifth Amendment: The Difficulties Posed By Psychological Illness |journal=Fordham Law Review |volume=79 |issue=3 |year=2010 |url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/flr/vol79/iss3/5 |pages=843–879}}</ref> He was able to resume his duties the following day, and he met with reporters a couple of days later to reassure the nation that he was recovering well. Although Johnson was incapacitated during surgery, there was no transfer of presidential power to Vice President Humphrey, since no constitutional procedure then existed to do so. The [[Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Twenty-fifth Amendment]], which Congress sent to the states for [[ratification]] four months earlier, included such provisions, but was not ratified until 1967.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Politics and the president's gallbladder |last=Pappas |first=Theodore N. |date=July 1, 2017 |journal=Bulletin of the American College of Surgeons |volume=102 |issue=7 |pages=71–72 |pmid=28885794 |url=http://bulletin.facs.org/2017/07/politics-and-the-presidents-gallbladder/ |access-date=October 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title=The Political Effects of Presidential Illness: The Case of Lyndon B. Johnson |last=Gilbert |first=Robert E. |journal=Political Psychology |volume=16 |issue=4 |date=December 1995 |pages=761–776 |publisher=International Society of Political Psychology |jstor=3791892 |doi=10.2307/3791892}}</ref> ====1966==== [[File:Visit of President Johnson in Vietnam.jpg|thumb|Johnson awarding a medal to a U.S. soldier during a visit to [[South Vietnam]] in 1966]] Public and political impatience with the war began to emerge in the spring of 1966, and Johnson's approval ratings reached a new low of 41 percent. [[Richard Russell Jr.|Sen. Richard Russell]], chairman of the [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|Senate Armed Services Committee]], declared in June 1966 that it was time to "get it over or get out". Johnson responded, telling media, "we are trying to provide the maximum deterrence that we can to communist aggression with a minimum of cost."<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=364–365}}</ref> In response to the intensified criticism of the war effort, Johnson raised suspicions of communist subversion in the country, and press relations became strained.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=366}}</ref> Johnson's primary opponent of his [[Vietnam War]] policies in Congress was [[James William Fulbright]], chairman of the [[United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations|Senate Committee on Foreign Relations]],<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=369}}</ref> who convened a series of public hearings in February on the progress of the war.<ref>[https://www.pri.org/stories/2017-09-28/1966-fulbright-hearings-vietnam-parted-curtains-president-johnsons-conduct-war "The 1966 Fulbright hearings on Vietnam parted the curtains on President Johnson's conduct of the war"], September 28, 2017, PRI.org.</ref> Johnson began to seriously consider a more focused bombing campaign against [[North Vietnam]]'s petroleum, oil, and lubrication facilities in hopes of accelerating victory.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=372–373}}</ref> Humphrey, Rusk, and McNamara all agreed, and the bombing began at the end of June.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=373–374}}</ref> In July, polling results indicated that Americans favored the bombing campaign by a five-to-one margin; however, in August a [[United States Department of Defense|U.S. Defense Department]] study indicated that the bombing campaign was having minimal impact on North Vietnam.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=376}}</ref> In fall 1966, multiple sources reported that progress was being made against the North Vietnamese logistics and infrastructure; Johnson was urged from every corner to begin peace discussions. There was no shortage of peace initiatives; nevertheless, among protesters, English philosopher Bertrand Russell attacked Johnson's policy as "a barbaric aggressive war of conquest", and in June he initiated the [[Russell Tribunal|International War Crimes Tribunal]] to condemn the American effort.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p= 380}}</ref> The gap with Hanoi was an unbridgeable demand on both sides for a unilateral end to bombing and withdrawal of forces. In August, Johnson appointed [[Averell Harriman]] "Ambassador for Peace" to promote negotiations. Westmoreland and McNamara recommended a concerted program to promote pacification; Johnson formally placed this effort under military control in October.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=381}}</ref> Also in October 1966, to reassure and promote his war effort, Johnson initiated a meeting with allies in [[Manila]], including representatives from [[South Vietnam]], [[Thailand]], [[South Korea]], the [[Philippines]], [[Australia]], and [[New Zealand]].<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=383}}</ref> The conference ended with pronouncements to stand fast against communist aggression and to promote ideals of democracy and development in Vietnam and across Asia.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=384}}</ref> For Johnson, it was a fleeting public relations success as approval for Johnson's Vietnam policies reached 63 percent in November. The following month, in December, however, Johnson's Vietnam approval rating fell back down to the 40s; Johnson had become anxious about his ability to justify further war casualties, and he talked of the need for a decisive victory despite the growing unpopularity of the war.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=385–386}}</ref> In a discussion about the war with former President [[Dwight Eisenhower]] on October 3, 1966, Johnson said he was "trying to win it just as fast as I can in every way that I know how" and later stated that he needed "all the help I can get".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/Press.hom/tape_release_11_2006.shtm |title=LBJ Library releases telephone conversation recordings |publisher=Lbjlib.utexas.edu |access-date=October 6, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080611221222/http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/Press.hom/tape_release_11_2006.shtm |archive-date=June 11, 2008}}</ref> By the end of 1966, it was clear that pacification efforts, like the bombing campaign, were proving ineffective. Johnson agreed to McNamara's new recommendation to add 70,000 troops in 1967 to the 400,000 previously that were already in Vietnam. While McNamara recommended no increased bombings, Johnson agreed with [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] recommendations to increase the bombings.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=386–388}}</ref> Despite initial secret talks being held with [[North Vietnam]] in [[Saigon]], [[Hanoi]], and [[Warsaw]], the bombings increased, which led to a discontinuation of the talks, which North Vietnam labeled as not genuine.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=390}}</ref> ====1967==== [[File:Vietnam War protestors at the March on the Pentagon.jpg|thumb|Vietnam War protestors march at [[the Pentagon]] outside [[Washington, D.C.]], on October 21, 1967, as support for the [[Vietnam War]] was falling and the [[Opposition to the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War|anti-Vietnam War movement]] was increasing]] In January and February 1967, probes were made to assess North Vietnamese's willingness to discuss peace, but they fell on deaf ears. Ho Chi Minh declared that the only solution was a unilateral U.S. withdrawal.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=445–447}}</ref> A Gallup poll in July 1967 showed that 52 percent of Americans disapproved of the president's handling of the war, and only 34 percent thought progress was being made.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=474}}</ref> Johnson's anger and frustration over the lack of a solution to Vietnam and its effect on him politically was exhibited in a statement to Robert F. Kennedy, who had become a prominent public critic of the war and loomed as a potential challenger in the 1968 presidential election.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=461}}</ref> Johnson had just received several reports predicting military progress by the summer, and warned Kennedy, "I'll destroy you and every one of your dove friends in six months".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=447}}</ref> McNamara offered Johnson a way out of Vietnam in May; the administration could declare its objective in the war—South Vietnam's self-determination—was being achieved and the upcoming September elections in South Vietnam would provide the chance for a coalition government. The United States could reasonably expect that country to then assume responsibility for the election outcome. But Johnson was reluctant, in light of some optimistic reports about the conflict that provided hope of improvement, though those were of questionable reliability. Meantime, the CIA was reporting wide food shortages in Hanoi and an unstable power grid, as well as military manpower reductions.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=463–464}}</ref> By mid-1967, nearly 70,000 Americans had been killed or wounded in the war. In July, Johnson sent McNamara, Wheeler, and other officials to meet with Westmoreland and reach an agreement on plans for next steps in the war. At the time, the war was being described by media and others as having reached a "stalemate". Westmoreland said such a description was pure fiction, and that "we are winning slowly but steadily and the pace can excel if we reinforce our successes".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=470–471}}</ref> Though Westmoreland sought the deployment of additional U.S. troops, Johnson agreed to an increase of 55,000 troops, fewer than Westmoreland sought, which brought the total number of U.S. troops deployed in Vietnam to 525,000.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=473}}</ref> In August, Johnson, with support from the Joint Chiefs', chose to expand the air campaign, exempting only [[Hanoi]], [[Haiphong]], and a buffer zone with [[China]] from its list of targets.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=477}}</ref> In September, [[Ho Chi Minh]] and North Vietnamese premier [[Pham Van Dong]] appeared amenable to French mediation, leading Johnson to ceas bombing in a 10-mile zone around Hanoi. In a Texas speech, known as the "San Antonio formula", Johnson agreed to halt all bombing if Ho Chi Minh would launch productive discussions and if North Vietnam would not seek to take advantage of the halt. North Vietnam was unresponsive to the proposal, but Johnson pursued the possibility of negotiations and paused the bombings.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=482–484}}</ref> With the war still arguably in a stalemate and with growing and widespread disapproval of the conflict, Johnson convened a group called the "Wise Men" for an in-depth look at the war, including [[Dean Acheson]], General [[Omar Bradley]], [[George Ball (diplomat)|George Ball]], [[McGeorge Bundy]], [[Arthur Dean (lawyer)|Arthur Dean]], [[C. Douglas Dillon]], [[Abe Fortas]], [[Averell Harriman]], [[Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.|Henry Cabot Lodge]], [[Robert Daniel Murphy]], and [[Maxwell D. Taylor]].<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=494}}</ref> At the time, McNamara reversed his position on the Vietnam War, recommending a cap of 525,000 on the number of forces deployed and that the bombing be halted since he saw no military progress from it. This recommendation agitated Johnson, and McNamara soon resigned. Except for George Ball, the "Wise Men" all agreed the administration should "press forward".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=495–496}}</ref> Johnson was confident that Hanoi would await the 1968 U.S. election results before deciding to negotiate.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=501}}</ref> On June 23, 1967, Johnson traveled to [[Los Angeles]] for a Democratic fundraiser. Thousands of [[Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War|anti-war protesters]] led by a coalition of peace protestors tried to march past the hotel where he was speaking. However, a small group of [[Progressive Labor Party (United States)|Progressive Labor Party]] and [[Students for a Democratic Society|SDS]] protestors activists placed themselves at the head of the march and, when they reached the hotel, staged a sit-down. Efforts by march monitors to keep the main body of the marchers moving were only partially successful. Hundreds of [[Los Angeles Police Department|LAPD]] officers were massed at the hotel. When the march slowed, a police order was given to disperse the crowd. The riot act was read and 51 protestors arrested.<ref name="NYT62467">{{cite news |first1=Gladwin |last1=Hill |title=51 Protesters Arrested |access-date=December 12, 2016 |work=The New York Times |date=June 24, 1967 |url=http://nyti.ms/2heLqF0}}</ref><ref name="Marxist5R">{{cite web |author1=Jim Dann and Hari Dillon |title=The Five Retreats: A History of the Failure of the Progressive Labor Party – Chapter 2: The retreat from the anti-war movement 1967–1968 |url=https://www.marxists.org/history/erol/1960-1970/5retreats/chapter2.htm#bk15 |website=Marxist.org |access-date=December 12, 2016 |quote=On June 23, 1967 President Johnson came to Century City, Los Angeles to speak. The Mobe got permission to march past his hotel without stopping. PLP, SDS, the War Resisters' League, and other left forces determined to stop in front of the hotel. The leadership of the march of 20,000 was wrested from the hands of the Mobe's marshals by the PL-led militants. A four-hour bloody battle ensued after the police attacked the march, with injuries on both sides and a partial victory for the anti-war movement because LBJ never dared speak in public again.}}</ref> The Los Angeles demonstration was one of the first massive war protests in the United States, and the first in Los Angeles. The demonstration ended with protesters clashing with riot police, setting a pattern for the massive anti-[[List of protests against the Vietnam War|Vietnam War protests]] that followed.<ref name=LATretro >[http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/thedailymirror/2009/05/crowd-battles-lapd-as-war-protest-turns-violent-.html "Crowd Battles LAPD as War Protest Turns Violent"]</ref> Due to the size and violence of this event, Johnson attempted no further public speeches outside military bases.<ref name=LATretro /><ref name="Marxist5R"/> In October, with ever-increasing public protests against the war, Johnson engaged the FBI and the CIA to investigate, monitor, and undermine anti-war activists.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=486–487}}</ref> In mid-October, there was a demonstration of 100,000 at [[the Pentagon]]; Johnson and [[Dean Rusk]] were convinced that foreign communist sources were behind the demonstration, but that was refuted in the CIA's findings.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=489}}</ref> ====1968==== [[File:L B Johnson Model Khe Sanh.jpeg|thumb|[[Walt Rostow]], Johnson's [[National Security Advisor (United States)|national security advisor]], meeting with Johnson in the [[Situation Room]] in 1968, where the two reviewed a map of the region where the [[Battle of Khe Sanh]] was being waged]] On January 30, the [[Viet Cong]] and [[North Vietnamese Army]] launched the [[Tet Offensive]] against South Vietnam's five largest cities, including Saigon and the U.S. embassy there. While the Tet Offensive failed militarily, it was a psychological victory, definitively turning American public opinion against the war. Iconically, [[Walter Cronkite]] of [[CBS News]], voted the nation's "most trusted person" in February, opined on the air that the conflict was deadlocked. Johnson reacted, saying "If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost middle America".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=505–506}}</ref> Indeed, demoralization about the war was everywhere; 26 percent then approved of Johnson's handling of Vietnam; 63 percent disapproved. Johnson agreed to increase the troop level by 22,000, despite a recommendation from the Joint Chiefs for ten times that number.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=509}}</ref> By March 1968, Johnson was secretly desperate for an honorable way out of the war. [[Clark Clifford]], the new Defense Secretary, described the war as "a loser" and proposed to "cut losses and get out".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=511}}</ref> On March 31, Johnson spoke to the nation of "Steps to Limit the War in Vietnam". He then announced an immediate unilateral halt to the bombing of North Vietnam and announced his intention to seek out peace talks anywhere at any time. At the close of his speech [[Shermanesque statement|he announced]], "I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President".<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=513}}</ref> In March, Johnson decided to restrict future bombing with the result that 75 percent of North Vietnam's territory, containing 90 percent of its population, was off-limits to bombing. In April he succeeded in opening discussions of peace talks, and after extensive negotiations over the site, Paris was agreed to and talks began in May. When the talks failed to yield any results the decision was made to resort to private discussions in Paris,<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=538–541}}</ref> which after two months were no more productive.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=564}}</ref> As casualties mounted and success seemed less immediately possible, Johnson's popularity plummeted. College students and others protested, burned [[Conscription in the United States|draft]] cards, and chanted, "Hey, hey, LBJ, how many kids did you kill today?"<ref name="scholastic"/> Johnson could scarcely travel anywhere without facing protests, and was not allowed by the Secret Service to attend the [[1968 Democratic National Convention]], where thousands of [[hippies]], [[yippies]], [[Black Panther Party|Black Panthers]] and other opponents of Johnson's policies converged to protest.<ref>Frank Kusch, ''Battleground Chicago: The Police and the 1968 Democratic National Convention'' (Chicago: [[University of Chicago Press]], 2008), p. 62.</ref> Thus by 1968, the public was polarized, with the "hawks" rejecting Johnson's refusal to continue the war indefinitely, and the "doves" rejecting his current war policies. Support for Johnson's middle position continued to shrink until he finally rejected containment and sought a peace settlement. By late summer, he realized that Nixon was closer to his position than Humphrey. He continued to support Humphrey publicly in the election, and personally despised Nixon. One of Johnson's well-known quotes was "the Democratic party at its worst, is still better than the Republican party at its best".<ref>{{harvnb|Gould|2010|p=98}}</ref> Despite recommendations in August from Harriman, Vance, Clifford, and Bundy to halt bombing as an incentive for Hanoi to engage in substantive peace talks, Johnson refused.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=569}}</ref> In October, when the parties came close to an agreement on a bombing halt, Republican presidential nominee Richard Nixon intervened with the South Vietnamese, making promises of better terms, to delay a settlement until after the election.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=584–585}}</ref> After the election, Johnson's primary focus on Vietnam was to get Saigon to join the Paris peace talks. Only after Nixon added his urging did they do so. Even then they argued about procedural matters until after Nixon took office.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|p=597}}</ref> ===Surveillance of Martin Luther King=== Johnson continued the FBI's [[wiretapping of Martin Luther King Jr.]] authorized by the Kennedy administration under Attorney General [[Robert F. Kennedy]].<ref name="the atlantic">{{cite news |title=The FBI and Martin Luther King |last=Garrow |first=David J. |author-link=David Garrow |date=July 8, 2002 |work=The Atlantic |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200207/garrow}}</ref> Johnson also authorized the tapping of phone conversations of others, including the Vietnamese friends of a Nixon associate.<ref>{{cite news |title=Wiretapping's true danger |url=https://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-op-sanchez16mar16,0,4039194.story |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080420045632/http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-op-sanchez16mar16%2C0%2C4039194.story |archive-date=April 20, 2008 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |last=Sanchez |first=Julian |access-date=December 29, 2008 |date=March 16, 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> ===International trips=== {{further|List of international trips made by the President of the United States#Lyndon B. Johnson}} [[File:US President Lyndon Johnson Presidential Trips.PNG|thumb|upright=1.35|Countries visited by Johnson during his presidency]] Johnson made eleven international trips to twenty countries during his presidency.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://history.state.gov/departmenthistory/travels/president/johnson-lyndon-b |title=Travels of President Lyndon B. Johnson |publisher=U.S. Department of State Office of the Historian}}</ref> He flew {{convert|523,000|mi|spell=in|sp=us|-1}} aboard [[Air Force One]] while in office. His October 1966 visit to Australia sparked demonstrations from anti-war protesters.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/lbj-came-all-the-way--but-few-followed-20111111-1nbrg.html |title=LBJ came all the way – but few followed|last1=Humphries |first1=David |date=November 12, 2011 |website=Sydney Morning Herald |access-date=December 3, 2013}}</ref> One of the most unusual international trips in presidential history occurred before Christmas 1967. The President began the trip by going to the memorial for Australian Prime Minister [[Harold Holt]], who was presumed drowned in [[Disappearance of Harold Holt|a swimming accident]]. The White House did not reveal in advance to the press that the President would make the first round-the-world presidential trip. The trip was {{convert|26,959|mi|spell=in|sp=us|1}} completed in only 112.5 hours (4.7 days). Air Force One crossed the equator twice, stopped at [[Travis Air Force Base]], in [[Honolulu]], [[Pago Pago]], [[Canberra]], [[Melbourne]], [[Vietnam]], [[Karachi]], and [[Rome]].{{citation needed|date=November 2023}} ===1968 presidential election=== {{main|1968 United States presidential election}} [[File:Lyndon Johnson Richard Nixon 1968.jpg|thumb|Johnson meeting with Republican presidential candidate [[Richard Nixon]] in the [[White House]] in July 1968]] In early January 1968, Johnson asked former speechwriter [[Horace Busby]] to draft a statement announcing his withdrawal from the [[1968 United States presidential election|1968 presidential election]] to be included in his upcoming [[State of the Union]] address, but Johnson ultimately did not include it. Since Johnson had served less than 24 months of President Kennedy's term, he was [[22nd Amendment|constitutionally permitted]] to run for a second full term in 1968.<ref>{{cite news |title=Johnson Can Seek Two Full Terms |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=November 24, 1963 |page=A2}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Moore |first=William |title=Law Permits 2 Full Terms for Johnson |newspaper=The Chicago Tribune |date=November 24, 1963 |page=7}}</ref> Initially, no prominent Democratic candidate was prepared to run against a sitting Democratic president. Only Senator [[Eugene McCarthy]] of [[Minnesota]] challenged Johnson as an anti-war candidate in the [[New Hampshire]] [[primary election|primary]], hoping to pressure the Democrats to oppose the [[Vietnam War]]. On March 12, McCarthy won 42 percent of the primary vote to Johnson's 49 percent, an amazingly strong showing for such a challenger. Four days later, Senator [[Robert F. Kennedy]] of [[New York (state)|New York]] entered the race. Internal polling by Johnson's campaign in [[Wisconsin]], which was scheduled to hold the next primary, showed Johnson, who had not left the [[White House]] to campaign, trailing badly.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}} In 1968, Johnson found himself losing control of his party, which was splitting into four generally antagonistic factions. The first consisted of Johnson (and Humphrey), labor unions, and local party bosses led by [[Richard J. Daley]], the mayor of Chicago. The second consisted of students and intellectuals who were vociferously against the war and rallied behind McCarthy. The third group was Catholics, Hispanics, and African Americans, who rallied behind Robert F. Kennedy. The fourth group was traditionally segregationist white Southerners, who rallied behind [[George C. Wallace]] and the [[American Independent Party]]. Varying positions of the Vietnam War was one of several issues that splintered the party, and Johnson saw no way to win the war<ref name="scholastic"/> or unite the party long enough to win re-election.<ref>{{harvnb|Gould|2010|pp=31, 47}}</ref> Although it was not made public at the time, another reason Johnson decided not to seek re-election is that he was worried about his failing health and was concerned that he might not live through another term. The previous year, in 1967, he secretly commissioned an actuarial study that accurately predicted he would die at age 64.<ref name="LastDays">{{cite magazine|last=Janos|first=Leo|title=The Last Days of the President|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1973/07/the-last-days-of-the-president/376281/|date=July 1973|magazine=[[The Atlantic]]}}</ref> Two months later, however, spurred by his health concerns and a growing realization that his political capital was evaporated, Johnson again considered withdrawing and discussed the possibility with [[Joseph A. Califano Jr.|Joseph A. Califano Jr]] and [[Harry McPherson]] on March 28.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Risen |first=Clay |title=The Unmaking of the President |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-unmaking-of-the-president-31577203/ |access-date=January 24, 2021 |date=April 2008 |magazine=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119112605/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-unmaking-of-the-president-31577203/ |archive-date=November 19, 2020| url-status=live}}</ref> Three days after meeting with Califano and McPherson, Johnson announced that "I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/presidential-speeches/march-31-1968-remarks-decision-not-seek-re-election|title=Remarks on Decision not to Seek Re-Election (March 31, 1968)|publisher=The Miller Center, University of Virginia|access-date=October 2, 2017|date=October 20, 2016}}</ref> The next day, the president's approval ratings increased from 36 percent to 49 percent.<ref name=Updegrove12>{{cite book|last=Updegrove|first=Mark K.|title=Indomitable will : LBJ in the presidency|year=2012|publisher=Crown|location=New York|isbn=978-0-307-88771-9|edition=1st|page=272}}</ref> After [[Robert Kennedy's assassination]], Johnson rallied the party bosses and unions to nominate Humphrey at the [[1968 Democratic National Convention]]. Personal correspondences between the President and some Republicans suggested Johnson tacitly supported [[Nelson Rockefeller|Nelson Rockefeller's]] campaign. He reportedly said that if Rockefeller became the Republican nominee, he would not campaign against him.<ref>{{cite book |last=Perlstein |first=Rick |author-link=Rick Perlstein |title=Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America |title-link=Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7432-4302-5}}</ref> In what was termed the [[October surprise]], Johnson announced to the nation on October 31, 1968, that he had ordered a complete cessation of "all air, naval and artillery bombardment of [[North Vietnam]]", effective November 1, should the [[Hanoi]] Government be willing to negotiate and citing progress with the [[Paris Peace Accords|Paris peace talks]]. A week later, on November 5, Republican candidate [[Richard Nixon]] won the [[1968 United States presidential election|1968 presidential election]]. ===Judicial appointments=== {{see also|Lyndon B. Johnson judicial appointments|Lyndon B. Johnson judicial appointment controversies}} [[File:Thurgood-marshall-2.jpg|thumb|upright|Johnson appointed [[Thurgood Marshall]], the first African American justice, to the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]].]] Johnson appointed Justices [[Abe Fortas]] (1965) and [[Thurgood Marshall]] (1967) to the [[Supreme Court of the United States]]. Johnson anticipated court challenges to his legislative measures in 1965 and thought it advantageous to have a "mole" in the Supreme Court to provide him with inside information, as he was able to get from the legislative branch. Abe Fortas in particular Johnson thought could fill the bill. The opportunity arose when an opening occurred for ambassador to the UN, with Adlai Stevenson's death; Associate Justice [[Arthur Goldberg]] accepted Johnson's offer to transfer to the UN position. Johnson insisted on Fortas assuming Goldberg's seat, over Fortas's wife's objection that it was too early in his career.<ref>{{harvnb|Dallek|1998|pp=233–235}}</ref> When [[Earl Warren]] announced his retirement in 1968, Johnson nominated Fortas to succeed him as [[Chief Justice of the United States]], and nominated [[Homer Thornberry]] to succeed Fortas as associate justice. However, Fortas's nomination was filibustered by senators, and neither nominee was voted upon by the full Senate.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. 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