Harry S. Truman

===Politics===
Truman supported Adlai Stevenson's second bid for the White House in 1956, although he had initially favored Democratic governor [[W. Averell Harriman]] of New York.{{sfn|Ohio State|2012}} He continued to campaign for Democratic senatorial candidates for many years.{{sfn|Truman Library|1965}}

In 1960 Truman gave a public statement announcing he would not attend the [[1960 Democratic National Convention|Democratic Convention]] that year, citing concerns about the way that the supporters of [[John F. Kennedy]] had gained control of the nominating process, and called on Kennedy to forgo the nomination for that year.<ref name= "Truman 1960">President Truman, {{YouTube|y49FJYbjA4I|Truman Criticism of JFK}}, Press Conference / July 2, 1960.</ref> Kennedy responded with a press conference where he bluntly rebuffed Truman's advice.<ref name= "Kennedy 1960">Senator John F. Kennedy, {{YouTube|2B5WmdWGJco|Kennedy Responds to Truman}}, Press Conference / July 4, 1960.</ref>

Despite his supportive stance on civil rights during his presidency, Truman expressed criticism of the [[civil rights movement]] during the 1960s. In 1960, he stated that he believed the [[sit-in movement]] to be part of a Soviet plot.<ref>{{Cite news|first=Clayton|last=Knowles|title=TRUMAN BELIEVES REDS LEAD SIT-INS; Says Communists Organized Them as They Started Sitdown Strikes in '37| work=[[The New York Times]] |url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1960/04/19/105427798.html?pageNumber=21|date=April 19, 1960|access-date=November 23, 2021|language=en}}</ref> Truman's statement garnered a response from [[Martin Luther King Jr.]], who wrote a letter to the former president stating that he was "baffled" by the accusation, and demanded a public apology.<ref>{{Cite web|last1=University|first1= Stanford|last2=Stanford|last3=California 94305|date=July 28, 2014|title=To Harry S. Truman|url=https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/harry-s-truman|access-date=November 23, 2021|website=The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute|language=en}}</ref> Truman would later criticize King following the [[Selma to Montgomery marches|Selma march]] in 1965, believing the protest to be "silly" and claiming that it "can't accomplish a darn thing except to attract attention."<ref>{{Cite web|title=MLK to Truman: Selma March 'Not Silly'|date=March 5, 2015 |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/selma-50th-anniversary/mlk-truman-selma-march-not-silly-n318151|access-date=November 23, 2021|website=[[NBC News]]|language=en}}</ref> In 1963, Truman voiced his opposition to [[interracial marriage]], believing that daughters of white people would never love someone of an opposite color.<ref>{{cite book|title=The White House Goes South: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Lyndon B. Johnson|first=William Edward|last=Leuchtenburg|publisher=[[Louisiana State University Press]]|location=Baton Rouge, Louisiana|date=2005|isbn=978-0807132869}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|first=William D.|last=Zabel|title=Interracial Marriage and the Law|magazine=[[The Atlantic]]|date=October 1965}}</ref>

Upon turning 80 in 1964, Truman was feted in Washington, and addressed the Senate, availing himself of a new rule that allowed former presidents to be granted [[Floor privileges of the United States Senate|privilege of the floor]].{{sfn|McCullough|1992|p=983}}