Volume 1, Number 9 · December 26, 1963
The Fate of the Union: Kennedy and After
By Hans J. Morgenthau
Man has an inveterate tendency to personalize history and to attribute to the 'great men' unique and irreplaceable qualities. When Roosevelt died in April, 1945, we thought it was the end of the world. Eisenhower rode to office in 1953 on the slogan 'It's time for a change,' and when Kennedy assumed the Presidency in 1961, we thought that now everything would be different. However, it is very doubtful whether American politics would have been substantially different had Roosevelt lived out his fourth term. The administrations of Truman, Eisenhower, and Kennedy were indeed radically different in style because the style of an administration is of necessity the extension of the Chief Executive's personality. But where are the differences in the substance of policy. There was nothing new in the 'new look' of Eisenhower's foreign policy but Mr. Dulles's slogans, and the 'new frontier' contributed more to political literature than to political action.
Feature, 540 words
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