4 Leadership Qualities Found in JFK
John Fitzgerald Kennedy delivering his Inaugural Address
35th President of the United States
The following paper was written for an AP Government essay in Christian’s junior year of high school. The quotations, if not cited as a link to a website, are from The LANAHAN READINGS in the American Polity Third and Fifth Editions.
Leadership Qualities
From far-right conservatives (Trump, Reagan, and Hoover) to incredibly proactive and progressive liberals (LBJ, Obama, and FDR), the Oval Office has seen the opposite ends of the political spectrum and many in between. Beyond ideology, presidents also differ in their character and leadership qualities. America in the last 100 years has seen a great many different personalities fill the office of President. In this last century to date, we have seen some of the greatest presidents who have led the nation through terrible times of crisis (FDR for example, who led during the Great Depression and WWII) as well as some of the worst presidents who have created their own crises (Nixon with his Watergate Scandal being the most prominent example). There are four paramount qualities inherent in all of our greatest presidents: integrity, confidence, the ability to persuade, and conviction. There are very few people in history who have personified these leadership qualities to the same extent as our 35th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
JFK was both the youngest president elected, and the only Roman Catholic president in American history. He was the son of the enormously wealthy Joeseph P. Kennedy (who is rumored to have made a boatload during prohibition through ties to the mafia). The Democrat JFK barely ousted Nixon, the opposing Republican, in the popular vote, and he only served in office for two years (1961-1963). He was shot in Dallas on November 22, 1963, and his VP took power and carried on many of the initiatives started by the Kennedy administration. However, during those two years in office, Kennedy had more than a few crises to handle including the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the building of the Berlin Wall, the Space Race, and the early parts of the Vietnam War. His actions during his tenure as president left a legacy long after he passed, such as the Civil Rights Movement that he encouraged, which led to the adoption of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the 24th Amendment.
The first leadership quality espoused by Kennedy was his integrity. When discussing Clinton’s Lewinski scandal, Richard Posner (a U.S. Court of Appeals judge and law professor) acknowledges “the toll that scandal and scandal mongering have taken of public confidence in government, [which] disincline the American people to support active government” (Lanahan 3rd ed., 250). In the wake of the Lewinski affair, the American public (momentarily) lost faith in government. And this, coupled with Watergate a few decades earlier, is still present regarding trust in government in American society today. (And I might add that this may have contributed to Americans even believing in the falsification of the most secure election in history). This loss of trust in government could surely have resulted from the failed Bay of Pigs invasion during JFK’s presidency, but it was minimized through JFK’s tact as a leader. In April 1963, shortly after assuming office as President, JFK allowed 1,400 paramilitary operatives trained by the CIA to attempt a coup against the Cuban government under Castro. Many of the insurgents were captured and imprisoned, where they awaited execution. Kennedy immediately recognized this as a terrible mishap during his presidency, and shortly thereafter issued a statement admitting full culpability. About this “sobering episode,” Kennedy admitted in a speech, “... further statements, [and] detailed discussions, are not to conceal responsibility because I’m the responsible officer of the Government” (“What John F. Kennedy’s Legacy Teaches Us About The Value Of Candor”). Kennedy accepted full responsibility for the failure of the invasion, and therefore revealed his integrity to the American people. While many other presidents have hidden their failures (The Pentagon Papers, Watergate, and Lewinski for example), JFK openly admonished his actions and admitted his failure. While on the subject of integrity, it would be impertinent to not also recognize his actions regarding his affair with actress and supermodel Marilyn Monroe. Despite his massive failures, Kennedy at many important parts of his presidency exemplified one hallmark of a quality leader: integrity.
A second leadership characteristic possessed by JFK perhaps more than any other, was his confidence, especially when dealing with international crises. In The Paradoxes of the American Presidency, the authors describe how “Americans demand … presidential leadership that solves the nation’s problems.” The excerpt also states specifically that, “[presidents] must be powerful and effective when action is needed” (Lanahan 3rd ed., 231) JFK exemplified his strength and confidence in the Cuban Missile Crisis, a crux of the cold war. In October 1962, an American U-2 Spy Plane spotted nuclear missile sites being constructed by the USSR in Cuba. After intense discussions with advisors, Kennedy ordered the navy to construct a blockade around Cuba, which would impede the influx of Soviet military supplies. After realizing the possibility of Mutual Assured Destruction (or MAD), Kruschev and JFK agreed to a compromise that the USSR would dismantle the weapons sites in exchange for a US promise not to invade Cuba (“Cuban Missile Crisis”). The confidence JFK needed to take action through a naval blockade demonstrated his strength as a leader.
Not only did JFK have integrity and confidence, but he was also incredibly persuasive. When discussing his concept of the plebiscitary presidency, Professor Craig Rimmerman states that “... presidential power and legitimacy emanates from citizen support as measured through public opinion polls; … presidents forge a direct link to the masses through television” (Lanahan 5th ed., 248). JFK was one of the first presidents to effectively utilize television to persuade the public. Despite his original thin margin of victory, Kennedy still remains in the American public’s mind as one of the greatest and most popular presidents in history. An example of Kennedy mobilizing the public is his method of handling the situation of steel executives usurping the American public in a time of economic recession. He demonized the steel industry during the recession in the public perception by saying, ‘Simultaneous and identical actions of United States Steel and other leading steel corporations … constitute a wholly unjustifiable and irresponsible defiance of the public interest” (“News Conference 30, April 11, 1962”). By publicly berating the steel industry, Kennedy demonstrated his ability to persuade the public to rally against the tyranny of the steel executives.
A final characteristic of JFK was his conviction behind a strong central purpose. An advisor to Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton writes that a president must “tell the country where he is headed so that he can rally people behind him” (Lanahan 3rd ed., 257). Kennedy was able to rally people behind a common goal and purpose. One example of this was his speech in West Berlin close to two years after the USSR erected the Berlin Wall, where he rallied the people of Berlin and the rest of the listeners around the world behind the ideal of fighting in defense of democracy. He grouped the Democracy-loving people of the world with those present in Berlin by stating, "All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin. And, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words -- ‘Ich bin ein Berliner’” (“Ich bin ein Berliner”). JFK had a remarkable ability to rally people behind a central purpose. He spoke with conviction in his infamous speech, “Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country,” where he rallied the American people to work together toward the public good. JFK’s conviction was also part of the reason that the Civil Rights Movement gained so much traction, and one of the main reasons that his legacy carries on in America and around the world to this very day.
To conclude, JFK embodied the four essential qualities of superb leadership: integrity, confidence, persuasiveness, and conviction. His presidency was rife with difficult decisions that greatly impacted history. JFK was a unique individual, both in his presidency and his personal life. Through the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Bay of Pigs, and everything else in his presidency, JFK remained a strong leader of the United States of America. His legacy will never be forgotten.
