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Listening In: The Secret White House Recordings of John F. Kennedy
In July 1962, in an effort to preserve an accurate record of Presidential decision-making in a highly charged atmosphere of conflicting viewpoints, strategies and tactics, John F. Kennedy installed hidden recording systems in the Oval Office and in the Cabinet Room. The result is a priceless historical archive comprising some 265 hours of taped material. JFK was elected president when Civil Rights tensions were near the boiling point, and Americans feared a nuclear war. Confronted with complex dilemmas necessitating swift and unprecedented action, President Kennedy engaged in intense discussion and debate with his cabinet members and other advisors. Now, in conjunction with the fiftieth anniversary of the Kennedy presidency, the John F. Kennedy Library and historian Ted Widmer have carefully selected the most compelling and important of these remarkable recordings for release, fully restored and re-mastered onto two 75-minute CDs for the first time. Listening In represents a uniquely unscripted, insider account of a president and his cabinet grappling with the day-to-day business of the White House and guiding the nation through a hazardous era of uncertainty.
Accompanied by extensively annotated transcripts of the recordings, and with a foreword by Caroline Kennedy, "Listening In" delivers the story behind the story in the unguarded words and voices of the decision-makers themselves." Listening In" covers watershed events, including the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Space Race, Vietnam, and the arms race, and offers fascinating glimpses into the intellectual methodology of a circumspect president and his brilliant, eclectic brain trust.
Just as the unique vision of President John F. Kennedy continues to resonate half a century after his stirring speeches and bold policy decisions, the documentary candor of Listening In imparts a vivid, breathtaking immediacy that will significantly expand our understanding of his time in office.
Accompanied by extensively annotated transcripts of the recordings, and with a foreword by Caroline Kennedy, "Listening In" delivers the story behind the story in the unguarded words and voices of the decision-makers themselves." Listening In" covers watershed events, including the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Space Race, Vietnam, and the arms race, and offers fascinating glimpses into the intellectual methodology of a circumspect president and his brilliant, eclectic brain trust.
Just as the unique vision of President John F. Kennedy continues to resonate half a century after his stirring speeches and bold policy decisions, the documentary candor of Listening In imparts a vivid, breathtaking immediacy that will significantly expand our understanding of his time in office.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2012
93 people are currently reading
1223 people want to read
About the author
Ted Widmer
20 books76 followersEdward (Ted) Ladd Widmer (born 1963) is a historian, writer, and librarian, who served as a speechwriter in the later days of the Clinton White House.
His parents were Eric G. Widmer and Ellen B. Widmer. As of 1992, his father was working as Dean of Admissions and financial aid at Brown University, and his mother was an Associate Professor of Asian Languages and Literatures at Wesleyan University. Ted Widmer obtained an A.B. in the history and literature of France and the United States, an A.M. in history, and a Ph.D. in the history of American civilization from Harvard University.
Widmer was appointed lecturer on history and literature at Harvard University from 1993 until 1997. He then spent a few years working with Bill Clinton, both during and after Clinton's presidency. He was the special assistant to the president for national security affairs, writing foreign policy speeches, and subsequently was the senior advisor to the president for special projects, advising on history and scholarship related issues. He conducted interviews with Clinton while Clinton was writing his autobiography.
He was the first director of the C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience and an associate professor of history at Washington College from 2001. On July 1, 2006 he was appointed director and librarian of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University.
His parents were Eric G. Widmer and Ellen B. Widmer. As of 1992, his father was working as Dean of Admissions and financial aid at Brown University, and his mother was an Associate Professor of Asian Languages and Literatures at Wesleyan University. Ted Widmer obtained an A.B. in the history and literature of France and the United States, an A.M. in history, and a Ph.D. in the history of American civilization from Harvard University.
Widmer was appointed lecturer on history and literature at Harvard University from 1993 until 1997. He then spent a few years working with Bill Clinton, both during and after Clinton's presidency. He was the special assistant to the president for national security affairs, writing foreign policy speeches, and subsequently was the senior advisor to the president for special projects, advising on history and scholarship related issues. He conducted interviews with Clinton while Clinton was writing his autobiography.
He was the first director of the C.V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience and an associate professor of history at Washington College from 2001. On July 1, 2006 he was appointed director and librarian of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University.
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September 29, 2021
“Mythology distracts us everywhere,” John F. Kennedy said on June 11, 1962, in a speech at Yale University. He had devoted a big part of his life to dispelling the mythologies he saw. As a senator, he gave important speeches questioning the logic of the Cold War in remote places like Vietnam and Algeria. As a historian, he was attracted to the few people inside Washington’s political establishment who were brave enough to think for themselves.
A month after the Yale speech, President Kennedy attacked mythology yet again. To avoid inaccuracy and possibly worse, he looked for a reliable record of the words that were spoken in the White House. Therefore, in July 1962, Secret Service agents installed a sophisticated taping system in the Oval Office and Cabinet Room of the White House. Neither Kennedy nor anyone else ever explained the reasons for the installation. The existence of the taping system was a well guarded secret, shared with a tiny number of people. The President’s secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, knew because her assistance was required to operate the system and maintain the tapes. Robert Kennedy probably knew; he used the tapes a few years later to write his memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Thirteen Days.
The result of that installation is not a secret, though: a vast amount of information was gathered by those recording devices – 248 hours of meetings in the Oval Office and Cabinet Room, and 17 and a half hours of telephone conversations and dictated private thoughts and correspondence. They cast light on the policy-making process of the Kennedy administration, as it was conducted at the highest echelons of government. In addition, they offer insight into how a presidency actually works, what it feels like to occupy the most important, and the loneliest, position on the planet.
According to the agent who installed the taping system, Robert Bouck, he placed a microphone in the kneehole of the President's desk and another, disguised, on the coffee table between the two sofas where the President sometimes sat with visitors. Kennedy could activate the device with a push button under his desk. As Bouck describes it, “It looked just like a button you’d press to signal your secretary – like a buzzer button.” Kennedy also had a button on the coffee table, near the chairs where he would sit for more casual conversation.
In the Cabinet Room, the microphones were in two spots on the wall where there had once been light fixtures, now covered by draperies. By his place at the table, the President had another switch to activate recording. Not long after the installation of the system, Kennedy significantly expanded its operation by creating a separate system that would record his telephone calls. Bouck believes that President Kennedy was also able to record inside his private living quarters, but according to the author, that fact has never been confirmed, and the existing tapes do not support it.
But why did John F. Kennedy decide to record his conversations exactly in July 1962? Bouck says that “the tensions with the Russians were kind of great during that period, and I think initially his concern was to record understandings that might have been had in those relations.” Indeed, during the Bay of Pigs operation, the President received a great deal of inaccurate information from the CIA and the Joint Chiefs, and it would certainly have been useful for him in the future to have their false predictions of success on record. Evelyn Lincoln also thought that the Bay of Pigs was the reason for the tapes. The Bay of Pigs taught the Kennedy administration that White House communications were balky, and in its immediate aftermath, McGeorge Bundy modernized the West Wing by bringing the latest technology into the brand-new Situation Room.
If so, however, another question appears: why did Kennedy wait for more than a year to install the taping system? The craze for recording technology in those years might have been one of the reasons. "[I]t t was a rare magazine that did not include an advertisement for the latest in stereo equipment, and Tandberg, a Norwegian brand, was well known to audiophiles," writes the author. In those times of growing technological possibilities, it is quite natural for President Kennedy to want to expand his sources of information, and he must have wanted to have a way to obtain information for himself only. That explains why he asked the Secret Service, not his military aides, to install the taping system.
Of course, as we learn from the content of some of the tapes themselves, the President had political reasons for wanting to record his conversations. During the different crises of the Civil Rights Movement, for instance, Kennedy walked on thin ice with the governors of Alabama, Mississippi, and other Southern states as they all strived to find face-saving ways to end the tension. In those intense conversations, revealing to the governors that their private promises for cooperation with the federal government were in fact recorded was a good negotiation tactic. If exposed, those promises would have hurt the governors' reputations at home. As Kennedy is heard saying to the mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, in one of the tapes: “I give you full permission to denounce me in public, as long as you don’t in private!”
Also, leaving the tape recorder on in his absence was a great way for the President to find out what was being said behind his back. Although Evelyn Lincoln later claimed the President never listened to the tapes, they did reveal some spicy information. For instance, in on of the tapes made during the whirl of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Air Force General Curtis LeMay complains bitterly about Kennedy's leadership. Even if the President never learned what exactly LeMay thought of him, reading the General's words made me even more glad the government did not follow any of his reckless proposals for invading Cuba and engaging in nuclear warfare. In another tape the details are even spicier: Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara reveals to John F. Kennedy that one of his naval commanders intended to sink a Soviet vessel against his strict orders. This surely makes the Cuban Missile Crisis an even more horrible memory.
Yet another reason why the President installed the recording system was that he, himself a historian (his Profiles in Courage, a portrait of senators, won the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 1957), acknowledged the importance of those recorder conversations for the historians of the future. That is why he recorded not only conversations with his adversaries, but also important meetings. His tapes are the raw matériel of history; they are not edited, polished, or revised like his speeches. They came as a complete shock for John Kennedy's inner circle. Neither Ted Sorensen, his speechwriter and closest aide, nor the rest of his top staffers knew of their existence.
John F. Kennedy once said, “I expect my whole time in office to be filled with dangers and difficulties,” and his prediction was correct. During the week of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the week the whole world held its breath, the major meetings and many phone calls, including Kennedy’s relieved calls to Presidents Eisenhower, Truman, and Hoover when it was over, were recorded. To read the transcripts of those recordings is thrilling, for they make you feel the anxiety, the tension of the moment as no history book can.
Most importantly, those tapes are the closest we can come to getting an autobiography of John F. Kennedy. He had intended to write a memoir once put of office, but – alas – the cruel and shocking act in Dallas, Texas ended the life of this brilliant man much too early. There is laughter in these recordings, and irritation, and disappointment, and exuberance. They are human. They remind us that the President, while expected to be someone greater than the rest of us, is after all a human being. Yes, Kennedy was ". . . not only the handsomest, the best dressed, the most articulate, and graceful as a gazelle. He is omniscient; he swallows and digests whole books in minutes; his eye seizes instantly on the crucial point of a long memorandum; he confounds experts with superior knowledge of their field. He is omnipresent; no sleepy staff member can be sure that he will not telephone—or pop in; every hostess at a party can hope that he will. He is omnipotent; he personally bosses and spurs the whole shop; he has no need of Ike’s [Eisenhower's] staff apparatus; he is more than a lion, more than a fox. He’s Superman!" in the words of political scientist and presidential biographer James MacGregor Burns. Yet this quote adequately depicts his public persona only. The recordings show us his human side not chiseled by the adoring media.
Whether you are more interested in President John F. Kennedy's reactions to the major calamities of his administration, such as the assassination of Diem and Nhu, or in his eavesdropping on the Joint Chiefs, or in his taped letters to his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, in which he mocks some of their friends good-naturedly, LISTENING IN is a must-read. It will give you amazing insight into the inner workings of the presidential office. It will also entertain you and surprise you on more than one occasion.
A month after the Yale speech, President Kennedy attacked mythology yet again. To avoid inaccuracy and possibly worse, he looked for a reliable record of the words that were spoken in the White House. Therefore, in July 1962, Secret Service agents installed a sophisticated taping system in the Oval Office and Cabinet Room of the White House. Neither Kennedy nor anyone else ever explained the reasons for the installation. The existence of the taping system was a well guarded secret, shared with a tiny number of people. The President’s secretary, Evelyn Lincoln, knew because her assistance was required to operate the system and maintain the tapes. Robert Kennedy probably knew; he used the tapes a few years later to write his memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Thirteen Days.
The result of that installation is not a secret, though: a vast amount of information was gathered by those recording devices – 248 hours of meetings in the Oval Office and Cabinet Room, and 17 and a half hours of telephone conversations and dictated private thoughts and correspondence. They cast light on the policy-making process of the Kennedy administration, as it was conducted at the highest echelons of government. In addition, they offer insight into how a presidency actually works, what it feels like to occupy the most important, and the loneliest, position on the planet.
According to the agent who installed the taping system, Robert Bouck, he placed a microphone in the kneehole of the President's desk and another, disguised, on the coffee table between the two sofas where the President sometimes sat with visitors. Kennedy could activate the device with a push button under his desk. As Bouck describes it, “It looked just like a button you’d press to signal your secretary – like a buzzer button.” Kennedy also had a button on the coffee table, near the chairs where he would sit for more casual conversation.
In the Cabinet Room, the microphones were in two spots on the wall where there had once been light fixtures, now covered by draperies. By his place at the table, the President had another switch to activate recording. Not long after the installation of the system, Kennedy significantly expanded its operation by creating a separate system that would record his telephone calls. Bouck believes that President Kennedy was also able to record inside his private living quarters, but according to the author, that fact has never been confirmed, and the existing tapes do not support it.
But why did John F. Kennedy decide to record his conversations exactly in July 1962? Bouck says that “the tensions with the Russians were kind of great during that period, and I think initially his concern was to record understandings that might have been had in those relations.” Indeed, during the Bay of Pigs operation, the President received a great deal of inaccurate information from the CIA and the Joint Chiefs, and it would certainly have been useful for him in the future to have their false predictions of success on record. Evelyn Lincoln also thought that the Bay of Pigs was the reason for the tapes. The Bay of Pigs taught the Kennedy administration that White House communications were balky, and in its immediate aftermath, McGeorge Bundy modernized the West Wing by bringing the latest technology into the brand-new Situation Room.
If so, however, another question appears: why did Kennedy wait for more than a year to install the taping system? The craze for recording technology in those years might have been one of the reasons. "[I]t t was a rare magazine that did not include an advertisement for the latest in stereo equipment, and Tandberg, a Norwegian brand, was well known to audiophiles," writes the author. In those times of growing technological possibilities, it is quite natural for President Kennedy to want to expand his sources of information, and he must have wanted to have a way to obtain information for himself only. That explains why he asked the Secret Service, not his military aides, to install the taping system.
Of course, as we learn from the content of some of the tapes themselves, the President had political reasons for wanting to record his conversations. During the different crises of the Civil Rights Movement, for instance, Kennedy walked on thin ice with the governors of Alabama, Mississippi, and other Southern states as they all strived to find face-saving ways to end the tension. In those intense conversations, revealing to the governors that their private promises for cooperation with the federal government were in fact recorded was a good negotiation tactic. If exposed, those promises would have hurt the governors' reputations at home. As Kennedy is heard saying to the mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, in one of the tapes: “I give you full permission to denounce me in public, as long as you don’t in private!”
Also, leaving the tape recorder on in his absence was a great way for the President to find out what was being said behind his back. Although Evelyn Lincoln later claimed the President never listened to the tapes, they did reveal some spicy information. For instance, in on of the tapes made during the whirl of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Air Force General Curtis LeMay complains bitterly about Kennedy's leadership. Even if the President never learned what exactly LeMay thought of him, reading the General's words made me even more glad the government did not follow any of his reckless proposals for invading Cuba and engaging in nuclear warfare. In another tape the details are even spicier: Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara reveals to John F. Kennedy that one of his naval commanders intended to sink a Soviet vessel against his strict orders. This surely makes the Cuban Missile Crisis an even more horrible memory.
Yet another reason why the President installed the recording system was that he, himself a historian (his Profiles in Courage, a portrait of senators, won the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 1957), acknowledged the importance of those recorder conversations for the historians of the future. That is why he recorded not only conversations with his adversaries, but also important meetings. His tapes are the raw matériel of history; they are not edited, polished, or revised like his speeches. They came as a complete shock for John Kennedy's inner circle. Neither Ted Sorensen, his speechwriter and closest aide, nor the rest of his top staffers knew of their existence.
John F. Kennedy once said, “I expect my whole time in office to be filled with dangers and difficulties,” and his prediction was correct. During the week of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the week the whole world held its breath, the major meetings and many phone calls, including Kennedy’s relieved calls to Presidents Eisenhower, Truman, and Hoover when it was over, were recorded. To read the transcripts of those recordings is thrilling, for they make you feel the anxiety, the tension of the moment as no history book can.
Most importantly, those tapes are the closest we can come to getting an autobiography of John F. Kennedy. He had intended to write a memoir once put of office, but – alas – the cruel and shocking act in Dallas, Texas ended the life of this brilliant man much too early. There is laughter in these recordings, and irritation, and disappointment, and exuberance. They are human. They remind us that the President, while expected to be someone greater than the rest of us, is after all a human being. Yes, Kennedy was ". . . not only the handsomest, the best dressed, the most articulate, and graceful as a gazelle. He is omniscient; he swallows and digests whole books in minutes; his eye seizes instantly on the crucial point of a long memorandum; he confounds experts with superior knowledge of their field. He is omnipresent; no sleepy staff member can be sure that he will not telephone—or pop in; every hostess at a party can hope that he will. He is omnipotent; he personally bosses and spurs the whole shop; he has no need of Ike’s [Eisenhower's] staff apparatus; he is more than a lion, more than a fox. He’s Superman!" in the words of political scientist and presidential biographer James MacGregor Burns. Yet this quote adequately depicts his public persona only. The recordings show us his human side not chiseled by the adoring media.
Whether you are more interested in President John F. Kennedy's reactions to the major calamities of his administration, such as the assassination of Diem and Nhu, or in his eavesdropping on the Joint Chiefs, or in his taped letters to his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, in which he mocks some of their friends good-naturedly, LISTENING IN is a must-read. It will give you amazing insight into the inner workings of the presidential office. It will also entertain you and surprise you on more than one occasion.
September 4, 2013
Most of the conversations here are a lot more mundane than you might expect. The recordings included were chosen to show what it was like day to day to be a president facing many issues. They don't reveal any big secrets or even much new information. Even the meetings about serious issues don't make a lot of sense. All the people talk in a sort of shorthand, because they were all familiar with the particulars and the conversations weren't meant for outside ears.
This is worth reading and listening to if you have a lot of patience and you like history. I thought it was especially interesting to see how much of Kennedy's time was spent cultivating good will (read: sucking up) with previous U.S. presidents and with leaders of other countries. That basic courtesy was essential to his effectiveness.
This is worth reading and listening to if you have a lot of patience and you like history. I thought it was especially interesting to see how much of Kennedy's time was spent cultivating good will (read: sucking up) with previous U.S. presidents and with leaders of other countries. That basic courtesy was essential to his effectiveness.
November 14, 2019
This is a collection of some of the tape and dictaphone recordings made of JFK from 1940 until 1963, Caroline Kennedy having written the foreword, it is, unsurprisingly, sympathetic--but not entirely sanitized. Most of the recordings are arranged by themes such as civil rights, the space program, Cuba, arms control and Vietnam. A CD accompanies the text.
August 28, 2023
some of the best audio about Kennedy talking about Dien and Nhu
November 4th 1963
in here
it complements the Dark Side of Camelot nicely
November 4th 1963
in here
it complements the Dark Side of Camelot nicely
August 3, 2017
Like being a fly on the wall ... Incredible!
November 25, 2014
Being a fan of JFK's presidency, I had wanted to read this book as soon as it was released. The fact that two audio CD's accompany the book was an added bonus. It's interesting that I read this book at the same time that a documentary on Richard Nixon was released, essentially allowing the American public to listen in to Nixon's conversations during his own presidency. Nixon's tapes were recently declassified by the FBI (they were taken by the agency during the Watergate scandal). To have watched the Nixon documentary twice while reading and then listening to Kennedy's words was interesting by having a look into both men and how they chose to govern.
It's unclear why JFK decided to begin to record his own conversations. These tapes begin after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion, leading some historians to comment that Kennedy was much more astute in how history would hold him accountable for what he said and did. Others believe that the recordings were the foundation for a future planned memoir. Either way, having read the book and listened to Kennedy's own voice, I believe these recordings show JFK in more than a positive light. What is clear is the fact that Kennedy was a sharp-minded thinker, willing to delve into the complex issues of his time. When you listen in to the meetings held during the Cuban Missile Crisis and hear Kennedy dissect the problem as he saw it, you come away with a respect for the man's command of history and ability to break down complex issues. From the onset of the Crisis, Kennedy was sure that Nikita Khrushchev was motivated to make moves in Cuba (in part) to bait the Kennedy administration to respond. Banking on the "trigger happy" notion that Kennedy would make a military move on Cuba, the Russians would then be justified to make a move on Berlin, their real target. Kennedy reasoned that, if this occurred, our European Allies (and history) would judge us poorly for our lack of regard for Berlin and westernized progress in Europe following WWII. Interestingly enough, JFK's judgment in making the connection between Cuba & Berlin was not shared by most in his cabinet (and by his predecessor, Dwight D. Eisenhower, as evident by the taped conversations between the two). In one meeting, Kennedy leaves the room, leaving his unsuspecting military advisors to talk behind his back, commenting about their feeling JFK lacked the will & resolve to deal with the Russians. Luckily for us and the world, Kennedy was right while his advisors (as well as Eisenhower & Nixon) were wrong. These tapes are proof that the naysayers had it wrong. IF President Kennedy had listened to Eisenhower, Nixon, or any number of his advisors, he would have made a military move on Cuba, a move that we now know would have led to the destruction of the world. This more than plausible possibility makes the fact of JFK's defeat of Nixon in 1960 much more important to history. Kennedy learned from the Bay of Pigs, effectively allowing him to trust his own judgments and instincts over others -- and all the world benefitted from that truth. Kennedy wanted to hear the opinions of others, but the Bay of Pigs taught him not to be ruled or guided solely by those opinions.
It was also interesting to hear JFK's thoughts on Civil Rights and Vietnam. Kennedy, a man not known for his personal moral standing, shows here in his tapes that he was willing to risk a one term presidency to do what he saw was right and moral, namely the move towards civil liberties and rights for black citizens of the South. Likewise, it's interesting to hear JFK discuss his views and understanding of the situation in Vietnam. Despite what some might say, these tapes prove Kennedy did not ascribe to the domino effect felt by other politicians of his time (Eisenhower & Nixon included). These tapes prove a cautious president, unwilling to commit to a long term scenario in the region.
Kennedy's conversations show a man willing to listen and gauge opinions in an effort to help him come to the right conclusions and decisions for the American people. These tapes are in stark contrast to Nixon's tapes, which show a man who was insecure, paranoid and bigoted; a man who was not interested in gaining insight from others. Nixon's conversations, as heard in the CNN documentary (entitled, Our Nixon) are usually one-sided. I encourage students of history to review both presidents to gain a greater perspective on a very interesting and crucial time in American history. This book on Kennedy serves a reminder for what our nation had in JFK's leadership and what we lost as a result of his assassination. For a fan of his presidency and for what he achieved during his 1000 days in the White House, I'm happy to have read it.
FINISHED 8-15-13
It's unclear why JFK decided to begin to record his own conversations. These tapes begin after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion, leading some historians to comment that Kennedy was much more astute in how history would hold him accountable for what he said and did. Others believe that the recordings were the foundation for a future planned memoir. Either way, having read the book and listened to Kennedy's own voice, I believe these recordings show JFK in more than a positive light. What is clear is the fact that Kennedy was a sharp-minded thinker, willing to delve into the complex issues of his time. When you listen in to the meetings held during the Cuban Missile Crisis and hear Kennedy dissect the problem as he saw it, you come away with a respect for the man's command of history and ability to break down complex issues. From the onset of the Crisis, Kennedy was sure that Nikita Khrushchev was motivated to make moves in Cuba (in part) to bait the Kennedy administration to respond. Banking on the "trigger happy" notion that Kennedy would make a military move on Cuba, the Russians would then be justified to make a move on Berlin, their real target. Kennedy reasoned that, if this occurred, our European Allies (and history) would judge us poorly for our lack of regard for Berlin and westernized progress in Europe following WWII. Interestingly enough, JFK's judgment in making the connection between Cuba & Berlin was not shared by most in his cabinet (and by his predecessor, Dwight D. Eisenhower, as evident by the taped conversations between the two). In one meeting, Kennedy leaves the room, leaving his unsuspecting military advisors to talk behind his back, commenting about their feeling JFK lacked the will & resolve to deal with the Russians. Luckily for us and the world, Kennedy was right while his advisors (as well as Eisenhower & Nixon) were wrong. These tapes are proof that the naysayers had it wrong. IF President Kennedy had listened to Eisenhower, Nixon, or any number of his advisors, he would have made a military move on Cuba, a move that we now know would have led to the destruction of the world. This more than plausible possibility makes the fact of JFK's defeat of Nixon in 1960 much more important to history. Kennedy learned from the Bay of Pigs, effectively allowing him to trust his own judgments and instincts over others -- and all the world benefitted from that truth. Kennedy wanted to hear the opinions of others, but the Bay of Pigs taught him not to be ruled or guided solely by those opinions.
It was also interesting to hear JFK's thoughts on Civil Rights and Vietnam. Kennedy, a man not known for his personal moral standing, shows here in his tapes that he was willing to risk a one term presidency to do what he saw was right and moral, namely the move towards civil liberties and rights for black citizens of the South. Likewise, it's interesting to hear JFK discuss his views and understanding of the situation in Vietnam. Despite what some might say, these tapes prove Kennedy did not ascribe to the domino effect felt by other politicians of his time (Eisenhower & Nixon included). These tapes prove a cautious president, unwilling to commit to a long term scenario in the region.
Kennedy's conversations show a man willing to listen and gauge opinions in an effort to help him come to the right conclusions and decisions for the American people. These tapes are in stark contrast to Nixon's tapes, which show a man who was insecure, paranoid and bigoted; a man who was not interested in gaining insight from others. Nixon's conversations, as heard in the CNN documentary (entitled, Our Nixon) are usually one-sided. I encourage students of history to review both presidents to gain a greater perspective on a very interesting and crucial time in American history. This book on Kennedy serves a reminder for what our nation had in JFK's leadership and what we lost as a result of his assassination. For a fan of his presidency and for what he achieved during his 1000 days in the White House, I'm happy to have read it.
FINISHED 8-15-13
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 21, 2021
This book would have been better for me personally if I was more knowledgeable of the historical context. I think it would be a truly amazing companion in that regard. So the 3 stars purely reflects my own enjoyment of it, not the quality of the content.
December 8, 2012
This book is incredible and revealing. The President is the highest, most prestigious official in our country, and we really know so little about what happens behind the scenes. This book offers the American people a glimpse at those tense, turbulent, emotional, moments. We get to see and understand how a president thought and felt, and the inner workings of the decision making.
In the introduction, Widmer wrote, " After so many words have been written about John F. Kennedy, it feels right to let him speak for himself. This is the closest to an autobiography we will ever get" (p. 5). We know so much historically about the Kennedy presidency, we know the timeline of fateful events, but this books shows us, in Kennedy's own words, his thoughts, feelings, worries decisions, frustrations, and celebrations. It is the humanity behind the presidency.
And in so many ways, the issues of 1961-1963 are still relevant today. Kennedy tackle Civil Rights, Communism, space exploration, foreign relations. In the chapter "The Burden and the Glory," Widmer writes, "...Kennedy cautioned Americans against seeking comfort in the 'safe mediocrity of the past,' and he certainly would not have wanted readers to attack the problems of the twenty first century by repeating the well-worn catchphrases of an earlier generation. But perhaps by asking Americans to deepen their acquaintance with the issues, and to renew their commitment to talk with one another, as the participants in these converstaions do so well, these tapes will serve a new purpose that he never intended. That would be worthy of the final legacy of John F. Kennedy; not to romanticize his time, but to embrace and engage with our own" (p. 270).
In the introduction, Widmer wrote, " After so many words have been written about John F. Kennedy, it feels right to let him speak for himself. This is the closest to an autobiography we will ever get" (p. 5). We know so much historically about the Kennedy presidency, we know the timeline of fateful events, but this books shows us, in Kennedy's own words, his thoughts, feelings, worries decisions, frustrations, and celebrations. It is the humanity behind the presidency.
And in so many ways, the issues of 1961-1963 are still relevant today. Kennedy tackle Civil Rights, Communism, space exploration, foreign relations. In the chapter "The Burden and the Glory," Widmer writes, "...Kennedy cautioned Americans against seeking comfort in the 'safe mediocrity of the past,' and he certainly would not have wanted readers to attack the problems of the twenty first century by repeating the well-worn catchphrases of an earlier generation. But perhaps by asking Americans to deepen their acquaintance with the issues, and to renew their commitment to talk with one another, as the participants in these converstaions do so well, these tapes will serve a new purpose that he never intended. That would be worthy of the final legacy of John F. Kennedy; not to romanticize his time, but to embrace and engage with our own" (p. 270).
May 30, 2013
This book is a great read/listen not only for Kennedy buffs, but for anyone interested in the historical events of the Kennedy era (Civil Rights Movement, Cold War, Space Race, Vietnam, etc....), and for anyone with any interest at all in how the presidency operates and what the President actually does on a day to day basis. Starting in 1962, President Kennedy installed recording devices in both his phone and the Oval Office to record his day-to-day interactions (assumedly both for the sake of a memoir he hoped to write one day, as well as to cover his butt after bad advice from military officials played a major role in the failed Bay of Pigs invasion). The result is something that I would call nothing less than a national treasure. Having such an open and candid view of the presidency is an amazing gift, especially due to the fact that the JFK Memorial Library released these tapes for the American public as a whole to enjoy and learn from. Reading the transcripts is interesting and informative, but the CDs of the recordings that comes with this book transports and engrosses a reader into the presidential narrative in a way the book alone wouldn't. I can't help but think what an amazing and complete story of American history we would have if every President had a collection like this one!
Bonus: It was a pretty enjoyable moment to hear a recording of President Kennedy calling someone "a silly bastard" and "an incompetent fuckup."
Bonus: It was a pretty enjoyable moment to hear a recording of President Kennedy calling someone "a silly bastard" and "an incompetent fuckup."
July 12, 2013
This book puts a whole new twist on the Kennedy Administration. I read this book a little differently than I do most books I read this book by listening to the audio CDs that are included with the book. What amazes me most about reading it this way is the book comes alive in a whole different way than by just sitting and reading your self. It was almost like I was transported back in time and new exactly what he was thinking and what issues were involved and challenges he faced during his administration. The only thing that I wish with the audio it had been a little more organized because in some parts of the book the audio was kind of scattered throughout different chapters I wish you had followed more in line with how you read a book.
The photos also enhance the book is well at the start of each chapter by looking at the photos you really get a clear picture of what the audio might entail for that chapter through the pictures that are at the introduction to each chapter. It also really helps you understand what really happened in history at that particular time. For instance, he talks about Cuba, Vietnam, the Berlin wall, civil rights, and finally his presidency overall and space. I would definitely read this book again and recommend it to any Kennedy fans. Although I know there are not too many people my age that no who he was but if you read this book I guarantee you will get a first-hand look into who it was and what he faced while he was alive.
The photos also enhance the book is well at the start of each chapter by looking at the photos you really get a clear picture of what the audio might entail for that chapter through the pictures that are at the introduction to each chapter. It also really helps you understand what really happened in history at that particular time. For instance, he talks about Cuba, Vietnam, the Berlin wall, civil rights, and finally his presidency overall and space. I would definitely read this book again and recommend it to any Kennedy fans. Although I know there are not too many people my age that no who he was but if you read this book I guarantee you will get a first-hand look into who it was and what he faced while he was alive.
January 17, 2013
"Listening In" is a collection of conversations that President Kennedy secretly recorded in the oval office while he was president. Reading these conversations would have been fascinating enough; however the book comes with two cd's which contain 2 1/2 hours of the actual recordings. In them you hear not only JFK, but also his brother, Robert, his wife, and his children, not to mention Presidents Truman, Hoover and Eisenhower, Martin Luther King, Jr., Nikita Khrushchev and various politicians. I learned so much more from this book than I ever did in school, and though, like in school, I was sometimes bored with all the names and dates, I was still drawn in by the actual voices of history playing in my living room. If you enjoy history even a little, you don't want to miss this one.
December 11, 2012
This book was a disappointment to me. The topics seem to skip around quite a bit never really delving deeply into any subject. The book was co-authored by Caroline Kennedy and published through the auspices of the Kennedy Library so the material has obviously been filtered to some extent to portray President Kennedy in a positive light. I thought the oral history book done with recordings of Mrs. Kennedy was much better, more comprehensive, and had more audio material than this book. Interesting, but not earth shattering.
March 22, 2013
In conjunction with the fiftieth anniversary of the Kennedy presidency, the John F. Kennedy Library have selected the most compelling and important recordings of the taped material of John Kennedy. Included with the book are 2 CD's of the actual recordings. The book itself details the circumstances surrounding the recordings. This book covers such watershed moments as the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Space Race, Vietnam and the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. It is a shocking yet defining look back in the tumultuous 60's. A must read for anyone who lived thru them!
April 19, 2014
Interesting to read how decisions are reached by those in positions of leadership. Especially to hear JFK talk about how he came to be involved in politics and just what motivated him to seek the White House
March 28, 2016
Good. Book
June 30, 2021
I stumbled across some of the recordings from this book on YouTube, and I was absolutely fascinated to hear a President privately talking to his advisors and even previous presidents. I wanted to hear the whole thing, so I immediately ordered a copy of the book.
I'm not American, but even so my view of JFK is mostly positive. I believe he was genuinely interested in making his country a better place, and while worried about the state of the world around him wasn't trying to play World Police like some later presidents did. The Cold War is clearly on his mind much of the time, and during the Cuban Missile Crisis in particular it is absolutely riveting to hear these enormous life & death decisions being made. Would the Soviets actually fire the missiles? What can realistically be done to get rid of the missiles in Cuba? How much provocation do the Soviets think they can get away with? JFK concludes, like the majority at the time, that *neither* side wanted a nuclear war. There are no winners when total annihilation is the goal.
Insight into his relationship with Jackie and the kids is also interspersed throughout the book and recordings. It's clear that he cared very deeply about his family, and I believe he worried greatly about his children growing up in such an abnormal atmosphere as the White House (something I'm sure every President thinks about). The recording of him discussing his political career and trajectory prior to his Presidential run in particular is very interesting. He was very well-spoken and clearly understood the issues the country was facing. It never ceases to amaze me how eloquent and well-spoken political leaders from all countries were in the first 2/3rds of the 20th century. A lot of that eloquence has been lost in order to dumb down messaging and campaigning to the lowest common denominator. Hearing JFK speak extemporaneously about various topics is a great insight into the man and his mind.
Whether or not you like the Kennedys and their brand of politics, this book and included CD are simply fascinating inside looks at how Presidents think and act. I'm sure modern Presidents are quite different, but even so the stakes are still the same in many cases. A revealing and intimate portrait of JFK and a must-read for any JFK fans.
I'm not American, but even so my view of JFK is mostly positive. I believe he was genuinely interested in making his country a better place, and while worried about the state of the world around him wasn't trying to play World Police like some later presidents did. The Cold War is clearly on his mind much of the time, and during the Cuban Missile Crisis in particular it is absolutely riveting to hear these enormous life & death decisions being made. Would the Soviets actually fire the missiles? What can realistically be done to get rid of the missiles in Cuba? How much provocation do the Soviets think they can get away with? JFK concludes, like the majority at the time, that *neither* side wanted a nuclear war. There are no winners when total annihilation is the goal.
Insight into his relationship with Jackie and the kids is also interspersed throughout the book and recordings. It's clear that he cared very deeply about his family, and I believe he worried greatly about his children growing up in such an abnormal atmosphere as the White House (something I'm sure every President thinks about). The recording of him discussing his political career and trajectory prior to his Presidential run in particular is very interesting. He was very well-spoken and clearly understood the issues the country was facing. It never ceases to amaze me how eloquent and well-spoken political leaders from all countries were in the first 2/3rds of the 20th century. A lot of that eloquence has been lost in order to dumb down messaging and campaigning to the lowest common denominator. Hearing JFK speak extemporaneously about various topics is a great insight into the man and his mind.
Whether or not you like the Kennedys and their brand of politics, this book and included CD are simply fascinating inside looks at how Presidents think and act. I'm sure modern Presidents are quite different, but even so the stakes are still the same in many cases. A revealing and intimate portrait of JFK and a must-read for any JFK fans.
April 10, 2019
Top three takeaways of mine:
- This book kind of opens mind of a president and shows you how actually president is thinking, if not reacting to critical situations. It was interesting to read transcripts of phonecalls or meetings of US president.
- This book was mind blowing in terms of being able to access such data, i mean this is a secret recording of oval office that took place like 50 years ago. How awesome is that? We probably dont see those classified ones but still, this is awesome.
- It was very, very interesting to read reactions of J F Kennedy on Cuba missle crisis, it was also really scary to see that military advisors were trying to solve any problem by using force. They were also naive in terms of assuming just dropping a couple o' bombs on small zone would be totally welcomed and not start WW3. Geez people, are you for real?
- This book kind of opens mind of a president and shows you how actually president is thinking, if not reacting to critical situations. It was interesting to read transcripts of phonecalls or meetings of US president.
- This book was mind blowing in terms of being able to access such data, i mean this is a secret recording of oval office that took place like 50 years ago. How awesome is that? We probably dont see those classified ones but still, this is awesome.
- It was very, very interesting to read reactions of J F Kennedy on Cuba missle crisis, it was also really scary to see that military advisors were trying to solve any problem by using force. They were also naive in terms of assuming just dropping a couple o' bombs on small zone would be totally welcomed and not start WW3. Geez people, are you for real?
November 17, 2018
Do not expect to hear the high phrases which Kennedy would use in his speeches, even though there are some, or an at depth analysis of what is being said. The value of this book, and if you choose to, the recordings, is that you can listen in on the everyday conversations between Kennedy and his advisors. You hear the advice he got, some of the questioning he asked, and the directions he gave. That is the true value of this book.
If you would like to read more of my notes and thoughts, please see my book blog.
If you would like to read more of my notes and thoughts, please see my book blog.
April 3, 2019
Very informative, at least it was so much better then Nixon
Unless you know nothing about JFK's administration, you might not learn anything new. Otherwise, it's quite the entertaining read. Until I heard about the book, I didn't know JFK had this recording system. Among others, thank you Caroline!!
Unless you know nothing about JFK's administration, you might not learn anything new. Otherwise, it's quite the entertaining read. Until I heard about the book, I didn't know JFK had this recording system. Among others, thank you Caroline!!
May 23, 2019
This book made me see history in a whole different life. I now understand the conniving that went on during the so called Missile Crisis. I now see who was the pawn in the whole game of political chess. But the book fails greatly in one respect: Not a word is said about the disaster of Bay of Pigs. Not one word. That is a travesty and treasonous to history.
April 11, 2021
What an awesome idea! President Kennedy was such an intellectual and a political genius. He learned from the best and knew who the enemies where. This was a great piece of work. I’ve always had a love for the Kennedy’s and their plight in America. I highly recommend this book.
January 20, 2026
Listening In was very well put together. The discussions of his time and presidency. John F. Kennedy certainly understood his time. Concerned with the issues he dealt with. Now finished reading. I will now enjoy the CD 💿 . Great book.
August 19, 2019
Havent listened to the cd yet but I plan on it.. this book was very enlightening and reminded me that historical figures were also people.
January 8, 2024
Good, easy-to-read transcripts. Everything else could have been cut in half (just a suggestion)
October 25, 2012
From http://weeksnotice.blogspot.com/2012/...
Tuesday, November 12, having difficulties in Latin America or the Alliance for Progress. The Argentines threatening to expropriate our oil. The Brazilians, the Brazilian [João] Goulart, ignoring the Alliance for Progress. Obviously, both playing a very nationalist game. And then the rumor that the Dominican Republic may break relations with us. They're irritated with the United States for not recognizing and making their lot more difficult. All this is, indicates a rising tide of nationalism and a lessening of their dependence upon the United States. In addition, they have a radical left who [unclear] at home, so that our lot becomes more difficult.
John F. Kennedy dictated that privately on November 12, 1963, only ten days before he was assassinated. It's part of a series of recordings he made, including conversations, that are in the new book Listening In: The Secret White House Recordings of John F. Kennedy. Very cool book, which includes quite a lot on the Cuban Missile Crisis.
That particular quote is interesting for a number of reasons.
Latin America was weighing on his mind. He did personal dictations on issues that he was really concerned about. We tend to view the Cuban Missile Crisis as a US-Soviet problem, and he had a lot of other global problems on his plate, but clearly he saw serious problems on the horizon in Latin America that required his attention.
The concerns are so similar to today, though fortunately we don't have the Cold War framing it. But the "lessening of dependence" and fear of "a radical left" are echoed all the time now.
LBJ rightly is criticized for his aggressive stance toward Latin America, but JFK was thinking about the same problems. JFK was unhappy about Goulart and had a wary eye on the DR. He almost certainly would've followed the same path in Brazil (strong support for the coup). Would he have invaded the DR? Given how shaken he was by Cuba, it's entirely possible.
The book comes with CDs, and for the excerpt above he sounds incredibly tired, talking slowly and without enthusiasm.
Tuesday, November 12, having difficulties in Latin America or the Alliance for Progress. The Argentines threatening to expropriate our oil. The Brazilians, the Brazilian [João] Goulart, ignoring the Alliance for Progress. Obviously, both playing a very nationalist game. And then the rumor that the Dominican Republic may break relations with us. They're irritated with the United States for not recognizing and making their lot more difficult. All this is, indicates a rising tide of nationalism and a lessening of their dependence upon the United States. In addition, they have a radical left who [unclear] at home, so that our lot becomes more difficult.
John F. Kennedy dictated that privately on November 12, 1963, only ten days before he was assassinated. It's part of a series of recordings he made, including conversations, that are in the new book Listening In: The Secret White House Recordings of John F. Kennedy. Very cool book, which includes quite a lot on the Cuban Missile Crisis.
That particular quote is interesting for a number of reasons.
Latin America was weighing on his mind. He did personal dictations on issues that he was really concerned about. We tend to view the Cuban Missile Crisis as a US-Soviet problem, and he had a lot of other global problems on his plate, but clearly he saw serious problems on the horizon in Latin America that required his attention.
The concerns are so similar to today, though fortunately we don't have the Cold War framing it. But the "lessening of dependence" and fear of "a radical left" are echoed all the time now.
LBJ rightly is criticized for his aggressive stance toward Latin America, but JFK was thinking about the same problems. JFK was unhappy about Goulart and had a wary eye on the DR. He almost certainly would've followed the same path in Brazil (strong support for the coup). Would he have invaded the DR? Given how shaken he was by Cuba, it's entirely possible.
The book comes with CDs, and for the excerpt above he sounds incredibly tired, talking slowly and without enthusiasm.
July 2, 2013
comes with CD's of the calls and meetings transcribed in the book. Amazing to listen to -- my older sibs remember his assassination, but to me (b. 1961) it's like listening to a recording of Abe Lincoln deliberating about Civil War strategy.
Organized thematically -- Cuban missile crisis, Vietnam, Civil rights, space program,.......
some of the language (constant references to "Negroes", e.g.) and mores (not sure a modern political polling outfit would call the President to ask exactly what questions he wanted included in next survey, as Lou Harris did with JFK 8/23/63) are dated, but not the constant worry about reelection, about appeasing his liberal supporters while still compromising enough to get legislation passed, etc.
These were tapes made in his office at JFK's initiation, not a complete record, and the editing/compiling is the work of hand-picked people, with intro by Caroline Kennedy, so there's no pretense of objectivity, no coverage of personal scandals, etc. Audio quality is also mixed, to say the least.
A few of the selections were puzzlingly vague. Here he is talking to his brother Robert 3/2/63 (p. 70)
RFK: hello, Jack?
JFK: yeah
RFK: The thing, of course, to remember on this, I don't know how much you're gonna get into it, but the thing to remember on this, is this, what you did on that day, Tuesday, for Wednesday, was something that was added to the plan.
JFK: yeah. Oh, yeah.
RFK: And not something that was taken away or was in a plan that was made inadequate by some deficiency in withdrawal of something....
JFK: Yeah, That's right.
RFK: That you added that on Tuesday.
JFK: Yeah..... [and on like this for another page and a half or so]
glad we got that settled......
But in fairness, most of the material is of obvious importance, and the intro's to each section are helpful in setting the context.
I wish my Mom were alive to read/listen to this stuff. Like a lot of people of her generation, she was preoccupied with the Kennedy's and would I think have gotten a kick out of it.
Organized thematically -- Cuban missile crisis, Vietnam, Civil rights, space program,.......
some of the language (constant references to "Negroes", e.g.) and mores (not sure a modern political polling outfit would call the President to ask exactly what questions he wanted included in next survey, as Lou Harris did with JFK 8/23/63) are dated, but not the constant worry about reelection, about appeasing his liberal supporters while still compromising enough to get legislation passed, etc.
These were tapes made in his office at JFK's initiation, not a complete record, and the editing/compiling is the work of hand-picked people, with intro by Caroline Kennedy, so there's no pretense of objectivity, no coverage of personal scandals, etc. Audio quality is also mixed, to say the least.
A few of the selections were puzzlingly vague. Here he is talking to his brother Robert 3/2/63 (p. 70)
RFK: hello, Jack?
JFK: yeah
RFK: The thing, of course, to remember on this, I don't know how much you're gonna get into it, but the thing to remember on this, is this, what you did on that day, Tuesday, for Wednesday, was something that was added to the plan.
JFK: yeah. Oh, yeah.
RFK: And not something that was taken away or was in a plan that was made inadequate by some deficiency in withdrawal of something....
JFK: Yeah, That's right.
RFK: That you added that on Tuesday.
JFK: Yeah..... [and on like this for another page and a half or so]
glad we got that settled......
But in fairness, most of the material is of obvious importance, and the intro's to each section are helpful in setting the context.
I wish my Mom were alive to read/listen to this stuff. Like a lot of people of her generation, she was preoccupied with the Kennedy's and would I think have gotten a kick out of it.
June 3, 2015
Last night in my dreams, I heard one of the spies saying that none of the 1963-born people have been allowed to prove to be sane, from no longer being spied on, because, since the Kennedy Administration was involved in spying, then the former President John F. Kennedy assassin, with last name Wilcox, according to that same spy, a British soldier that England had hired to murder the culprit of spying, would, should spying ever really end, at that point, have thus successfully ended spying and thus would then have to be let out of jail on the grounds of having completing his assigned mission, at that point, considered to be a righteous act. Yet, letting an assassin out of jail would not be righteous, for then the resultant implication at that point would be that anyone could be justifiably murdered. That same spy added that the 1963-born people are being targeted with the same kind of spy activity, against them all, because such an ongoing experience makes them all seem to have been born insane, that is, hallucinatory, in the same year as the Kennedy assassination year, which others consequently have presumed to be an astrologically bad year, especially for everyone born that year. If all of the above facts that that same spy said were actually true, I think that at the start of that same presumably bad year, that is, in January of 1963, perhaps a major forgery had occurred, perhaps of a major work of art produced in England. Those same forgers of that same work of art might have started spying, to say that watching people create works of art can be innocent. Did a major forgery occur some time in 1963? If so, since the spying might have started in the White House, according to Ted Widmer's (forward by Caroline Kennedy) Listening In: The Secret White House Recordings of John F. Kennedy, New York, NY: Hyperion, The John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, 2012, was a major forgery right there in the White House in 1963? If so, is it still there?
February 12, 2014
Okay, so I’m a history buff. I’m also a Camelot history buff, a communism history buff, and a Presidential history buff. So basically this concept was totally up my alley. Listening In contains some of the secret recordings of the Kennedy era, spanning subjects from the Civil Rights Movement, the Cuban Missile Crisis and other intriguing events. It had so much potential.
It just fell a little flat. Sure, some of the conversations were really interesting. To see exactly what was going on in the White House during some of the most critical moments of the Cuban Missile Crisis and being able to listen in on just what Kennedy thought of his political opponents was really cool, but a lot of the conversations were just boring.
It was like the author picked out random conversations from the Kennedy tapes, not paying any attention to the actual content and quality of the conversations. I saw what was being said about potentially going to war with the Soviets (PS this book made me sure that Kennedy would not have gone into Vietnam and I’m willing to argue about it if you want to challenge me on that.) But there’s also a lot of Kennedy saying “Yeah” and “Sure” to his staff as they give him relatively boring status reports. I understand that maybe some of the more intriguing bits might still be classified, but there’s no need to include a five or six line transcript of Kennedy congratulating a hockey coach on winning an important game.
In short this book had some amazing potential, but it just fell short. There are a few gems within its pages, but most of the conversations are huge disappointments. If you’re interested in the subject, go for it, but if you’re looking for some juicy details of the Kennedy regime, don’t bother.
3/5 stars
It just fell a little flat. Sure, some of the conversations were really interesting. To see exactly what was going on in the White House during some of the most critical moments of the Cuban Missile Crisis and being able to listen in on just what Kennedy thought of his political opponents was really cool, but a lot of the conversations were just boring.
It was like the author picked out random conversations from the Kennedy tapes, not paying any attention to the actual content and quality of the conversations. I saw what was being said about potentially going to war with the Soviets (PS this book made me sure that Kennedy would not have gone into Vietnam and I’m willing to argue about it if you want to challenge me on that.) But there’s also a lot of Kennedy saying “Yeah” and “Sure” to his staff as they give him relatively boring status reports. I understand that maybe some of the more intriguing bits might still be classified, but there’s no need to include a five or six line transcript of Kennedy congratulating a hockey coach on winning an important game.
In short this book had some amazing potential, but it just fell short. There are a few gems within its pages, but most of the conversations are huge disappointments. If you’re interested in the subject, go for it, but if you’re looking for some juicy details of the Kennedy regime, don’t bother.
3/5 stars
August 11, 2015
This was a fascinating book.
I have often had to defend to my choices of top 3 presidents for including Kennedy. Professors told me I was including him because he was a martyr, because he was handsome, because he was a Catholic, or because my parents' generation was scarred by his assassination.
(I had a bunch of jerks for history professors in college, in case you cannot tell. It did not help that I was usually the only female in the classes, so the boys would have a good laugh over the "handsome" idea.)
Kennedy is number three because he subverted World War III and its implied nuclear holocaust.
This book details, in tense fashion, how close we (or you, as a nation, as I would have never been born) came to war. Far, far too close.
I also appreciated how Eisenhower and Truman were willing to help and advise Kennedy (even though they were not nice to each other) (across party lines, no less!) - something I doubt happens today.
Widmer talks that Kennedy planned to use the tapes for assistance in writing his memoirs. Since Kennedy's time in office was all too brief, Widmer points out that these tapes are the closest thing we have to a personal memoir.
My Top Three American Presidents
1. Abraham Lincoln - ended slavery, saved the Union
2. Franklin Roosevelt - guided country through Great Depression and most encompassing and horrific conflict in human history.
3. John Kennedy - used diplomacy to end situation that could have led to global extinction, laid foundation for the Civil Rights Act.
I have often had to defend to my choices of top 3 presidents for including Kennedy. Professors told me I was including him because he was a martyr, because he was handsome, because he was a Catholic, or because my parents' generation was scarred by his assassination.
(I had a bunch of jerks for history professors in college, in case you cannot tell. It did not help that I was usually the only female in the classes, so the boys would have a good laugh over the "handsome" idea.)
Kennedy is number three because he subverted World War III and its implied nuclear holocaust.
This book details, in tense fashion, how close we (or you, as a nation, as I would have never been born) came to war. Far, far too close.
I also appreciated how Eisenhower and Truman were willing to help and advise Kennedy (even though they were not nice to each other) (across party lines, no less!) - something I doubt happens today.
Widmer talks that Kennedy planned to use the tapes for assistance in writing his memoirs. Since Kennedy's time in office was all too brief, Widmer points out that these tapes are the closest thing we have to a personal memoir.
My Top Three American Presidents
1. Abraham Lincoln - ended slavery, saved the Union
2. Franklin Roosevelt - guided country through Great Depression and most encompassing and horrific conflict in human history.
3. John Kennedy - used diplomacy to end situation that could have led to global extinction, laid foundation for the Civil Rights Act.
November 27, 2012
Interesting insight to JFK. Can listen to recordings or read them or both. I enjoyed the book.....hoped for more recordings in some cases...particularly the Cuban missile crises. However, it did show how much the military was for a first strike option.
Also was interesting to see how early in his administration he was worrying about reelection.
Some of the recordings are kind of funny....like how pissed he was about the Navy spending $5,000 on furniture for a hospital room for Jacqueline K. if she had her baby in New England!! Wanted the Navy guy in the picture next to the furniture sent to Alaska! Was really upset about the press on this. But it shows concern about military waste in spending....nothing changes :)
It would have been ideal if the introductions to the recordings had been included on the CD's....they are important to understanding context. Would have made a great audio book in total as well as the written book.
I guess the recommendation is - a must read/listen for history and particularly Kennedy buffs.
Also was interesting to see how early in his administration he was worrying about reelection.
Some of the recordings are kind of funny....like how pissed he was about the Navy spending $5,000 on furniture for a hospital room for Jacqueline K. if she had her baby in New England!! Wanted the Navy guy in the picture next to the furniture sent to Alaska! Was really upset about the press on this. But it shows concern about military waste in spending....nothing changes :)
It would have been ideal if the introductions to the recordings had been included on the CD's....they are important to understanding context. Would have made a great audio book in total as well as the written book.
I guess the recommendation is - a must read/listen for history and particularly Kennedy buffs.
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