And on January 28, just a week after taking office, Kennedy received his first full briefing on the Cuba plan. Although the military cautioned that the landing forces were not sufficiently large to defeat Castro’s militia, CIA director Dulles spoke optimistically, claiming that the invasion force was adequate to bring down the regime. Kennedy showed no inclination to shelve the plan. In fact he ordered that the planning go forward and that the military do a careful evaluation of the CIA’s proposal. This review was duly undertaken, and at the start of February the military chiefs signed off on
...more
