Kennedy's Last Days: The Assassination That Defined a Generation Read Online Free PDF Page A

back is acting up. The half hour of breaststroke and the heat of the pool are part of Kennedy’s physical therapy.
    The White House staff is getting used to the new president and his family. Very little that was unexpected happened in the White House during the eight years the previous president, Dwight Eisenhower, lived there.
    But now everything has changed. The Kennedys are much less formal than the Eisenhowers. Receiving lines are being abolished, giving formal functions a more casual feel. The first lady is readying the East Room for performances by some of America’s most notable musicians, such as cellist and composer Pablo Casals, opera singer Grace Bumbry, jazz artist Paul Winter, and even full symphony orchestras.
    Still, the White House is a serious place. The president’s daily schedule revolves around periods of intense work followed by breaks for swimming and family time. He wakes up each morning around seven and reads the newspapers in bed, including the New York Times , Washington Post , and Wall Street Journal . Kennedy is a speed-reader; he can read and understand 1,200 words per minute. He is done with the newspapers in just 15 minutes, and then moves on to a pile of briefing books, reports prepared by his staff that summarize information about events going on around the world.
    The president then has his usual breakfast in bed: orange juice, bacon, toast slathered in marmalade, two soft-boiled eggs, and coffee with cream.

Kenny O’Donnell was Robert Kennedy’s roommate at Harvard College. The two were also on the football team. This portrait was taken in 1961. [JFK Presidential Library and Museum]
    He is in the Oval Office at nine o’clock sharp. He sits back in his chair and listens as his appointments secretary, Kenny O’Donnell, maps out his schedule. Throughout the morning, as Kennedy takes calls and listens to advisers brief him on what is happening in the rest of the world, he is interrupted by his handpicked staff. In addition to Dave Powers, who is now special assistant to the president, and Kenny O’Donnell, there are also the former Harvard history professor Arthur Schlesinger Jr.; Ted Sorensen, the Nebraska-born special counselor and adviser; and Pierre Salinger, the former child prodigy pianist who serves as press secretary.

Evelyn Lincoln was Kennedy’s personal secretary from his days in the Senate until his death. Caroline visited her office in the White House almost daily. [© Bettmann/Corbis]
    After swimming, Kennedy eats a quick lunch upstairs in the first family’s private rooms, often referred to as “the residence.” He then naps for exactly 45 minutes. Other great figures in history such as Winston Churchill napped during the day. For Kennedy, it is a means of rejuvenation.

Sometimes business turns into pleasure, as when Kennedy and prime minister of Ireland Sean Lemass (in front of the flag) try out golf clubs. [JFK Presidential Library and Museum]
    Then it’s back to the Oval Office, most nights working as late as 8:00 P.M. After business hours, Kennedy often puts two feet up on his desk and casually tosses ideas back and forth with his staff. It is the president’s favorite time of the day.
    When everyone has cleared out, he makes his way back upstairs to the residence for his evening meal with his family or with friends Jackie invites.

 
    CHAPTER SEVEN
    WINTER 1961
    United States, Cuba, and Soviet Union
    T HE WORLD OUTSIDE THE W HITE H OUSE is turbulent. The Cold War is raging. Americans are terrified of the Soviet Union and its arsenal of nuclear weapons. Towns stock bomb shelters, and in schools, children practice curling up under their desks to protect themselves in case of attack. J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI have created an atmosphere of suspicion by telling people that Communists are threatening America.

These children are arranging cans in a bomb shelter. [© Seattle Post-Intelligencer Collection; Museum of History and Industy/Corbis]
    Ninety miles south