raised again and soviet/american tensions increased even as khrushchev prepared to deal with john fitzgerald kennedy. and to those events that we return. i'll start by introducing our panelists at once. we'll have a steady flow from o one presentation to another. my immediate right is mr. lou mehrer, retired cia officer who served in senior assignments in washington and abroad. most recently featured in the production "spies beneath berlin." scheduled for commercial release later this summer. he holds a bachelor of arts in modern european history and continued his education at the university of frankfurt. later he earned a master's of arts degree in history. he's currently senior review officer at the cia classification center. dr. hope harrison is associate professor of history at george washington university. she's on leave from gw and is at the woodrow wilson international center for scholars here in washington. she's author of driving soviets up the wall, among other things. published by princeton university press in 2003 and recently published in german this year. dr. gregory w. pedlow has been

israel is the only country in the east that has a memorial, john fitzgerald kennedy, the only country at least that has a memorial for martin luther king. we mark martin luther king day. is the only country in the middle east that has a very large memorial for 9/11. it's the only country in the movies that has a park named for containing an exact replicate of the liberty bell to liberty bell park in jerusalem. to go to new york and josie obermeyer street, you come to her hometown in jerusalem you have washington street and you have lincoln street. though israeli can't say lincoln. you ask for lincoln street no one knows which are looking for. so have a great spiritual connection. you have a democratic affinity. but there was not was a military or strategic alliance to anyone who says israel and the united states have somehow allied military since thank for it doesn't know the military very will. there was a vote in the general assembly about the boycott of cuba embargo, irrespective of what you do about but the vote was 188-to make. can imagine who the two were. are voting record in i

israel is the only country in the middle east that has a memorial for john fitzgerald kennedy. it is the only country in the middle east that has a memorial for martin luther king. and we mark martin luther king day. it is the only country in the middle east that has a very large memorial for 9/11 just outside of jerusalem. it's the only country in the middle east that has a park named for and containing an exact replica of the liberty bell. liberty bell park in jerusalem. you go to new york -- you come to our hometown in jerusalem you have washington street and you have lincoln street. though israelis cannot say lincoln so they call it lincoln street. so you had the great spiritual connection. you had the democratic affinity. what there was not was a military or strategic alliance. anybody who says israel and the united states have been alied militarily since 1948 doesn't know their history very well. israel has always stood four square with the united states in the cold war. still does. a couple of weeks ago there was a vote in the general assembly about the boycott of cuba,

>> well, you know, john fitzgerald kennedy had a greatness about him.try through the cuban missile crisis, and we know now and you know very well how close we actually came to nuclear confrontation. something beyond confrontation. he inspired the country. he was in the peace corps. he made people -- he brought out the best. what he didn't have a good record of is passing legislation. lyndon johnson was clumsy. he was awkward. he was a terrible speaker. but what he could do -- you know, he says it's time to write it in the books of law. that's part of the job of a president too. to write it in the books of law. no one was ever better than johnson at doing that. >> now, contrast the style of lyndon johnson with this enormous legislative accomplishment with the style of barack obama as you have seen him. >> well, i know i'm supposed to say that there's this great contrast and obama hasn't done enough, but i don't happen -- i feel obama was faced with some real problems that we hardly remember anymore. the extent of the financial crisis. i happen to think h

today, john fitzgerald kennedy lives on in the immortal words and works that he left behind. he lives on in the mind and memories of mankind. he lives on in the hearts of his people. no words are sad enough to express our sense of loss. no words are strong enough to express our determination to determine the forward thrust of america that he began. (applause) >> rose: johnson also began, as we look forward to this, he wants to pass civil rights and yet the people that had put him in power in the senate... >> yes. >> rose:... were southern chairman. >> yes. >> rose: people like richard russell. >> yes. hairy byrd. >> rose: john stennis from mississippi. and all those people now he had to say to them we're going to rs program. >> yes, and it's something to watch the newsreels. they're all sitting in a row watching this speech. this is the man they raised to power and he.... >> rose: and he was younger than all of them. >> yes. >> rose: johnson knew that bypassing the civil rights bill that... what did he say about the future of the democratic party in the south? >> well, he sai

when i was in junior high, john fitzgerald kennedy was running for president. would undermine the separation of church and state, a fundamental principle in our unique democracy. now the fuhrer over the course of the campaign grew so loud that senator kennedy chose to deliver a speech about his beliefs just seven weeks before the november election. in his talk to protestant ministers, kennedy talked about his vision of religion and the public square. and he said he believed in an america, and i quote, where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of its officials, and where religious liberty is so indivisible that an act against one church is treated as an act against us all. senator kennedy was elected president of the united states on november 8, 1960 and here we are more than 50 years later, and that conversation about the intersection of our nations long tradition of religious freedom, with policy decisions in the public square, continues. contributing to these debates will require more t

when i was in the junior high, john fit gerald kennedy was -- fitzgerald was running for president.i wasn't old enough to vote, but it's really the first national campaign i really remember. some of then-senator kennedy's opponents attacked him for his religion, suggesting that electing the first catholic president would undermine the separation of church and state, a fundamental principle in our unique democracy. now, the fur record over the -- furor grew so loud that senator kennedy chose to deliver a speech about his beliefs just seven weeks before that november election. in his talk to protestant ministers, kennedy talked about his vision of religion in the public square. and he said he believed in an america, and i quote: where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of it officials and where religious liberty is so indivisible that an act against one church is treated as an act against us all. senator kennedy was elected president of the united states on november 8, 1960, and here we are more than 50 years

when i was in junior high, john fitzgerald kennedy was running for president. i wasn't old enough to vote but it's really the first national campaign i really remember. some of then senator kennedy's opponents attacked him for his religion, suggesting that electing the first cut the president would undermine the separation of church and state, a fundamental principle and are unique democracy. and the furor over the course of the campaign grew so loud that senator kennedy chose to deliver us each about his beliefs to seven weeks before the november election. has to protestant ministers, kennedy talked about his mission in the public square and he said he believed in america, and i quote, where no religious body seeks to impose its will directly or indirectly upon the general populace or the public acts of its officials and where religious liberty is so indivisible that an act against one church is treated as the ninth against assault. senator kennedy was elected president of the president of the united states on november 8, 1960 and here we are more than 50 year