Campaign Trail Results: Game #1269529
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 1960
- Player Candidate: John F. Kennedy
- Running Mate: Lyndon Johnson
- Difficulty Level: Normal
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- Richard Nixon | 459 | 35,186,461 | 52.68 |
| ---- John F. Kennedy | 64 | 31,274,315 | 46.82 |
| ---- Harry Byrd | 14 | 338,326 | 0.51 |
Visits:
- Florida:2
- Missouri:2
- North Carolina:2
- California:1
- Michigan:1
- New Jersey:1
- New York:1
- Pennsylvania:1
- Texas:1
Answers:
- What kind of tone will you attempt to set in your campaign this fall?I will deemphasize the political aspect of this campaign, as much as practicable, and emphasize my own personality and leadership ability. Of course I will still make strong statements on the Cold War.
- What do you have to say about the selection of Lyndon Johnson as your running mate?Lyndon Johnson is a loyal Southerner and Senator from Texas who will spare no effort to advance a Democratic agenda.
- Lady Bird Johnson, LBJ's wife, has been spat on by a gathering of far-right protestors in a Dallas hotel lobby. What are your thoughts?I have no real comment to make, but I'm sure that the voters in Texas will be incensed at the incivility of this episode.
- There has been a proposal for a series of television debates between you and Kennedy. Is this something you are interested in?I would love to go against Nixon in a televised debate. We could use the exposure and I'm confident that I would win.
- Anti-Catholicism has been a huge issue thus far in the campaign, with hundreds of pamphlets and leaflets being distributed across the South and Midwest. Do you have any comment?Let's gather some of these leaflets and show them to the media and to major newspapers. I think they demonstrate the lengths that some people will go to discredit my candidacy.
- Anti-Catholicism continues to be an issue. Major newspapers have published a statement by 150 Protestant clergy, including Norman Vincent Peale, opposing any Catholic as President. Do you have any comment?Let's put a couple of statements into my next campaign speech to address this issue, and reassure the public that I take no orders from the Pope.
- There have been a large number of sit-ins recently, where black students and activists are sitting at whites-only lunch counters and department stores to advocate for desegregation. Do you support this movement?I support the civil rights movement, but I'm a little concerned about the disregard for the law that some of these activists have shown.
- Richard Nixon has made "experience" the centerpiece of his campaign. What do you have to say on this point?I question this premise, to be frank. It's still not clear to me exactly what role Nixon had in the Eisenhower Administration, or what policies of his have been implemented.
- There was a recent effort in Congress to pass a program to provide medical care to elderly Americans, but it was narrowly defeated. Will you make a further push for this type of program as President?I prefer a slightly different program, offering health insurance to the elderly that they can choose to purchase. The proposed program was mandatory, and also covered only those covered by the Social Security Act.
- Do you believe that the islands of Quemoy and Matsu should fall within the United States defense perimeter in Asia?It wouldn't be responsible of me to comment at this point. As President I will consult with our military leaders to determine what is appropriate.
- Is the United States adequately prepared to defend against the Soviet threat today?We can never be fully satisfied, but we have certainly held our own in the Cold War over the past eight years, compared to where we were during the Korean War.
- Do you believe the United States is adequately prepared to defend against the Soviet threat over the next ten years?I don't know, to be perfectly frank. Things are going well for now, but we will have many challenges to meet in places like Cuba, Lebanon, Latin America, Indochina, and elsewhere.
- Would you support the passage of a federal civil rights bill as President to address the worst excesses of segregation in the South?This is something that is more appropriately addressed by individual states, though I will do anything I can to enforce the decisions of our Supreme Court.
- Recently, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested at a sit-in in Atlanta, and has now been sentenced to four months in prison for failing to get a Georgia driver's license after moving to that state. Do you have any comment or action you would like to take?I will give a statement encouraging the State of Georgia to protect the safety of Mr. King, while criticizing him for participating in these inflammatory and illegal protests.
- Are you satisfied with the economy and the economic policies of this country over the past eight years?We must do better. Our present Administration has advocated a hard money policy which caused the recession of 1958 and left idle industrial capacity in our country.
- Do you support a minimum wage of $1.25 per hour, with some exceptions for small business? Such a measure was recently defeated in Congress.Our current minimum wage is sufficient in my opinion. The minimum wage is a necessary expedient but we shouldn't be increasing it so much that we cause unemployment.
- How serious, at the current time, do you believe the internal Communist threat is?It's unfortunate that we've become less vigilant on the internal Communist threat in recent years. Espionage and infiltration of our government is as serious a threat as external Soviet action.
- Do you believe that Cuba has been lost to the Communists as of this time? If so, do you think it is partially the fault of the United States?We will defend our base at Guantanamo and do anything else that is necessary if Cuba continues its hostility. However, it is too early to make a conclusive determination at this point.
- Should the United States apologize to the Soviet Union for the controversy surrounding the downed U-2 spy plane and surrounding espionage?Absolutely not. We cannot show weakness in the face of the Soviet threat, and the Paris Summit collapsed from the intransigence of Nikita Khrushchev.
- Did Dwight Eisenhower do the right thing when he sent federal troops to Little Rock to ensure the integration of the high school there?We should have found a better way to resolve this issue, rather than intrude into the sovereignty of an American state.
- What would you do as President to combat increasing unemployment in America's industrial cities?If we continue our current economic policies, the economy should continue to recover into the 1960s and we will see a rebound in our employment rate.
- Has the United States adequately defended against the Communist threat in Indochina? Would you support further action there if necessary?This is a situation that we need to watch carefully, and I am open to a variety of measures if necessary.
- What is your position on the power of labor unions in the United States?I support unions and I oppose the excesses of leaders such as Jimmy Hoffa. Unions, cleansed of their corrupt elements, should play a central role in the American economy.
- Do you believe that current levels of defense spending are adequate?I believe that we need more vigilance in the area of defense, for both military equipment and for missile development. We currently have a missile gap with the Soviet Union.
- Where will you spend your final day before the election?We will campaign up and down New York and the Eastern Seaboard.