Campaign Trail Results: Game #815569
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 1960
- Player Candidate: John F. Kennedy
- Running Mate: Lyndon Johnson
- Difficulty Level: Impossible
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- Richard Nixon | 523 | 40,579,026 | 61.29 |
| ---- Harry Byrd | 14 | 395,789 | 0.60 |
| ---- John F. Kennedy | 0 | 25,237,510 | 38.12 |
Visits:
- Alabama:5
- Georgia:2
- Louisiana:2
- Arkansas:1
- Massachusetts:1
- Rhode Island:1
Answers:
- What kind of tone will you attempt to set in your campaign this fall?I have always been on the more moderate wing of the party. We need to emphasize my anti-Communism and my record as a Senator if we hope to win back the Eisenhower Democrats.
- 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?We can't be out there responding to every little two-bit leaflet that some crank puts out. Let's wait and see how this issue develops.
- 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?I am Catholic and proud of it. I will not respond to bigoted attacks or innuendo, and I trust that these attacks will only help me by driving higher Catholic turnout.
- 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?These activists are trespassing on the property of lawful businesses. I think there are better methods of pushing for change in the South.
- Richard Nixon has made "experience" the centerpiece of his campaign. What do you have to say on this point?Richard Nixon and I entered Congress in the same year, 1947, and have both served in the highest levels of government for some time.
- 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?This program would represent a massive new financial commitment for the federal government, when care of the elderly properly rests with the affected family.
- Currently the highest income tax bracket pays a rate of 91%. Will you work harder to cut tax rates as President?We need to cut this rate substantially. It is way too high.
- Is the United States adequately prepared to defend against the Soviet threat today?I am satisfied with our progress over the past few years. We have prevented further expansion while avoiding any major wars.
- 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.
- During the Great Depression, the federal government began a policy of farm subsidies to stabilize farm incomes and to target a specific output of each crop. Are these policies still necessary in 1960?We have too much of a farm surplus right now, and we need to reduce subsidies for production so that prices can fall into balance and benefit the consumer.
- Would you support the passage of a federal civil rights bill as President to address the worst excesses of segregation in the South?I would not support a measure like this. This would be an unnecessary and unconstitutional interference into the rights of our states.
- 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?Let's make a public comment criticizing this arrest, and expressing our hopes that this situation doesn't escalate any further.
- Are you satisfied with the economy and the economic policies of this country over the past eight years?The Eisenhower Administration has unfortunately failed to take any real action in undoing the excesses of the New Deal. I would like to see a more conservative Administration in power.
- 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.I believe a minimum wage is at the very least a bad economic idea, and possibly unconstitutional. I do not support this increase.
- 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've seen some alarming things out of Cuba, but this isn't necessarily a lost cause. Cuba has not declared itself a Communist state and we should be making overtures to prevent that.
- Should the United States apologize to the Soviet Union for the controversy surrounding the downed U-2 spy plane and surrounding espionage?We lost a lot of ground diplomatically after this event, and much of that could have been avoided had we issued a formal apology.
- Did Dwight Eisenhower do the right thing when he sent federal troops to Little Rock to ensure the integration of the high school there?He absolutely did, and I would like to see further action to desegregate our schools and enforce our civil rights.
- Has the United States adequately defended against the Communist threat in Indochina? Would you support further action there if necessary?We need to make sure we don't overextend ourselves into new regions when the situation does not warrant it.
- What is your position on the power of labor unions in the United States?We need to do anything we can to reduce the power of labor unions in this country, including a national right-to-work law.
- Do you believe that current levels of defense spending are adequate?In the final analysis, every dollar spent on defense is taken from more productive uses within our economy. I will look for ways to find common ground with the Soviet Union so that we can cut defense spending.
- Where will you spend your final day before the election?We will campaign up and down New York and the Eastern Seaboard.