Although President Kennedy wasn’t in office for very long, his actions in and out of the whitehouse are legendary. When President Kennedy took the oath of office in 1960 he wasted no time in cleaning up America. Several bills were enacted in President Kennedy’s tenor. A lot of the major ones had to do with crime control. A lot of President Kennedy’s bills were targeted at organized crime. Bill S1653 was singed into action on September 13 1961. This was an interstate travel bill. The bill made it a crime to travel or use any facilities in interstate commerce with intent to conduct violent crimes to further illegal gambling, liquor, narcotics, or prostitution business. This bill had a major effect shutting down a lot of “speakeasy’s” which took care of gambling, and betting. Customs got a lot tighter which had a great impact on the running of liquor to foreign countries such as Canada and Mexico. A lot of drug pushers were arrested and many Bordellos’ were also shut down. The senate passed Bill S1653 on July 28 and House on Aug 21. This was one of many anti-crime Bills that President Kennedy would enact throughout his term. A lot of his primary goals were oriented towards organized crime.
Another one of President Kennedy’s crime Bills to be passed in 1961 having to do with crime was Bill S1656. This Bill made it a crime for
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anyone in the betting business to knowingly use a wire communication facility to transmit in interstate commerce any bets or wager information. Also it made it a crime to be caught with any betting paraphernalia such as parley sheets or wager stubs. This authorized a lot of wire-tapping and surveillance. Bill S1656 was passed by the Senate on July 28 and by the house on August 21 and was signed September 13.
One other bill passed in 1961 by President Kennedy was the Fugitive felon act. This act made it a federal crime to cross boarders to avoid being prosecuted or remanded into custody after committing a violent crime or avoid giving testimony on a crime. This act was strongly enforced by local law enforcement agencies.
The Federal firearms act of 1961 was a major bill passed for President Kennedy in 1961. This act prohibited the shipment of firearms in interstate and foreign lands to people under inditment for certain crimes.
Not all of President Kennedy’s bills were directed towards the Mob and other such crime syndicates.
Carter, Gregg Lee, ed. “Federal Gun Laws.” Gun Control in the United States: A Reference
Congress in 1990 enacted the Gun-Free School Zone Act, making it a federal offence to possess a firearm in a school zone. Congress relied on the authority of the Commerce Clause of the Constitution to justify passage of legislation as a way of stemming the rising tide of gun related incidents in public schools.
Both John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon were elected to Congress in 46, a year in which the New Deal took a serious beating as the Republicans regained control of Congress on the slogan Had Enough? Nixon of course, had campaigned against incumbent Jerry Voorhis on an anti-New Deal platform, but it's often forgotten that when JFK first ran for the House in 1946, he differentiated himself from his Democratic primary opposition by describing himself as a fighting conservative. In private, Kennedy's antipathy to the traditional FDR New Deal was even more extensive. When Kennedy and Nixon were sworn in on the same day, both were already outspoken on the subject of the emerging Cold War. While running for office in 1946, Kennedy proudly told a radio audience of how he had lashed out against a left-wing group of Young Democrats for being naive on the subject of the Soviet Union, and how he had also attacked the emerging radical faction headed by Henry Wallace. Thus, when Kennedy entered the House, he was anything but progressive in his views of either domestic or foreign policy. It didn't take long for these two to form a friendship. Both were Navy men who had served in the South Pacific, and both saw themselves as occupying the vital center of their parties. Just as JFK lashed out against the New Deal and the radical wing of the Democratic party, so too did Richard Nixon distance himself from the right-wing of the Republican party. Nixon's support of Harry Truman's creation of NATO and the aid packages to Greece and Turkey meant rejecting the old guard isolationist bent of the conservative wing that had been embodied in Mr. Republican Senator Robert Taft. Indeed, when it came time for Nixon to back a nominee in 1948, his support went to the more centrist Thomas E. Dewey, and not to the conservative Taft. Kennedy decided to go into politics mainly because of the influence of his father. Joe Kennedy, Jr. had been killed in the European arena of World War II and so the political ambitions of the family got placed on the shoulders of John. Nixon, however, got involved in politics by chance. While celebrating the end of the war in New York, he received a telegram from an old family friend indicating that they needed someone to run against the Democrat Jerry Voorhis.
Kennedy was elected president in the year of 1961. Which was during the time that the Cold War was in full swing. The Cold War being the tension filled era between the superpowers in the east and the superpowers in the west. Contrary to the other two presidents, JFK was not speaking to the American public at the time of the war 's conclusion but right near the middle of the 40 plus year issue. Regardless he was assuring the public. He stated, “...that the torch has been passed to a new generation of American-”. That optimism cannot be matched. Even at the darkest of times could he stand up there, the president of the United States, and tell the young people of America that their time is now. Not only that but he attempts to inspire Americans when he says “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.”, which was definitely a knock at the Russians. JFK overall had this persona about him. This was the speech where muttered that historic and uplifting quote, “And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country.” His message of peace and coexisting really stand the test of
Kennedy, John F. The White House Special Message on Civil Rights. 28 Feb 1963. CongressLink. 7 April 2004. http://www.congresslink.org/civil/cr1.html
When Johnson took over the Presidency following the assassination of Kennedy, he was determined to push through the Great Society agenda. President Johnson used the recent death as a reason to quickly enact laws for social reform in memory of Kennedy. Despite Republican opposition, Johnson was able to get the Civil Rights Bill of 1964 passed through congress,
There were three known attempts on taking JFK?s life in the fall of 1963. In late October, Thomas Arthur Vallee was arrested by the secret service in Chicago days before a scheduled visit by Kennedy. Vallee was discovered to have an M-1 rifle, a handgun, and three thousand rounds of ammunition. Days later, the Secret Service received another threat: Kennedy would b...
The assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, marked a tragic historical moment in American history. The president was fatally shot by a sniper while traveling with his wife, Texas Governor John Connally, and Connally’s wife in a presidential motorcade at 12.30 pm on Friday, November 22, 1963. JFK was pronounced dead shortly after rushing to Parkland Hospital, where a tracheostomy and other efforts failed to keep him alive. Although Lee Harvey Oswald, a former United States Marine, was convicted of the crime, the purpose behind the assassination remained inclusive as Oswald’s case never came to trial as he was shot to death two days later by Jack Ruby, a local nightclub operator in Texas. The assassination raised many questions and theories concerning the murder.
In 1920, the gangster era began. This brought a new type of crime into play that had not been seen before. Criminals were kidnapping and robbing banks, both of which were not federal crimes at that time. In 1932 the passage of a federal kidnapping statute made it a criminal act. In 1934, many other federal criminal statutes were passed, and Congress gave Special Agents the authority to make arrests and to carry firearms.
The year of 1963 would be the year that would forever be remembered as the time when President John Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald. On a warm Friday afternoon in downtown Dallas, perched on the top floor of the Texas School Book Depositary, Lee Harvey Oswald set aim on one of the more popular presidents of all time. This event impacted the history of the United States, and is one of the most talked about killings of all time.
The amount of jail time someone convicted for cocaine related charge was drastically shorter than the amount given to someone who dealt with crack. On August 3rd, 2010 President Barack Obama signed the Fair Sentencing Act into law. This is not the first law signed, but it is more extensive, and meets different criteria than the others. Unfortunately, there were several Acts produced before Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, but some failed to be introduced, and some only pacified the problem
John F. Kennedy was depicted as a nationwide hero to many Catholics living in the U.S. during the early 1960’s. He was idolized by several Americans especially the women due to his intriguingly handsome looks, his substantial wealth, and his young aspiration. When elected, Kennedy became the youngest and only Catholic president in our nation’s great history. Though his future seemed bright and optimistic, all good things must come to an end. The assassination of President Kennedy has become known as one of biggest conspiracy’s in history and has not been proven to this very day. The Warren Commission concluded that there is “No evidence that either Lee Harvey Oswald or Jack Ruby was part of any conspiracy, domestic or foreign, to assassinate President Kennedy because of the difficulty of proving negatives to a certainty, the possibility of others being involved with either Oswald or Ruby cannot ...
In his Inaugural Address he said, that he would bear any burden, pay any price, and the hardship, to oppose any foe and success of liberty(Kennedy.5). This meant that he was to do as much as he possibly could to ensure and spread freedom around the world. Because European countries wanted a communist country which was to have all of your property owned not by you but everyone. Since there was no freedom or constitution Kennedy’s wasn’t going to approve of this idea. President Kennedy also stated, “...those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside.” (Kennedy.8). He stated something very powerful with how the Nuclear attacks were occurring then that he said, that people who want power and use force will be destroyed before he can control
Kennedy’s crusade began slowly to the dismay of many civil rights leaders in February of 1963. He began by sending the United States Congress a “Special Message on Civil Rights,” stating,
The shots that rang out across Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963 were ones that would change America forever. The victim was one of the most controversial presidents in American history- John F. Kennedy. Born on May 1917 in Brookline, Massachusetts, Kennedy was known by many as the youngest man ever elected president of the United States. His family, unsurprisingly, had had a long and distinguished history in politics. Kennedy’s maternal grandfather, John “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald, had been Boston’s Democratic mayor. His own father, Joseph P. Kennedy, served as ambassador to Great Britain under Franklin Roosevelt’s administration. With these achievements to represent his family, Kennedy grew up in an atmosphere of wealth and privilege. He served in the Pacific theater as a navy lieutenant during WWII, but decided to begin his political career soon after. He ran for the House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1946, and was reelected in 1948 and 1950 for the position. In 1960, he earned himself the title of President of the United States, defeating his opponent Richard Nixon by only a small margin of two-tenths of a percent of the popular vote. However, the years that were to follow during his presidency were ones that would have a lasting impact on America. His assassination, in particular, was a traumatizing event for many people. The social and political stress that the nation was experiencing during this time has proven to be linked with his death. From the Bay of Pigs Invasion to the Civil Rights movement, these controversies are a reflection of the President’s passing. As a result, the assassination of John F. Kennedy shows the increasing social and political tension of America during the 1960s.