My grandmother, a civil rights activist, campaigned her heart out for JFK and was with him and Jackie hours before he was murdered in Dallas. I remember her stories about the Kennedy family, and it seemed that she felt Bobby needed to be 'tried by fire' a little longer. When Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, I felt that was a turning point for him, and was more committed than ever in his strong beliefs on segregation, justice, civil rights, poverty. Would he have been elected? No one has that answer. But I do believe, if he had, he would have fought his heart out for all the things he ran on and so passionately believed in. Thank you Michael for the remembrance.
"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly." - Robert F. Kennedy
"The day after McCarthy's stunning performance against Johnson in the New Hampshire Democratic primary in March 1968, Kennedy told reporters that he was 'actively reassessing" his decision not to take on LBJ.' ... Few on the antiwar left forgave Kennedy (McCarthy himself included), and most stuck with McCarthy through the rest of the primary season."
Exactly how I remember it. Cashing in on McCarthy's courage in challenging Johnson, waltzing in to take the nomination for himself. Lots of bitterness.
Thank you for insightful column and for reminding us about the original brainworm-free RFK. Yes, it was indeed the ultimate "what if." Also--responding to Ron's comment below--my father, an old-school leftist, was also one of those who stuck by McCarthy and he did not regret that decision, although he did mention that he thought RFK could have beaten Nixon, had he lived and been nominated.
My grandmother, a civil rights activist, campaigned her heart out for JFK and was with him and Jackie hours before he was murdered in Dallas. I remember her stories about the Kennedy family, and it seemed that she felt Bobby needed to be 'tried by fire' a little longer. When Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, I felt that was a turning point for him, and was more committed than ever in his strong beliefs on segregation, justice, civil rights, poverty. Would he have been elected? No one has that answer. But I do believe, if he had, he would have fought his heart out for all the things he ran on and so passionately believed in. Thank you Michael for the remembrance.
"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly." - Robert F. Kennedy
Excellent. Thanks.
"The day after McCarthy's stunning performance against Johnson in the New Hampshire Democratic primary in March 1968, Kennedy told reporters that he was 'actively reassessing" his decision not to take on LBJ.' ... Few on the antiwar left forgave Kennedy (McCarthy himself included), and most stuck with McCarthy through the rest of the primary season."
Exactly how I remember it. Cashing in on McCarthy's courage in challenging Johnson, waltzing in to take the nomination for himself. Lots of bitterness.
Thank you for insightful column and for reminding us about the original brainworm-free RFK. Yes, it was indeed the ultimate "what if." Also--responding to Ron's comment below--my father, an old-school leftist, was also one of those who stuck by McCarthy and he did not regret that decision, although he did mention that he thought RFK could have beaten Nixon, had he lived and been nominated.