The Fierce Urgency of Now

  domestic issues adopted by LBJ, 2, 162

  and the economy, 36, 133, 270

  and executive action, 36, 38

  and health care, 36, 37, 38, 188–90

  inaugural address of, 11–13

  legacy of, 5, 63, 64, 132, 156–57, 159

  and liberals in Congress, 28

  memorial service for, 91

  and 1960 election, 20, 36, 73–74, 161, 171

  and 1964 election, 36, 58, 60

  political priorities of, 31–32, 35–36, 37, 50, 52, 58

  presidency of, 1, 13, 28, 62, 107

  as senator, 11, 12, 35, 62

  and social issues, 134, 135

  and tax cut, 2, 36, 38

  and television, 11, 31, 40–41, 48–49

  and Vietnam, 146

  Kennedy, Robert F., 242

  assassination of, 300–301

  and civil rights, 37, 54, 57, 58, 59–60, 109, 118, 119, 122–23

  and LBJ, 61, 109

  and 1968 campaign, 286, 291, 292, 293–94, 296

  as senator, 160, 216

  and voting rights, 212, 216

  Kenworthy, E. W., 217

  Keogh, Eugene J., 194

  Kerner, Otto, Jr., 275

  Kerr, Robert S., 189

  Kerr-Mills Act (1960), 189, 192, 194, 197

  Khrushchev, Nikita, 38

  King, Rev. A. D., 46

  King, Cecil R., 184, 193–94, 243

  King, Coretta Scott, 31

  King, Martin Luther, Jr., 225, 242, 260

  assassination of, 295–96, 297, 298, 301, 306

  in Birmingham jail, 44–45

  and civil rights legislation, 37, 43, 60, 112, 203, 246

  and education bills, 178

  and grassroots activism, 29–32, 44–46, 91, 123

  “I have a dream,” 51

  marching in Chicago, 240–41, 250

  and Project C, 43–46

  and SCLC, 29–30

  and Selma marches, 205, 209, 210–11, 215

  and Vietnam War, 263–64

  and voting rights, 203–4, 210–11, 218–19

  and White House, 37–38, 83, 93–94

  Kleberg, Richard, 67

  Knowles, Warren P., 248

  Korean War, 146, 251

  Krock, Arthur, 106

  Kuchel, Thomas H., 108, 120

  Ku Klux Klan, 30, 65, 157, 211

  Kupferman, Theodore, 276

  labor:

  AFL-CIO, 26–27, 51, 81, 186

  and civil rights bill, 96, 114, 116

  and cost-push theory of inflation, 280

  and gender discrimination, 99

  and Great Society, 312

  and Medicare, 186, 187–88

  and the nonunion South, 3, 70

  Philadelphia Plan, 317

  power of, 167

  and racial discrimination, 50, 70, 232

  right-to-work laws, 4, 70, 167–68

  and Section 14B, 168

  and Taft-Hartley Act, 4, 70, 167–68

  teachers’ unions, 176

  and Wagner Act, 4

  and War on Poverty, 143–44

  Landon, Alf, 14

  Landrum, Philip M., 142–43

  Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, 298

  Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, 27, 57, 60, 90, 96, 97, 110, 114, 121, 206, 218, 276

  Lee, Charles, 177

  Lehman, Herbert H., 23, 25

  LeMay, Curtis, 312

  Levison, Stanley, 38

  Lewis, John (SNCC chairman), 209, 215

  liberalism:

  and attacks on LBJ, 303

  campaign about conservatism vs., 151–59

  in Congress, 22–28, 163–68, 169, 202, 221

  congressional opposition to, 12, 13–22

  grassroots activism of, 22, 28

  and Great Society, 3–5, 165, 169, 247

  and hawkish foreign policy, 9

  “Liberal Manifesto,” 26

  myth about, 3–5

  and New Deal, 22, 64–65, 158

  and 1964 election, 8–9, 159–62, 163–64, 259

  political aims of, 27

  and racial equality, 4–5; see also various Civil Rights Acts; civil rights bills

  and social problems, 4, 27, 133, 165, 201, 239

  and voting rights, 215–18

  Lincoln, Abraham, 39, 119, 123, 220, 239

  Lindsay, John V., 40, 239

  Little Rock Central School, 29, 32

  Lodge, Henry Cabot, 136

  Loney, Kate Deadrich, 184

  Long, Edward V., 108

  Long, Russell B., 199, 206

  MacArthur, Douglas, 69–70

  McCarthy, Eugene J., 26, 284–86, 292, 294

  McClure, Stewart, 177

  McCormack, John W., 88, 144–45, 170–72, 173, 209, 213, 218, 221

  McCulloch, William M., 40, 42, 54–56, 57, 58, 59, 97–98, 101, 212, 236

  McDonald, David, 88

  McGovern, George, 308

  Mackie, John C., 258

  McNamara, Pat, 139

  McNamara, Robert S., 144, 145, 149, 167, 291

  McPherson, Harry C. Jr., 210, 213

  Maddox, Lester, 249

  Magnuson, Warren G., 108, 120

  Mahon, George H., 135, 138, 272

  Mahoney, George P., 249

  Malone, Vivian, 48

  Manatos, Mike, 109

  Mansfield, Mike:

  and civil rights, 102, 104, 105, 107–8, 110, 115, 118, 120, 127, 246

  and Vietnam, 150

  and voting rights, 207, 212, 214, 217, 218

  Markman, Sherman, 235

  Marshall, Burke, 46, 50, 54, 55, 56, 109, 119, 120

  Marshall, Thurgood, 37

  Martin, Joseph W., Jr., 15–16

  Martin, William McChesney, 269

  Mathias, Charles McC., 238–40, 242, 244–45

  Maverick, Maury, 67

  Meany, George, 26

  Medicaid, 197, 222, 265, 311, 320, 321

  Medicare, 184–201, 222, 254, 256, 265

  expansion of, 317, 320

  and JFK, 188–90

  and Mills, 189–92, 193, 194–97, 198–200, 281

  opponents of, 159, 165–66, 237

  and Social Security, 185, 186, 189–99, 311, 317

  support for, 173, 190, 201

  midterm elections:

  1934, 226

  1938, 226

  1958, 20, 227

  1966, 9–10, 226, 247–61, 265, 271, 310

  Miller, William, 158

  Mills, Wilbur, 74, 76, 81, 173–74

  and the economy, 272, 280–83, 287, 288–90, 298–300

  and Medicare, 189–92, 193, 194–97, 198–200, 281

  Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), 152–53

  Mitchell, Clarence, 27, 83, 97, 109, 113, 206

  Mitchell, John, 305

  Mitchell, Lester, 241

  Model Cities Program, 227

  Mondale, Walter F., 322

  Montgomery, Alabama, and civil rights, 29, 208–11, 215

  Moore, Arch, 244, 245

  Moreell, Admiral Ben, 189

  Morse, Wayne, 18, 21, 25, 34, 150, 177, 181–82, 242

  Morton, Thruston, 113

  Moyers, Bill, 2, 63, 64, 75, 129, 162, 210

  Mudd, Roger, 103, 126

  Mundt, Karl, 113

  Murray, James E., 17

  Muskie, Edmund S., 23, 220

  Myers, Robert J., 194

  NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), 27,
29–30, 37, 42, 55, 57, 161, 202

  National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, 275

  National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), 97

  National Association of Manufacturers, 76, 270

  National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB), 237–38, 240

  National Committee Against Discrimination in Housing, 230–31

  National Council of Churches, 51, 90, 290

  National Council of Senior Citizens, 187, 188, 191

  National Education Association, 179, 180–81, 290

  National Election Study, 161

  National Industrial Recovery Act, 14

  National Labor Relations Board, 4

  National Security Agency, 149

  National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (1966), 227

  National Youth Administration (NYA), 67–68, 72, 138

  Newark, New Jersey, riots in, 273, 275–76

  New Deal:

  compromises in, 3

  expanding, 22, 315

  and housing, 231, 239

  LBJ’s commitment to, 62, 64–65, 67, 68–69, 72, 73–74, 82, 132, 137

  and liberalism, 22, 64–65, 158

  opponents of, 12–13, 50, 165

  philosophy of, 23–24

  second, 2, 10, 62, 82, 314

  and subsequent conservatism, 3–4, 12

  Ngo Dinh Diem, 146–47

  Nightly News (ABC), 209

  Nixon, Richard M.:

  and the economy, 287, 302, 310, 316

  and expanding government, 316–17

  and 1960 election, 11, 36, 155

  and 1966 midterm election, 254, 257, 310

  and 1968 election, 304–6, 309–11, 313–15

  and 1972 election, 319

  resignation of, 319

  and Watergate, 319

  North:

  backlash in, 277

  civil rights activism in, 240–41, 242, 243–44

  Democratic Party in, 314

  housing discrimination in, 231, 235, 236, 237, 240, 242, 247

  Novak, Robert, 6

  Nugent, Luci Johnson, 241

  Obama, Barack, 6

  O’Brien, Lawrence “Larry”:

  and civil rights, 93, 109, 115

  and education, 179–80

  and health care, 191, 199

  as legislative liaison, 93, 166, 173

  and poverty program, 142–43, 145

  Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 318

  O’Daniel, Lee “Pappy,” 70

  O’Donnell, Kenneth, 149

  Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO), 134, 140

  O’Grady, Jane, 96

  O’Hara, James G., 209

  Okun, Arthur M., 299

  Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act (1968), 297–98

  Operation Coffee Cup, 188

  Operation Rolling Thunder, 222

  Otten, Alan, 81

  Parks, Rosa, 29

  Pastore, John O., 108, 154

  Patman, Wright, 67

  Paul VI, Pope, 225

  Peabody, Endicott, 112

  Peabody, Mary Parkman, 112

  Percy, Charles H., 243, 249, 250, 258, 260, 297

  Perkins, Carl C., 178, 179–80

  Phillips, William, 26

  Porter, Frank, 295

  poverty:

  and civil rights legislation, 93, 94, 115–16, 140

  and education, 177, 183, 184

  and food stamps, 80, 317, 320

  and government aid, 132–33

  and maximum participation, 135

  number of people living in, 132–33

  and urban riots, 138

  war on, see War on Poverty

  welfare state, 10, 133, 317

  “poverty czar,” 137

  Poverty Tour, 116

  Powell, Adam Clayton, Jr., 98, 140–42, 169, 180, 244

  presidency:

  and Congress, 2–3, 6

  “imperial,” 6

  and legislative record, 132

  liberal, 2–3

  political environment for, 7

  powers of, 5–8, 12, 28, 150, 166

  role of, 2–3

  and separation of powers, 246

  presidential elections:

  effects of, 12

  1936, 14

  1948, 23

  1960, 11, 20, 36, 73–74, 155, 161, 171

  1964, 8–9, 36, 58, 60, 75, 83, 107, 124–25, 128, 130, 131, 146, 150–62, 163–64, 166, 168–69, 171, 191, 202, 221, 259

  1968, 217, 278, 292–95, 300–315

  1972, 319

  President’s Commission on the Status of Women, 99

  Progressive Era, 3

  property rights, 41, 105, 243

  Prouty, Winston L., 275

  Proxmire, William, 212

  public accommodations:

  and civil rights legislation, 108, 114, 117, 118–19, 128, 321

  integration of, 4, 41, 42, 47, 49, 57, 119, 228

  public housing, 72

  Public Welfare Amendments (1962), 133

  Pucinski, Roman, 242, 260

  Race, John A., 248, 258

  racial equality:

  backlash against, 249

  liberal goals for, 4–5

  see also civil rights bills

  racial quotas, 118

  Randolph, A. Philip, 50, 51, 52

  Randolph, Jennings, 194

  Rankin, John E., 16

  Rauh, Joseph, 97, 109, 113, 114

  Rawlings, George, 258

  Rayburn, Sam, 23, 64, 67–69, 86, 170

  Reagan, Ronald, 188–89, 254, 305, 314, 319, 322

  Reconstruction, end of, 18, 32, 37, 202, 204

  Reeb, Rev. James, 211

  Republican National Convention (1964), 148, 152

  Republican National Convention (1968), 304–7

  Republican Party:

  and civil rights, 39, 42, 43, 47, 48, 56, 57, 58, 60, 250

  and conservatives, see conservative coalition; Goldwater, Barry

  divisions in, 15, 221, 264

  and education, 180, 181, 182, 183–84

  and Eldercare, 192–95

  and housing bill, 235, 236, 238–40

  and Lincoln Day celebration, 40

  moderates in, 136

  national conventions: (1964), 148, 152; (1968), 304–7

  and 1964 election, 151–52, 154–55, 160–61, 163

  and 1966 midterm election, 257–60, 265

  and 1968 election, 309–13

  as party of Lincoln, 39, 239

  and spending cuts, 280–82

  and Vietnam, 147–51

  and voting rights, 203–4, 207, 212–13, 217

  and War on Poverty, 137–40, 143–44

  Reston, James, 159

  Reuss, Henry S., 171

  Reuter, Ernest, 96

  Reuther, Walter P., 26–27, 51–52, 168, 188, 291

  Revenue Act (1964), 81, 102, 164, 167

  Revenue and Expenditure Control Act (1968), 301–2

  Ribicoff, Abraham A., 308

  Rivers, L. Mendel, 145

  Roche, Charles, 255

  Rockefeller, Nelson A., 40, 42, 136, 239, 305

  Romney, George W., 239, 255, 274, 278, 304

  Roosevelt, Franklin D.:

  administration of, 61, 67, 88, 164, 255

  court-packing plan of, 14, 68, 166, 168

  death of, 14, 70

  and elections, 14, 159

  and New Deal, 3, 10, 13, 22, 50, 62, 64, 165, 231

  opponents of, 87,
165

  supporters of, 9, 23, 70

  Rostenkowski, Dan, 282

  Rusk, Dean, 299

  Russell, Richard, 9, 32–33, 147

  and civil rights, 33, 71, 73, 85–86, 104–5, 110, 127, 128

  and voting rights, 217

  and War on Poverty, 139, 140

  Rustin, Bayard, 50

  Sabonjian, Robert, 241

  St. George, Katharine, 99

  Scammon, Richard, 278

  Scherle, William J., 248

  Schlesinger, Arthur M. Jr., 37

  Schulman, Bruce, 5

  SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference), 29–30, 50, 51, 202

  Scott, Hugh, 108, 212

  Scott, William L., 258

  Scranton, William W., 136, 239

  Seeger, Pete, 264

  Selma, Alabama, civil rights marches in, 205–6, 208–12, 213–14, 215

  Senate, U.S.:

  Appropriations Committee, 76, 78

  civil rights bill in, 53, 55–56, 101–28

  filibuster in, 8, 20–21, 35, 53, 60, 86, 101–7, 174, 215, 217, 221

  Finance Committee, 74, 76

  Judiciary Committee, 18–19, 53, 101–7

  and legislative process, 53

  majority leaders in, 101–2, 107

  quorum calls in, 109–11

  reelection concerns of, 150

  rules of seniority in, 102

  Subcommittee on Education, 181–82

  Senior Citizens for Kennedy, 188

  Shriver, R. Sargent, 134, 137, 140, 144, 145, 275

  Shultz, George P., 317

  Shuttlesworth, Fred, 44

  Sickles, Carlton R., 249

  Simpson, Milward L., 218

  Smathers, George A., 199, 288–90, 294

  Smith, Howard W., 16, 258

  and civil rights bill, 60, 86–92, 94–95, 98–100

  and education bill, 181, 182

  and House Rules Committee, 60, 86–87, 89, 90, 92, 142, 171, 172, 182, 218

  and twenty-one-day rule, 171, 172, 181

  SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee), 30, 202, 209, 241–42

  Social Security, 50, 157–58, 265, 311

  and Medicare, 185, 186, 189–99, 317

  Supplemental Security Income, 316–27

  Social Security Amendments (1965), 197

  Sorensen, Theodore, 47, 75

  South:

  civil rights as moral cause to, 104

  conservatives in, 17, 18, 218, 258

  Democrats in, 4–5, 18, 19, 35, 129, 143, 164

  Dixiecrats in, 239, 258, 265

  economy of, 85

  and eighty-ninth Congress, 168–74

  and fears of integration, 139

  and integration of universities, 38

  Jim Crow laws in, 30, 31, 53, 143, 203

  legislation controlled by, 5, 17, 42–43

  lynching in, 29

  nonunion, 3, 70

  political compromises in favor of, 3

  and presidential elections, 19, 58, 313