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Conclusion When we became teenagers we fell away from the animosities of our parents. Our World War II Army dissolved the remnants of active enmity between most ethnic groups. —Bill Davis, quoted in Payoff Artillery–WWII by Frank H. Armstrong, 1993 Observant Americans in the 1950s noted the trend toward ethnic and religious tolerance, but they remained unsure of its depth and permanence . They knew the greatest possible test would be the nomination of a minority candidate, probably a Catholic, for a national office. They looked to that time with a mix of excitement and dread. Everyone who had any kind of memory of the 1928 election paused at the idea of another Catholic candidate for the presidency or vice presidency.1 Polling indicated some general trends but did not clear up the overall picture. In 1940, 62 percent of respondents in a poll said they would vote for a Catholic for president; that number rose to 68 percent in 1958 and 71 percent in the summer of 1960.2 The old questions persisted. Some anti-Catholic writers revived the idea that Catholics could not separate their religious beliefs from their political duties. But new trends also emerged, such as anti-Catholic attacks in political campaigns beginning to backfire against candidates.3 The issue also gained relevance in the 1950s because Catholics made up roughly one-fifth of all American voters. Both parties understood the importance of the Catholic vote, even if it was not totally monolithic. Because many national political leaders believed that a Catholic could help a national ticket, the movement to nominate a Catholic for the vice presidency became pretty strong in 1956.4 Political pundits for leading newspapers pushed the issue throughout the decade.5 Even President Eisenhower, who ran pretty well with Catholics due to personal appeal, briefly toyed with the idea of dropping Nixon from the ticket and replacing him with a Catholic.6 Neither party nominated a Catholic for the vice presidency that year, but a very visible Conclusion 206 candidate emerged from the fray. In 1956, John F. Kennedy, then a young senator from Massachusetts, actively campaigned for the vice presidency. He did so as a Catholic, with the expressed intent of drawing the Catholic vote. Though his attempt failed, he made a name for himself in national politics and emerged as a potential candidate for the Democratic nomination in 1960. The Catholic issue continue to loom. The Catholic vote had power, but so did the fear of an anti-Catholic vote. Kennedy recognized the problem, and when he became a candidate for president in 1960 he changed his tactics. His candidacy was not about adding the vote of a particular interest group to a larger ticket; it was about heading the ticket. Kennedy needed to get votes from a cross-section of the American people. Running as a Catholic candidate who could draw Catholic votes risked alienating Protestant voters. So he no longer advertised his ability to draw the Catholic vote. In fact, he even denied or publicly ignored the idea of such a thing as the Catholic vote. As he wrote to an aide, “Once we get into the argument . . . about there being a Catholic vote, we are on very treacherous grounds, indeed.”7 For this reason, Kennedy would have rather ignored the religion issue altogether , and at first he had some success. When he officially began his campaign in January 1960, he dealt with the religious question by affirming his belief in the First Amendment and the separation of church and state. “When the candidate gives his views on that question,” he said, “and I think I have given my views fully, I think the subject is exhausted.”8 But the events of the following months brought the issue to the fore. His main opponent in the primaries was Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota. Their first major contest came in Wisconsin, where Kennedy won a solid victory.9 Unfortunately for him, the victory came in large part due to the support of the predominantly Catholic districts in the state. He had not run nearly as well in the Protestant areas. As the page-one headline of the New York Times declared, “Religion Big Factor in Kennedy Victory.”10 Suddenly the argument about the Catholic vote became “The ‘Catholic Vote’: How Important Is It?”11 To add to the problem, overwhelmingly Protestant West Virginia hosted the next major primary. As the media and candidates discussed the religious issue in Wisconsin, Kennedy...

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