Who Shot JFK By Ryan Goodwin

John Fitzgerald Kennedy (JFK) was assassinated on November 22, 1963, in the backseat of a 1961 Lincoln Continental on Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas. Unfortunately, the public does not know who pulled the trigger that killed JFK. Did the government have him killed? Or, did Lee Harvey Oswald kill him? There are multiple theories of who shot him; we are going to find out who is to blame for the death of the thirty-fifth president.

Project 2

JFK was a great president. John F. Kennedy earned the nickname “Jack” while he was born and raised in Brookline, Massachusetts. He was the second of nine children. Throughout his teenage years he had several different health problems. He spent his college years studying business and law at Harvard University. During his Harvard career, Jack was his father’s secretary as he travelled through Europe. “In 1941, John enlisted in the Navy where he soon became commander of a patrol-torpedo boat (PT-109)” (“John F. Kennedy WWII”). While in command he was deployed for two years in the South Pacific. He ended up leaving the military three years later. “By 1946, John was preparing to run for Congress in Boston” (Mooney). He was a part of the Democratic Party. His family name was known for being wealthy, so John had plenty of money as he ran for his congressman position. John successfully ran for the Senate. While in office, John never once took a check; he donated every penny the government gave him.

Although a great president, as a husband, John cheated on his wife multiple times throughout their short marriage. He had a total of thirteen mistresses ranging from actresses, interns, secretaries, and prostitutes most famously Marilyn Monroe. John and Marilyn met at a dinner party in New York. John ended up with her phone number, and the following month invited Marilyn to Palm Springs without Jackie. Monroe quickly fell in love with John, feeling as if she was his second wife; Monroe called Jackie telling her about the affair. “Monroe however, desperately wanted more and saw herself as a second First Lady material, even calling Jackie and telling her about the affair” (Stewart, Sara). “ Jackie, no stranger to her husband’s infidelities, responded (we assume sarcastically) ‘Marilyn you’ll marry Jack, that’s great and you’ll move into the White House and you’ll assume the responsibilities of the first lady and I’ll move out and you’ll have all the problems’” (1).

The couple had a total of three kids. The third child died within its first week alive. John Jr. was born sixteen days after John took office. His father’s funeral was on John Jr’s third birthday. Caroline was five years old when her dad was assassinated. Her sixth birthday was five days after her assassination. Caroline and John Jr. had a great dad. John never liked reading to his children and he would make up stories out of the blue. John always woke the kids up during their naps, interrupted class for fun. John was a kid at heart and loved his children. It seems like there was more play time than there was serious time.

President Kennedy’s great leadership got the country through difficult times. “ In his inaugural address, given on January 20, 1961. The new president called on his fellow Americans to work together in pursuit of progress, and elimination of poverty, but also in the battle to win the on going cold war against communism around the world” (John F. Kennedy). During John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address, he recited these famous closing words, “ ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country” (John F. Kennedy: The White House).

In 1946, John ran for Congress in Boston. John ran for Congress as a conservative democrat. His campaign was fully funded by his father; Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. at the young age of twenty-nine, Kennedy was a member of the 80^th United States Congress. Kennedy won the re-election to the House of Representatives. Kennedy successfully ran for Senate. John F. Kennedy married Jackie Lee Bovier. That same year John had back surgery to help the chronic low back pain he was suffering from. John F. Kennedy announces his candidacy for President of the United States. Kennedy chose Lyndon B. Johnson as his running mate. Richard Nixon, a two term president and Republican opponent against Kennedy would make this election a difficult battle. Thus, making him the youngest president and the first Roman Catholic in office to date.
             JFK was a national hero. John was not known to take things lightly; when things needed to be done he did it unlike our current president. He was also proud of his religion, giving a speech on his religion on in Houston. Krushchev and Castro signed a secret agreement to store Soviets missiles in Cuba to prevent future invasions. This was soon to be called the Bay of Pigs. A few months later a spy plane flew over Cuba to photograph missile storage sites. After about a week of deliberation on Kennedy ordered naval quarantine of the Cuban Island. We have now reopened the borders. “ For thirteen days in October 1962, the world was on the brink of nuclear war, but as a result of Kennedy’s leadership, a peaceful resolution was reached. In the face of a major crisis, Kennedy showed firmness and resolve, and emerged as both a national and global hero” (Olugbemiga, Ayobami).

                                                Project 3

The first conspiracy is that Lee Harvey Oswald shot and killed JFK from the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository. There are a lot of people that think that Oswald is the assassin, others believe the government is involved. Conspiracy theory number two is that Fidel Castro and the secret service worked together to assassinate the president. Last but not least the final and most believable conspiracy theory is that Jackie Kennedy had her her husband assassinated. if you think about it, the CIA can be brought up in every conspiracy theory involing JFK.

 Lee Harvey Oswald was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on October 18, 1939. Almost 24 short years later November 22, 1963 Oswald is shot and killed by a man named Jack Ruby. During the last few years living Oswald moved to the Soviet Union around the same time that the Soviet Union and Cuba were in cahoots. Oswald thought this to be a great idea since he had studied Socialism and admired it. He later moved back to the states with a wife because the Soviet Union would not allow him to reside there. It is believed that Oswald shot the president because Kennedy severed all ties with the Soviet Union and Cuba during or shortly after the Bay of the Pigs.

            As history comes to tell Lee Harvey Oswald was the shooter in the Texas School Book Depository. Did he shoot the third bullet that hit Kennedy in the head or was it someone else? Reports says that there was a bullet hole in the windshield. “In 2009, I believe I had discovered new evidence in the JFK assassination never reported by anyone else: convicting photography of the through and through bullet hole in the windshield of the JFK limousine that had been reported by the six credible witnesses”(Douglas P. Horne). “Why is this important? Because if true, the windshield bullet evidence alone disproves the lone assassin myth aggressively promoted by the U.S Government for 49 years now, since the accused assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, was supposedly firing from above and behind the limousine as it traveled down Elm Street” (Douglas P. Horne).

            Some believed that the CIA killed JFK because Fidel Castro paid them to. Kennedy had a spy plane flown over Cuba to view what was going on. It was discovered that the Soviet Union were storing their bombs in Cuba. For some unknown reason Kennedy secretly blamed the Bay of Pigs on the CIA embarrassing and infuriating them. Conspiracy theorists have claimed that Oswald was a member of the secret service. It would make complete sense because hours after he allegedly assassinated Kennedy, Oswald was shot and killed. Was it a cover up or was it the CIA?

JFK was a great president yet a terrible husband, constantly cheated on his wife. He had a total of thirteen mistresses. Most famously being Marilyn Monroe, Marilyn called Jackie telling about their affair. Marilyn thought of herself as the second first lady. Jackie wanted a divorce from John, but was instead given one million dollars to stay. “Jackie had enough. Fed up with his constant womanizing, and having her own dalliances that fueled the fire of her desire for liberation, Jackie told her confidantes that she wanted out. Her anger amped up after Monroe’s humiliating ‘Happy Birthday Mr. President’ performance. (Caroline Howe). It’s very possible and believable that Jackie had her husband killed. One million dollars was a lot of money in the late fifties early sixties. She could have easily payed the CIA to do her dirty work. The CIA is tied into all three theories, making thoughts change.

            My results from the Conspiracy Theory Beliefs Poll show that the results are almost half and half as to whether Oswald or another person or entity killed JFK. The question is still unanswered as of who killed JFK and why. Supposedly, sometime in 2017 every file, every piece of evidence will be revealed to the public. Personally, unsure if it’s true or not but only time will tell. If the files are revealed to the public there will be stories for decades. A whole new book of conspiracy theories.

Project 4

What conspiracy is most believable is obviously the Oswald conspiracy because it is the most popular and believable. The majority of the public knows about John and Marilyn, some are unaware of all the women he had an affair with. He was a great dad, a terrible husband John was not known to take things lightly, when the cold war started the American public looked at him for answers. He had the answers with the Bay of Pigs when he cut Cuba off from the rest of the world. As Fidel Castro came into the power of Cuba, this infuriated him. Did Castro have Kennedy killed? My personal thought is that Jackie Kennedy had her husband killed. What are your thoughts?

Work Cited

Olugbemiga, Ayobami. “JFK's Top 5 Political Accomplishments.” Mic, Policy Mic, 26 Oct. 2015, https://mic.com/articles/74045/jfk-s-top-5-political-accomplishments#.6xd0jkesm.

Mooney, Mark. “Jacqueline Kennedy's Audio Tapes: 'John John' Says 'He's Gone to Heaven'.” ABC News, ABC News Network, 13 Sept. 2011, http://abcnews.go.com/politics/jacqueline_kennedy/jacqueline-kennedy-remembers-jfk-white-house-dad/story?id=14499391.

Stewart, Sara. “All the President's Women.” New York Post All the Presidents Women Comments, New York Post, 10 Nov. 2013, http://nypost.com/2013/11/10/all-the-presidents-women-3/

“John F. Kennedy in WWII.” - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library &Amp; Museum, Presidential Library and Museum, 28 Feb. 2006, https://www.jfklibrary.org/exhibits/past-exhibits/jfk-in-wwii.aspx.

“John F. Kennedy.” The White House, The White House, 30 Dec. 2014, https://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/presidents/johnfkennedy.

History.com Staff. “John F. Kennedy.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2009, http://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/john-f-kennedy.

Horne, Douglas P. "Photographic Evidence of Bullet Hole in JFK Limousine Windshield 'Hiding in Plain Sight' - LewRockwell LewRockwell.com." LewRockwell.com. Lewrockwell, 4 June 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.

"Lee Harvey Oswald Bio." Bio.com. Ed. Biography.com Editors. A&E Networks Television, 8 July 2014. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.

"The CIA and the JFK Assassination." The CIA and the JFK Assassination. Marry Ferrell Foundation, n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2016.

Howe, Caroline. "Jackie Kennedy Wanted to Divorce Her Philandering Husband and Was given $1m to Stay - but Then Came Marilyn Monroe and She Was the Last Straw, Claims Sensational New Book." Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 03 June 2014. Web. 28 Nov. 2016