The Making of a Catholic President

The 1960 presidential election, won ultimately by John F. Kennedy, was one of the closest and most contentious in American history. From the outset, Kennedy saw the religion issue as the single most important obstacle on his road to the White House. At this event Shaun Casey presented his new book, The Making of a Catholic President, a fascinating account of how the Kennedy campaign transformed the "religion question" from a liability into an asset. Casey also reveals, for the first time, many of the Nixon campaign's efforts to tap in to anti-Catholic sentiment, with the aid of Billy Graham and the National Association of Evangelicals. He argues that this alliance laid the groundwork for the rise of the Religious Right. The Center's Chester Gillis moderated the discussion of Kennedy's election and its enduring legacies for contemporary American politics.