Kennedy, Bush and Crisis Management

Abstract

It is too early to compare the Bush and Kennedy presidencies, while any attempt to draw lessons from the Cuban Missile Crisis for the 'war against terrorism' would be misleading. Yet Kennedy's approach to international crises reflected a particular approach to political leadership requiring an ability to operate democratically, that is still relevant. This article illustrates this approach using evidence from decision making on Vietnam and Cuba. Kennedy's problem in responding to Soviet initiatives was that he had to reach a modus vivendi with Khrushchev. Bush's advantage in dealing with al-Qaeda was that there was no expectation of any sort of deal.