Lyndon B. Johnson, like Kennedy, seized the opportunity to incorporate the civil religion into his inaugural address. Unlike Kennedy, however, Johnson utilized religious rhetoric in a more prophetic manner to illustrate his feelings that politics and religion should go hand in hand. Johnson reminded listeners that prominence in America was achieved “with the sweat of our hands and the strength of our spirit,” and that “if we fail now then we will have forgotten in abundance what we learned in hardship: that democracy rests on faith, that freedom asks more than it gives, and the judgment of God is harshest on those who are most favored” (Johnson, 1965). These words accurately illustrate Johnson’s approach as president and his belief that the actions taken by the United States are subject to the watchful gaze of God.
Johnson …show more content…
A president is no doubt fully aware of the extreme scrutiny they are under with every word they speak to the public and with every decision they make for our nation. As a result, the perception of a president by the public indeed may not wholly reflect the president as a freely acting individual, but rather reflects a performer aware of the many on-looking eyes in the crowd. Future work involves a deeper inspection of the actions of Kennedy with regards to the Cold War, and more specifically, the Cuban Missile Crisis. This study reviewed the programs and policies enacted by Kennedy, but failed to inspect his decision making during such a high tension situation. Additional future work includes investigating the personal meetings between Johnson and civil rights movement members, such as Martin Luther King Jr., to determine if Johnson was truly altruistic in his efforts towards reaching racial equality, or if he simply took the actions he did as a ploy to gain political
Johnson …show more content…
A president is no doubt fully aware of the extreme scrutiny they are under with every word they speak to the public and with every decision they make for our nation. As a result, the perception of a president by the public indeed may not wholly reflect the president as a freely acting individual, but rather reflects a performer aware of the many on-looking eyes in the crowd. Future work involves a deeper inspection of the actions of Kennedy with regards to the Cold War, and more specifically, the Cuban Missile Crisis. This study reviewed the programs and policies enacted by Kennedy, but failed to inspect his decision making during such a high tension situation. Additional future work includes investigating the personal meetings between Johnson and civil rights movement members, such as Martin Luther King Jr., to determine if Johnson was truly altruistic in his efforts towards reaching racial equality, or if he simply took the actions he did as a ploy to gain political