John
F. Kennedy's 'New Frontier'
How
did Kennedy implement his New Frontier?
"And
so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what
you can do for your country."
JFK - 20th January 1960
Kennedy's 'New Frontier' policy was announced at his inaugural address in
January 1961. In this speech, he vowed that the 'New Frontier' would be an
increase in economic growth, an improvement in public services, better civil
rights and to 'get the country moving again'.
 |  He
increased the minimum wage to $1.25 and gave extra money to the poorest
states. He hoped that this would tackle long term poverty. |
| He also tried to introduce two bills; the 1961 Medical Care for the Aged Bill and the 1961 Education Bill. Both failed to get through Congress. |
| His greatest triumphs were the Housing Act - this provided money to regenerate urban slums - and the Manpower Development and Training Act - this provided $900 million to retrain and relocate thousands of unemployed industrial workers. |
Why
did Kennedy face problems with his New Frontier policy?
Robert
Weaver
Congress was against him. There were various reasons for this:
| Kennedy failed to get Republicans or conservative Democrats to support him. He was seen as too radical and too sympathetic to minorities. |
| Kennedy promoted many young people - for example William Manchester - and lots of black people - for example Robert Weaver to top jobs in government. The older, white politicians did not like this. |
Congress was worried about Kennedy's spending plans on the elderly and on education. Most did not like the idea of government interfering in people's needs. The USA was used to it's 'Lassiez Faire' (leave things alone) attitude.
