



Countdown 1960
The Behind-the-Scenes Story of the 312 Days that Changed America's Politics Forever
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4.1 • 37 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Instant New York Times Bestseller
The riveting new book on the momentous year, campaign, and election that shaped American history
It’s January 2, 1960: the day that Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy declared his candidacy; and with this opening scene, Chris Wallace offers readers a front-row seat to history. From the challenge of primary battles in a nation that had never elected a Catholic president, to the intense machinations of the national conventions—where JFK chose Lyndon Johnson as his running mate over the impassioned objections of his brother Bobby—this is a nonfiction political thriller filled with intrigue, cinematic action, and fresh reporting. Like with many popular histories, readers may be familiar with the story, but few will know the behind-the-scenes details, told here with gripping effect.
Featuring some of history’s most remarkable characters, page-turning action, and vivid details, Countdown 1960 follows a group of extraordinary politicians, civil rights leaders, Hollywood stars, labor bosses, and mobsters during a pivotal year in American history. The election of 1960 ushered in the modern era of presidential politics, with televised debates, private planes, and slick advertising. In fact, television played a massive role. More than 70 million Americans watched one or all four debates. The public turned to television to watch campaign rallies. And on the night of the election, the contest between Kennedy and Nixon was so close that Americans were glued to their televisions long after dawn to see who won.
The election of 1960 holds stunning parallels to our current political climate. There were—potentially valid—claims of voter fraud and a stolen election. There was also a presidential candidate faced with the decision of whether to contest the result or honor the peaceful transfer of power.
Customer Reviews
Countdown 1960
Excellent expose on a watershed election in America. Removing the curtain on Camelot, revealing JFK’s father as the Wizard of Oz (with the assistance of the mafia and Mayor Daley)pulling the strings to put his son in the White House.
Typical Chris Wallace
Good read, but he couldn’t resist dumping on Trump at the end.
He traded a great career at Fox for a failed stint at CNN.
Great read… until the last chapter
Mr. Wallace’s conclusions are flawed in my opinion. He went into great detail about how the 1960 election was impacted by fraud, involvement of organized crime, and even leaking of national security secrets. It was not a fair election. To call the 1960 election a peaceful transition of power as the founders intended asks us to accept the outcomes of elections even if they were stolen. In this case, the insurrection was one of stealth. Undetected by the American voters at the time. Before you call me a Trumper, I would like to say that I think Trump could have handled 2020 differently and perhaps January 6th wouldn’t have happened. I don’t think election fraud was a new thing in 1960, nor do I believe it has miraculously disappeared since then. I do think that the silver lining of the 2020 election is that we are applying more scrutiny to our elections than ever before. We should keep striving for free and fair elections. Political parties driven by a an unvarnished for power will continue to skew the rules in their favor. The voters need to check that power through a demand for transparency. I’m disappointed that Mike doesn’t address any of this in his conclusion. Instead, he calls Nixon a good loser. Maybe he actually just perpetuated a flawed system of corruption that continues to this day. Consider this… Watergate may never have happened if the 1960 election was on the up and up. Kennedy may have died an old man. LBJ would have never been president, and so Vietnam could have been different. There are a lot of “ifs” in those statements, but there is no denying that the 1960s and 1970s could have been drastically different. Maybe for the better.