KERRY KENNEDY BORN IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) Mr. & Mrs. Robert F. Kennedy announced today the birth of their 7th child & 3rd daughter, Mary Kerry Kennedy.*
*Kerry Kennedy today is a human rights activist & author. She is a graduate of Brown University & holds a J.D. degree from Boston College of Law.
She has led delegations in El Salvador, Gaza, Haiti, Kenya, Northern Ireland & South Korea. She has also worked in China, India, & Pakistan.
Kerry Kennedy
Photo by Javier1776
September 8, 1974
PRESIDENT FORD ANNOUNCES NIXON PARDON
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President Gerald R. Ford gave a "full & unconditional" pardon today to former President Richard M. Nixon who resigned his office because of the Watergate scandal on August 9.
The pardon is to cover any crime Mr. Nixon "may have committed while in office as President of the United States."
In a nationally televised address, President Ford said he granted the pardon to his predecessor because "it is in the best interests of the country."
Mr. Ford was chosen by Nixon to become Vice-President after the resignation of Spiro T. Agnew which put him next in line to be President.
Gerald R. Ford became, on August 9, 1974, the 1st man in history to become Vice-President & President without having been elected to either office.*
*The New York Times wrote that the Nixon pardon was "unwise, divisive & unjust" & that it destroyed Ford's credibility. Most historians agree that the pardon was one of the key factors in Ford's defeat by Jimmy Carter in 1976.
President Gerald R. Ford
House Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing
on the Pardon of Richard M. Nixon
October 17, 1974
September 8, 1935
HUEY LONG SHOT IN LOUISIANA STATE CAPITOL
Senator Huey Pierce Long
of Louisiana
Baton Rouge, Louisiana (JFK+50) Senator Huey Pierce Long of Louisiana was shot today as he walked down a corridor in the State Capitol building here in Baton Rouge.
Senator Long was at the Capitol overseeing the ouster of a long-time adversary, Judge Henry Pavey.
The Judge's son-in-law, Dr. Carl Weiss, an ear, nose & throat surgeon, approached Long firing a pistol from a distance of about 4 feet.
One of the bullets struck Senator Long in the abdomen.
According to witnesses, the Senator's bodyguards opened fire hitting Weiss 62 times & killing him.
Senator Long was rushed to Our Lady of the Lake Hospital where his condition remains guarded.*
*Huey Long died 2 days later. 200,000 mourners came to view Long's body lying in state in the Capitol Rotunda. He was buried on the grounds of the Louisiana State Capitol.
Statue of Huey Long
Louisiana State Capitol
Baton Rouge
Kodak Photo by Billy Hathorn (1972)
Huey P. Long served as Governor of Louisiana from 1928-1932 & U.S. Senator from 1932 until his death. He was a populist who once supported & then opposed FDR.
In 1934, he presented a "Share Our Wealth" plan which he said would provide $5000 to each American family while capping & limiting personal fortunes & annual incomes.
September 8, 1954
DULLES ANNOUNCES SEATO ALLIANCE
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President Dwight D. Eisenhower's Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, announced today that an agreement has been reached establishing a military alliance called the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization or SEATO.
The member nations include Australia, France, Great Britain, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand & the United States.
Each member nations pledges to "act to meet the common danger" in the event of an attack against any single member of the alliance.*
*SEATO expired on June 30, 1977.
SEATO Representatives
Congress Building
Manila, Philippines
October 24, 1966
Photo by Frank Wolfe
LBJ Library
(L-R:) PM Nguyen Cao Ky (South Vietnam), PM Harold Holt (Australia), President Park Chung Hee (Korea), President Ferdinand Marcos(Philippines), PM Keith Holyoake (New Zealand), Lt. Gen. Nguyen Van Thieu (South Vietnam), PM Thanom Kittikachorn (Thailand), President Lyndon B. Johnson (United States)
