JFK CANCELS CAMPAIGN TRIP, RETURNS TO WASHINGTON
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On October 20, 1962, Associated Press reports that President John F. Kennedy has cancelled the rest of his campaign trip and is returning to the Nation's Capital because he has "a slight cold."
Press Secretary Pierre Salinger told the press that this was done on the advice of the President's personal physician, Dr. George Burkley.
Salinger said...
"(The President) has a slight upper respiratory infection."
As Mr. Kennedy departed his hotel in Chicago, he uncharacteristically wore "a hat on his head" and "carried a raincoat on his arm."
JFK+50 NOTE
Mr. Salinger's statement was really a "cover story" for the real reason for the cancellation of the campaign trip & return to the White House.
The real reason was the necessity to meet with the Executive Committee of the National Security Council to discuss measures to respond to the Soviets constructing nuclear missile sites in Cuba.
This was the beginning of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
SOURCE
"Kennedy Cold Forces End to Campaign Trip," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., October 20, 1962, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
