JFK - VFM First Practitioner

View From the Middle – First Practitioner

The View from the Middle

As I sit here on November the 22^nd, the 50-year anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, I ponder the argument that has been raging almost since his death.  Was JFK a liberal or a conservative?  In fact, you could contend that this debate started before Kennedy was even in Congress and continued through his Presidency.

Why do people care so much?  It is because JFK was so charismatic, so engaging and arguably so effective, and everyone wants his image aligned with their position, including me.  The fact that this argument continues is a strong suggestion that JFK was a centrist, in the middle.  Let’s look at the facts.

JFK was more than a believer in tax reduction; he was an advocate of tax reform.  In1960, he campaigned on the idea that a creative tax cut would “(create) more jobs and income and eventually more revenue” for the government.  He also said, “the present patchwork of special (tax) provisions…distorts economic judgments and channels an undue amount of energy into efforts to avoid tax liabilities.” 

Kennedy’s tax plan moved from theory to reality under the Johnson administration, with minor changes, and led to spectacular growth in the US economy.  In 1964 (the year after his death), our GDP (Gross Domestic Product) grew at a 7.4% annual rate, followed by 8.4% in 1965 and 9.5% growth in 1966.  This compares to our annual growth from 2010 to 2013 of about 2%.

But, was the President willing to incur deficits in order to advance these tax cuts?  Let’s not guess, but consider Kennedy’s own words to define his position.  In 1960 he said, “We should seek a balanced budget over the course of the business cycle with surpluses during good times more than offsetting deficits which may be incurred during slumps.”

Again, the actual results of his plan weren’t recognized until after his death, but, especially by current standards, they were impressive.  From 1964 to 1966 our deficits totaled just over $10 billion.  Even adjusted for inflation, those deficits would average only about $27 billion per year today.  This compares to President Obama’s lowest one-year deficit of over $700 billion.  I would be willing to declare a $27 billion deficit a de facto balanced budget this day and age.

But what did JFK think about the social issues.  First, he proposed a health insurance program for seniors that eventually became Medicare.  He was careful to qualify, however, that his program was “not a program of socialized medicine… Every person will choose his own hospital and doctor” and would place “responsibility on the employee and the employer, rather than the general taxpayers”.  His compassion for seniors was tempered by his desire to guard freedom of choice for everyone and fiscal responsibility.

He said that abortion would be “repugnant to all Americans.”  Was the President waging a war on women?  Certainly not.  I believe JFK saw abortion for what it is, a tragedy for all concerned.  It is, of course, catastrophic for the child, but it is also terrible for the mother.  If you are unsure of the risks for mothers during and after an abortion, just Google it.  The facts will scare you straight.  I’m confident that JFK would agree with The View From the Middle (VFM) that we all should be fighting to reduce the number of abortions in America.

He was also concerned about civil rights and showed particular concern for the black community as was his brother Robert.  As late as 1963, Kennedy suggested that strengthening the black family and improving their education was the answer to lifting that group up the rungs of the American dream.  He also suggested that the best way to lift that community out of poverty was to deliver more jobs to them and all people that struggled financially.

It is this coalescence of conservative and liberal principles that has Americans of both political parties in a chronic tug-of-war over Kennedy’s ideological alignment.  I say that neither extreme version of the liberal or conservative bases can lay claim to JFK.

He was, to me, an obvious centrist.  He recognized the importance of the compassion and protection side of the Democratic Party while also embracing the fiscal restraint and personal freedom and responsibility of the Republican Party.  We fight over his legacy because he represents the best of both worlds.

Even his famous inaugural snippet leaned both directions at the same time.  “Ask not, what your country can do for you (conservative), ask what you can do for your country (liberal).”

So today, I officially lay claim to the Kennedy heritage.  He was a man with a View From the Middle.  He was a man who saw that the middle is where wisdom can be found, compromise can be forged and progress can be made.