Chapter 6, The Vice-Presidency Summary and Analysis

Johnson's second failure on the national political scene occurred during the race for the Democratic nomination for president in 1960. While John Kennedy crisscrossed the country talking to the public and winning primaries, Johnson spent his time negotiating with senators, under the completely false notion that they could control their state delegates to the national convention. John Kennedy was the overwhelming selection. The bone thrown to Johnson was the vice-presidency and, though a bitter pill to swallow, he believed he could once again take a "meaningless" job and turn it into one of power and prestige.

Kennedy gave him some important assignments, such as Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Committee and invited him to staff meetings and briefings. Johnson attended but began to feel very uncomfortable amid the intellectuals with whom Kennedy surrounded himself. The Kennedy White...