[M1903A1]

"I am referring for these purposes not so much to the sentimental inflation of his reputation after his assassination but to the carefully contrived myth which got Kennedy elected and would likely have gotten him reelected in 1964."

Would he really? From reading about the events of November 1963, I get the impression that he was rapidly losing support in key circles...indeed, that the whole reason he had gone to Dallas was because he was in serious danger of losing Texas.

[nathanbedford]

The difficulty in Texas was an inner family quarrel in the Democrat party. He still had Lyndon Johnson to deliver the state. He was a president riding an upswing in the economy, enjoying all of the advantages incident to incumbency and his reputation had been greatly enhanced by the Cuban missile crisis.

I doubt if he would've had a serious problem being reelected in the normal course. In the context of this discussion, the normal course was an election structured by a complaisant media