Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Walter Jenkins
(section)
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
===Political reactions=== The incident embarrassed the administration but had little impact on the campaign in which Johnson led his opponent by large margins. One columnist wrote on October 15, "Walter Jenkins has revived and dramatized all the harsh feelings about morals, and political cliques, and the Texas gang in Washington."<ref name=reston/> Yet the incident disappeared so quickly from the political scene that [[Theodore H. White]], surveying the 1964 election campaign, assessed its impact this way: "Perhaps the most amazing of all events of the campaign of 1964 is that the nation faced the fact fully—and shrugged its shoulders."<ref name=white368/> Jenkins' arrest was quickly overshadowed by international affairs: Soviet premier [[Nikita Khrushchev#Removal|Nikita Khrushchev was deposed]] on October 14, the British electorate [[1964 United Kingdom general election|voted Labour into power]] on October 15, and China successfully [[596 (nuclear test)|tested a nuclear weapon]] on October 16.<ref>Dallek, 181; White 371</ref> Johnson's [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] opponent in the [[1964 United States presidential election|1964 presidential election]], [[Barry Goldwater]], knew Jenkins from the Senate and from serving as [[commanding officer]] of his [[Air Force Reserve Command|Air Force Reserve]] unit, but initially denied knowing him.<ref name="morality">{{cite news |work=The New York Times |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9806EFDD1E3FEE32A25756C1A9669D946591D6CF |title=Goldwater Says Morality is Demanded by the Nation |date=October 15, 1964 |access-date=November 13, 2010}}</ref> He did not comment on the incident while campaigning. Although it fit well with the charges he had been making about the lack of morality in Johnson's administration, those referred to [[Bobby Baker]] and [[Billie Sol Estes]].<ref>Dallek, 178; White, 369</ref> Instead, since FBI agents had just questioned him about Jenkins, he publicly asked Hoover to explain why Jenkins had not undergone a rigorous security check before joining the White House staff.<ref>''New York Times'': [https://www.nytimes.com/1964/10/20/archives/goldwater-asks-fbi-to-explain-check-on-jenkins.html E.W. Kenworthy, "Goldwater Asks F.B.I. to Explain Check on Jenkins," October 20, 1964]. Retrieved January 24, 2011</ref> Goldwater's campaign offices distributed [[bumper stickers]] and buttons bearing slogans such as, "LBJ{{spnd}}LIGHT BULB JENKINS: NO WONDER HE TURNED THE LIGHTS OUT" and "ALL THE WAY WITH LBJ, BUT DON'T GO NEAR THE YMCA". During the remainder of the campaign Goldwater occasionally alluded to the scandal. In speeches, he referred to Johnson's "curious crew who would run the country" to the knowing amusement of his audience.<ref>Perlstein, 493</ref> At the time, observers noted the difference between the way Goldwater alluded to the scandal and the way the Republican National Committee and Goldwater's running mate, [[William E. Miller]], used it to exploit "popular fears."<ref>''New York Times'':[https://www.nytimes.com/1964/10/23/archives/washington-barry-goldwater-examples-of-morality.html James Reston, "Washington: Barry Goldwater Examples of Morality," October 23, 2010]. Retrieved November 13, 2010</ref> Goldwater later said he chose not to make the incident a campaign issue. "It was a sad time for Jenkins' wife and children, and I was not about to add to their private sorrow," he wrote in his autobiography. "Winning isn't everything. Some things, like loyalty to friends or lasting principle, are more important." Johnson mentioned the affair in general terms while campaigning. In Pittsburgh, on October 27, he told a crowd that in government "unfortunate things" happen and people "disappoint" you. Some "make mistakes" and need to resign and there need to be impartial investigations.<ref>''New York Times'': [https://www.nytimes.com/1964/10/28/archives/johnson-refers-to-jenkins-case-says-some-make-mistakes-assails.html Charles Mohr, "Johnson Refers to Jenkins Case," October 298, 1964]. Retrieved November 13, 2010</ref> Members of Congress called for an FBI investigation of the case, citing concerns that the FBI had been unaware of Jenkins' previous offense in the same Washington men's room in January 1959.<ref>''New York Times'': [https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0B12FD355B1B728DDDAF0994D8415B848AF1D3& Gladwin Hill, "Miller Asks Data on Jenkins Case," October 16, 1964]. Retrieved January 24, 2011; ''The New York Times'': [https://www.nytimes.com/1964/10/22/archives/miller-stresses-the-jenkins-case-in-ohio-he-asks-if-johnson-can.html Wallace Turner, ""Miller Stresses the Jenkins Case," October 22, 1964]. Retrieved January 24, 2011</ref>
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)