Book Pick: Dallas 1963, by Bill Minutaglio and Steven Davis, Hachette Book Group, 2013

From the moment JFK was whacked in Dallas 50 years ago today, we were told there was a climate of right wing hate festering there, which may have been associated with his demise. This important new book by two Texas based writers specializing in Texas, stunningly reveals the extent of that hate generated by the cast of slimy characters so outrageous they appear to have been made up. But they weren't. The most outrageous was former General Edwin Walker, who JFK demoted from General due to proselytizing his troops on anti communism. Walker went on to lead rioters on the Ol' Miss campus in 1962 which resulted in his arrest and psychiatric evaluation, after which he returned to Dallas to foment anti Kennedy hate. Ted Dealey (whose father was the man Dealey Plaza, of JFK assassination infamy, was named), publisher of the rabidly anti Kennedy Dallas Morning News, devoted his rag sheet to demonizing JFK even more than Fox News demonizes Obama today. Dallas Congressman Bruce Alger, so anti Kennedy he organized the Mink Coat Mob (rich wives of local John Birch businessmen) to assault Lyndon Johnson and Lady Bird when they dared campaign in Dallas in 1960. The uproar caused by their despicable treatment backfired and arguably gave JFK/LBJ a narrow 46,000 vote Texas victory and the White House.

The narrative begins with Kennedy's January 2, 1960, announcement for President which galvanized a call to arms by the dark forces of anti communism, racism, Xenophobia against the UN, fear of imagined socialism and anti Catholic hate. It ends, of course, with the assassination of JFK, ironically, not by a right wing fanatic, but the disgruntled and failed leftist Lee Oswald. Ironic because Oswald spent much of 1963 trying to assassinate Gen. Edwin Walker for his right wing extremism. Oswald had a point blank shot outside Walker's window. The breaking glass deflected the bullet just enough for it to pass through Walker's hair instead of his head. If Walker had died, JFK would most likely have lived.

The parallels to the Tea Party fanaticism today are scary and foreboding. Here is one quote that stood out:

"This plan provides a neat little package of sweeping dictatorial power over medicine - a package which would literally make the President of the US a medical czar with potential life-or-death power over every man, woman and child in this country". No that wasn't the Tea Party talking about Obamacare. That was Texas oil billionaire H.L. Hunt broadcasting his venom against JFK's proposed Medicare bill.

Not much has changed in 50 years, has it? That is the underlying theme of Dallas 1963, a spellbinding read.