Wednesday, September 27, 2023
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Behind every great president, there's a great advisor. And for John F. Kennedy, that guy was Ted Sorensen. JFK called him his "intellectual blood bank."
And Sorensen wrote a lot of Kennedy's most famous words. Although, he swears the 'Ask not what your country...' line we just heard was all JFK. Sorensen also wrote a lot of this book, 'Profiles in Courage.' Yet, the Pulitzer went to Kennedy. But that's the life of an advisor.
So, how'd Sorensen get there? Well, in his early twenties, he went to DC. He started as an assistant to JFK, then a junior senator, and helped him get to the White House and was with Kennedy every step of the way. The moon landing, civil rights, and the Cuban Missile Crisis. In fact, Sorensen is credited with smoothing things over with the Soviets, and averting nuclear disaster.
After JFK was assassinated, Sorensen helped Lyndon Johnson a bit. But left to write Kennedy's biography. He never really left politics, though - he was part of Robert Kennedy's presidential campaig, and even advised Barack Obama during his big run. Sorensen covers it all in his 2008 memoir, 'Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History.
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