"What the...?" "What the...?" "Who`s that?" "You`re dead." "Who grabbed me?" "Watch out!" "Who grabbed me?" "He needs a bath." "Honey, you`re gonna be late." "What`d you grab me for?" "How hard is that?" "l`m not done." "l can`t find my shoes for school." "They`re under the couch." "Sit down, yeah." "Dad, sign my permission slip." "Give it to your mother." "Your mother`s arms are full." "You got time for pancakes?" "Nope." "Give us another one, Dad." "Secretary of Defense." "Dean Rusk." "Wrong." "And you get to wax my car." "Rusk is State, moron." "lt`s Robert McNamara." "Attorney general." "Too easy." "Yeah, it`s Bobby Kennedy." "All right, wise guys." "Assistant Secretary of State for Latin America." "That`s too hard." "Wait a minute." "This isn`t a permission slip." "This is your report card!" "Have you seen these grades?" "No." "All right, gotta go." "Be good." "You... l`m talking to you later." "Morning, Evelyn." "Hi, Ken." "Those candies are for the kids." "is that right?" "Morning, Floyd." "Good morning, Mr. O`Donnell." "Morning, Jackie." "Hi, Kenny." "Want a schedule?" "No." "Why`d you cross all my people off the list?" "`Cause you don`t have anybody on it who means anything." "No votes there." "There`s no money." "lt`s a party, Kenny." "And the one thing we both can be sure of... is that you don`t know how to have a party." "Well, party to you, politics to me." "So who do you want?" "For real." "Everyone on my list. I don`t wanna spend an entire evening... pretending that your votes and money are more interesting than they are." "And I want my kids to stop eating the candy in the oval office." "That`s not me." "Then who is it?" "I don`t rat on my friends." "Well, l`m going to take this whole list thing up with your friend." "Are you trying to go around me?" "Go around you, over you, through you." "Whatever it takes." "You`re starting to bug me." "Good." "l`ll get back to you." "Top o` the morning, Mr. President." "Morning, Kenny." "Just ran into your wife." "Wanna talk about this party?" "No." "You see Homer Capehart`s tirade today?" "I did. I don`t see why he needs to invent an issue." "He`s got his election sewn up." "Even so, we should still go out for Bobby." "lt`s good groundwork for us in `64." "Look into that... that Vietnam thing." "What, the 2 planes that went down?" "Yeah." "It didn`t make it before press time." "I haven`t taken a look at the West Coast papers yet... but I doubt we`ll see anything till tomorrow." "I was eating that." "No, you weren`t." "l was." "No, you weren`t." "l was." "I was, you bastard." "So what do we got today?" "Today." "That`s it." "That`s the one we`re looking for." "l need to see the president, Kenny." "All right." "2:30 to 2:45 or 4:30 to 5:00?" "Take your pick." "No, I need to see him now, Ken." "You can go on up." "l`ll let him know you`re coming." "Coffee?" "Yeah." "That`s not what you said." "What`d I say?" "Tell me what I said." "That`s not what..." "Listen to me, you worthless piece of shit!" "Now you will put Daley`s man on the circuit and you`ll do it today!" "You owe your goddamn job to this administration." "Yeah, I can, I can hear how grateful you are." "There`s a word you need to learn." "lt`s the only word in politics." "lt`s called loyalty." "Loyalty!" "Now any part of this you don`t understand?" "Good." "What?" "This isn`t the blessed order of St. Mary the Meek." "Look, you better come in here." "What was it you were saying to me the other day about Cuba?" "lt wasn`t important." "Not as far as the election goes." "Mac, let`s..." "Can I see that for a second, please?" "Here." "Ken, you used to look down a bombsight for living." "Just ignore the labels." "What does that... what does that look like to you?" "I don`t know." "What is it?" "On Sunday morning one of our U-2s took these pictures." "The Soviets are putting medium-range ballistic missiles into Cuba." "They appear to be the SS-4, range of 1 ,000 miles... 3-megaton nuclear warheads." "Seen here in this year`s May Day parade in Red Square." "Jesus Christ in Heaven." "White House operator." "White House operator." "Yes." "Mr. O`Donnell, please, for Secretary McNamara." "Go ahead, please." "Mr." "Sorenson, you have a call." "White House operator." "President for the attorney general." "Go ahead." "What the crap is going on?" "That`s right." "The principals are assembling in an hour." "See you then." "Where`s Bobby?" "He should be here any minute." "Good." "Good." "Where the hell are you?" "ln here!" "Jesus Christ, guys." "What the hell`s Khrushchev thinking?" "You have any indication of this from your KGB pal Bolshakov?" "Any possible warning, sense of motivation?" "Complete snow job." "And then we went out and told the country... they weren`t putting missiles into Cuba." "Jesus, I... I feel like we caught the jap carrier steaming for Pearl Harbor." "Good morning, gentlemen." "Good morning, Mr. President." "Mr." "Secretary." "Mr." "President." "Bob. I bet you had a late night." "Sleep is for the weak, Mr. President." "Max." "President, the ClA`s been notified." "McCone`s on his way back from the West Coast." "He`s burying his stepson." "General Carter is here, though." "Ted." "Kenny." "Okay." "Let`s have it." "Arthur?" "Gentlemen, as most of you now know a U-2 over Cuba on Sunday morning... took a series of disturbing photographs." "Our analysis at NPIC indicates that the Soviet Union... has followed up its conventional weapons build-up in Cuba... with the introduction of surface-to-surface... medium-range ballistic missiles, or MRBMs." "Our official estimate at this time is that this missile system... is the SS-4 Sandal." "We do not believe that the missiles are as yet operational." "Iron bark reports that the SS-4 can deliver... a 3-megaton nuclear weapon 1,000 miles." "So far we have identified 32 missiles... serviced by about 3,400 men, undoubtedly all Soviet personnel." "Our cities and military installations in the Southeast... as far north as Washington DC are in range of these weapons." "And in the event of a launch would have only five minutes of warning." "Five minutes, gentlemen." "In those five minutes they could kill 80 million Americans... and destroy a significant percentage of our bomber bases... degrading our retaliatory options." "The joint chiefs` consensus, Mr. President... is that this signals a major doctrinal shift in Soviet thinking... to a first-strike policy." "It is a massively destabilizing move." "How long until they`re operational?" "General Taylor can answer that question better than I can." "GMlC, Guided Missiles lntelligence Committee... estimates 1 0 to 1 4 days." "A crash program could limit that time." "However, I must stress that there may be more missiles... that we don`t know about." "We need more U-2 coverage." "Gentlemen, I want first reactions here." "Assuming for the moment Khrushchev has not gone off the deep end... and intends to start World War lll, what are we looking at?" "Mr. President, I believe my team is in agreement." "If we permit the introduction of nuclear missiles to a Soviet nation... in our hemisphere, the diplomatic consequences will be... too terrible to contemplate." "The Russians are trying to show the world they can do what they want... wherever they want and we`re powerless to stop them." "lf they succeed..." "lt will be Munich all over again." "Yes." "Appeasement only makes the aggressor more aggressive." "And the Soviets will be emboldened to push us even harder." "Now we must remove the missiles one way or another." "The options are either a combination of international pressure... and action on our part till they give in... or... we hit them." "An air strike." "Bob?" "We`ve worked up several military scenarios." "Before I ask General Taylor to take us through the various options... l`d like for us to adopt a rule." "If we decide to strike... we must agree now to do it before the missiles become operational." "Because once they are, I don`t think we can guarantee getting them all... before at least, at least some of them are launched." "Well, it`s clear we cannot permit Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba." "We have to get those missiles out." "I don`t think it`s gonna matter what Khrushchev`s intentions are." "I can tell you, right now I don`t see any way around hitting them." "If we hit `em, kill a lot of Russians, they`ll move against Berlin." "They attack Berlin, that`s NATO, and we`re at war." "We`re damned if we do, but if we don`t... we`re in a war for sure somewhere else in six months." "Well, if there are alternatives that make sense... and l`m not saying that there are, we need `em." "And we need `em fast." "What about congress?" "We may need to start letting key people know." "They`re scattered for the campaign." "We can get congress back." "And we`re gonna need to get the U.N. staff in and warmed up." "What about the Allies?" "We can`t worry about everything now." "We gotta figure out what we`re gonna do before worring about how to do it." "We`ve got a bunch of smart guys." "We lock `em and kick `em in the ass until they come up with solutions." "l`ll do it." "lt`s too politicized with you in there, anyway." "They need to be able to stick their necks out." "lt`ll be the principals, a couple of the key guys from each department." "The Executive Committee of the National Security Council." "We`ll call it Excom." "Okay." "So l`m only gonna show for the meetings that you call me into." "And impress us." "Do it fast." "And, Kenny, you`re gonna be in charge of keeping this thing quiet." "If word gets out before we know what we`re gonna do, there`ll be panic." "And it`s gonna ruin any chance of surprise if we decide to hit them." "We`re gonna need to do a few things right away." "No Pierre." "He knows, the press knows." "You have to keep up your schedule." "Your movements are followed closely." "Well, George Ball`s got a conference room at State." "Good, you meet over there this afternoon." "We`ll figure out some way to sneak you guys back in here tonight." "I, I think we should bring in Dean Acheson." "Ken, he was fighting Soviets while we were still playing ball at school." "Find him, Kenny." "We`re gonna need all the help we can get." "Screw secrecy." "You try having that fat ass sit on your lap all the way from Foggy Bottom." "You were excited. I say no more." "Everybody agrees the diplomatic route won`t work." "lt`s slow." "They`ll have the missiles finished while we`re still talking." "I hear old Warren Harding used to get his girls in through here." "We have 850 planes assembling at Homestead, Eglin, Opa Locka..." "MacDill, Patrick, Pensacola and Key West." "Due to the tropical foliage... the op plan calls for high-explosive and napalm load-outs for our ground-attack sorties." "There are diplomatic approaches we haven`t considered yet." "Jesus, Adlai, peace at any price?" "We have a gun to our head." "We have high confidence in the expanded air-strike option, president." "The problem is, sir, is that it`s a short-term solution." "Khrushchev can send in more missiles next month." "The chiefs and I believe we should follow up the air strikes... with a full version of op plan 31 6." "An invasion?" "Yes, sir." "We can be sure we get all the missiles and we remove Castro." "So this can never happen again." "ls this the chiefs` recommendation?" "Yes, sir." "Our best option, as Bob pointed out this morning... would be to commence the strikes before the missiles are operational." "The invasion happens eight days later." "Dean... what do you think?" "Gentlemen, for the last 1 5 years, I have fought here at this table... alongside your predecessors in the struggle against the Soviet." "I do not wish to seem melodramatic, but I do wish to impress upon you... a lesson I learned with bitter tears and great sacrifice." "The Soviet understands only one language: action." "Respects only one word: force." "I concur with General Taylor." "I recommend, sir, air strikes followed by invasion... perhaps preceded by an ultimatum to dismantle the missiles... if that is military viable." "So it appears we have here three options." "Number one, a surgical air strike against the missiles themselves." "Two, a much larger air strike against their air defenses... along with the missiles." "And three... invasion." "So, we`re certainly gonna do number one... we`re gonna take these missiles out." "It seems to me we can`t wait long." "We should at least be making those preparations." "We`re preparing to implement all 3 options, though I must stress again... there are risks to the strikes without the follow-on invasion." "You wanna be clear that we definitely decided against a political track." "Dean... how does, how does this play out?" "Your first step, sir, will be to demand... that the Soviet withdraw the missiles within 1 2 to 24 hours." "They will refuse." "When they do, you will order the strikes... followed by the invasion." "They will resist and be overrun." "They will retaliate against a target somewhere else in the world... most likely Berlin." "We will honor our treaty commitments and resist them there... defeating them per our plans." "Those plans call for the use of nuclear weapons." "So what is the, what is the next step?" "Hopefully cooler heads will prevail before we reach the next step." "Thank you, gentlemen." "What happened in there?" "l thought he was gonna decide." "They just need to make sure there`s no other way." "They`ll get there." "Remember that Kennedy`s father was one of the architects of Munich." "There`s only one responsible choice here." "So let`s hope appeasement doesn`t run in families. I fear weakness does." "Jesus Christ." "Call, call me Irish, but I don`t believe in cooler heads prevailing." "They think I froze in there." "You didn`t freeze." "You did exactly what you should`ve done." "You stayed out of the corner." "You didn`t decide." "Acheson`s scenario is unacceptable." "He`s got more experience than anyone." "There is no expert on this subject." "I mean, there is no wise old man." "There`s..." "Shit." "There`s just us." "The thing is that Acheson`s right." "Talk alone won`t accomplish anything." "Then let`s bomb the shit out of them." "Everyone wants to. I mean, even, even you. I mean, even me." "Right?" "It sure would feel good." "And, Jack, l`m as conniving as they come, but a sneak attack is just wrong." "Things are happening too fast." "I mean, this is starting to smell like the Bay of Pigs all over again." "Well, tonight, listening to Taylor and Acheson... I kept, I kept seeing Lemnitzer and Dulles telling me all I had to do... was sign on the dotted line and the invasion would succeed." "And Castro..." "and Castro would be gone." "Just, easy just like that." "You know, there`s something... immoral about abandoning your own judgment." "We just can`t let this get out of hand." "And we`re gonna do whatever we have to do to make this come out right." "l`m gonna stay here tomorrow." "No, you can`t." "Remember, we talked about this." "Your schedule." "The best thing you can do tomorrow is go to Connecticut." "He`s right." "Yeah." "Jesus." "Mr." "President!" "Welcome to Connecticut!" "Doesn`t anybody in Connecticut have to work today?" "I love you, JFK!" "The full spectrum of air strikes is the minimum response the joint chiefs will accept." "No, no, no!" "There is more than one option here." "And if one isn`t occurring to us we haven`t thought hard enough." "Sometimes there`s only one choice." "And you thank God when it`s so clear." "You`re talking about a sneak attack." "How will that make us look?" "A big country blasting a little one into the stone age." "We`ll be everyone`s favorite." "Come on, Bobby, that`s naive." "This is the real world, you know that better than anybody." "You weren`t so ethically particular when we were talking about options... for removing Castro over at cia." "Bob, if we go ahead with these air strikes... you know what it`ll come to in the end." "There`s got to be something else." "Give it to me." "I don`t, I don`t care how crazy, inadequate or stupid it sounds." "Give it to me." "Six months ago we gamed out a scenario. lt`s slow." "It doesn`t get rid of the missiles." "lt`s got a lot of drawbacks." "The scenario calls for a blockade of Cuba." "The situation is worse than we thought." "We now count 40 missiles." "Forty missiles." "Longer range, lRBMs." "They can hit every place in the country, except Seattle." "Mr. President, you give me the order right now... my planes will be ready to carry out the air strikes in 3 days` time." "All you gotta do is say go, my boys will get those red bastards." "General, how long until the army`s ready?" "We`ve begun the mobilization under cover of a pre-arranged exercise, sir." "We`re looking at another week and a half." "But you can order the strikes now." "The plans call for an eight-day air campaign." "lt`ll light a fire under the army`s ass to get in place." "General LeMay, do you truly believe that`s our best course of action?" "Mr. President, I believe it is the only course of action." "America is in danger." "Those missiles are a threat to our bomber bases... and the safety of our nuclear deterrent." "Without our deterrent... there`s nothing to keep the enemy from choosing general nuclear war." "lt`s our duty, sir, our responsibility to the American people... to take out those missiles and return stability to the strategic situation." "The big red dog is digging in our back yard." "And we`re justified in shooting him." "Sir... we have a rapidly closing window of opportunity... where we can prevent those missiles from ever becoming operational." "The other options do not guarantee the end result that we can guarantee." "However, as more time goes by... the less reliable the choice we can offer you becomes." "Mr. President, the motto I chose for SAC is `Peace is our Profession.`" "Now God forbid we find ourselves in a nuclear exchange." "But if launched, those missiles from Cuba would kill a lot of Americans." "The presence of those missiles gives the Soviets first-strike capability." "Those missiles make a nuclear exchange more likely... and that is why l`m being such a pain in the ass about destroying them." "And destroying them immediately." "Hell, even Mac agrees." "And, sir, given your own statements about Cuba... I think a blockade or a bunch of political talk... would be considered by a lot of our friends and neutrals a weak response." "I suspect that many of our own citizens might feel the same way." "You`re in a pretty bad fix, Mr. President." "What did you say?" "You`re in a pretty bad fix." "Maybe you haven`t noticed you`re in it with me." "Now, general, what are the Soviets gonna do when we attack?" "Nothing." "Nothing?" "Nothing." "Because the only alternative open to them... is one they can`t choose." "You know, they`re... they`re not just missiles we`ll be destroying, general." "If we kill Soviet soldiers, they`re gonna respond." "I mean, how would we respond if they killed ours?" "No, they`re gonna do something, general, I can promise you that." "Those Kennedys are gonna destroy this country if we don`t do something." "We`re headed out to the backyard to take a look for that big red dog." "Thanks, Bob." "I was hoping LeMay pushed you... because I was ready to knock that son of a bitch across the room." "We knew it was coming." "And l`ll tell you one thing, Kenny... those brass heads have one advantage." "If we do what they want us to... there`s none of us gonna be left alive to tell `em they were wrong." "Mr. President, we need to go over what you`re going to say." "Gromyko should be on his way now." "There`s still no sign... that they know that we know about the missiles." "Well, we`re gonna keep it that way." "Kenny?" "l`ll be right there." "l`m getting funny questions from the guys." "Yeah?" "What sort of questions?" "About some military exercises." "You want me to do my job with the press, I need to know what`s going on." "Military exercises?" "Yeah, military exercises." "Haven`t heard anything about it." "Ask Bundy." "I did." "He said to ask you." "Mr. Gromyko, this way." "Mr. Dobrynin, what are your hopes for the meeting?" "Mr. Gromyko, can you give us a statement, please?" "Robert." "Hugh, how are you?" "Good." "I know." "Excuse me, Joan." "Tell me about this military exercise that`s going on down in Puerto Rico." "What?" "lt`s called ORTSAC, I believe." "Castro spelled backwards." "ORTSAC?" "I..." "I don`t know what you`re talking about." "Me either." "Why?" "Well, because maybe the president and Gromyko are gonna talk about it." "If you`re trying to drum something up, Johnny, forget it." "This meeting`s been on the books for months." "Far as I know, it`s just a friendly talk on US-Soviet relations." "Mr. President." "Mr. President." "All right, hold it, fellows!" "Hold it!" "You`ll get your pictures." "Does it?" "l`ll be damned." "Kind of simple for the Pentagon." "Mr." "Silvester, please." "Very nice, sir." "What is this meeting about, sir?" "Mr." "Gromyko, thank you for coming." "Hold on, guys, one minute." "Gentlemen, would you mind shaking hands?" "So that there should be no misunderstanding, our position... which has been made clear by the attorney general to Dobrynin here... l`ll read a sentence from my statement to the press dated September 1 3th." ""Should missiles or offensive weapons be placed in Cuba... it would present the gravest threat to U.S. national security."" "Mr. President, as premier Khrushchev`s own statement of September 1 3th... assured you, our military assistance to Cuba is of a defensive nature only." "So I do not misunderstand you." "There are no offensive weapons in Cuba?" "Premier Khrushchev`s statement of September 1 3th... remains the position of the Soviet government. I have nothing to add." "Well, that`s good enough for me." "Thanks so much." "Thank you." "Gentlemen, come with me, please." "A most constructive meeting." "What happened?" "Lying bastard." "Lied to my face." "We`re split down the middle." "Air strike would beat blockade by a vote or two." "l want a consensus." "Either air strike or blockade, but something everyone will stand by... even if they don`t like it." "I need it by Saturday." "Make it happen." "What if I can`t?" "We go into this split, the Russians will know it." "They`ll know and use it against us." "Have you, you cancelled Chicago and the rest of the weekend yet?" "You don`t show for Chicago everyone`ll know there`s something." "l don`t care." "Just cancel it." "Forget it!" "l`m not calling and canceling on Daley!" "You call and cancel on Daley." "You`re scared to cancel on Daley?" "You`re damn right l`m scared." "Well, l`m not." "Watch this." "Welcome to Chicago, Mr. President." "Mr. Mayor, I wouldn`t miss this event for the world." "Mr." "President, over here!" "Mayor Daley!" "Pretty good." "Let`s go." "Tonight you`re going to experience some true Midwest..." "Kenny, what`s going on?" "The guys are hounding me about some sort of troop movements in Florida." "What are you telling them?" "The truth:" "I don`t know." "Am I out of the loop on something?" "No." "Tell `em you`ve looked into it, and all it is is an exercise." "And, Pierre... tomorrow the president may have a cold." "A what?" "A cold." "Mr. O`Donnell." "Kenny, do I get any input around here?" "Yeah." "How bad it is is up to you." "You know, there are major rail disruptions in the South." "Two airborne divisions are on alert." "To me that exercise is an invasion." "Well, you know how Bobby has it in for the state of Mississippi." "We`re invading Cuba." "Damn it, we are not invading Cuba." "Are you crazy?" "Nobody gives a rat`s ass about Cuba." "Not now, not ever." "If you print something like that, all you`ll do is inflame the situation." "And nobody talks to assholes who inflame situations." "Assholes like that can find themselves cut out of the loop." "That`s the first time you`ve ever threatened me." "All right. I won`t print anything until I have another source." "But I promise you, l`ll get one." "Bobby?" "We got a consensus for a blockade." "But it won`t last past tomorrow, Kenny." "You have to bring him back." "By the way, China invaded India today." "You`re kidding, aren`t you?" "I wish I were." "Now Galbraith`s handling it in New Delhi." "Makes you wonder what comes next." "What is it about the free world that pisses the rest of the world?" "l don`t know." "Tupperware parties?" "Maybe." "l`ll see you tomorrow." "The president has a cold." "He is canceling the remainder of this trip and returning to Washington... on the advice of his doctor." "President Kennedy?" "ls it true you have a cold, sir?" "How do you feel, Mr. President?" "Mr." "Kenny." "Mr. President." "What`s the next step going to be, Mr. President?" "Mr. President, our deliberations have led us to the conclusion... that a blockade of offensive weapons to Cuba is our best option." "A strong showing of support from the Organization of American States... would give us an umbrella of legitimacy." "A blockade is technically an act of war." "Therefore we recommend calling the action a quarantine." "Let`s hope that translates into Russian the way we want it to." "There are between 20 and 30 Soviet ships underway to Cuba at this time." "Eight hundred miles out the navy will stop them, board... and any vessels containing weapons will be turned back." "A quarantine prevents any more missiles from reaching Cuba... but it doesn`t remove the missiles already there." "It gives the Soviets a chance to pull back without a war." "If they refuse to remove the missiles, our option is to strike and invade." "A sneak attack would be counter to what the United States stands for." "Leaves us no room for maneuver... and the inevitable Soviet response would forces us into a war." "Mr. President, there are still those of us who believe we should proceed... with the strikes." "With the blockade, we lose strategic surprise... and we run the risk of the Soviets launching the first strike on us... if they decide they have to use the missiles or lose them." "So quarantine or air strike." "There, there is a third option." "With either course we undertake the risk of nuclear war." "It seems to me that maybe one of us in this room should be a coward." "So I guess l`ll be." "A third course is to strike a deal." "We trade Guantanamo and our missiles in Turkey... get them to pull their missiles out." "We employ a back channel." "We attribute the idea to U Thant." "U Thant then raises it at the U.N." "I don`t think that`s possible, Adlai." "l`ve not yet made my final decision." "l`ll be asking the networks... for airtime on Monday night." "We`ll announce our course of action then." "Ted, I want you to work on speeches for both quarantine and air strike." "Well, thank you all for your advice, gentlemen." "I did hear Adlai." "Jesus, you`d think nobody learned anything from World War ll." "Somebody had to say it." "I respect Adlai for having the guts to risk looking like an appeaser." "We have to pull him." "He`s not going to be able to handle the Soviets in front of the U.N." "Zorin will eat him alive." "We`ve got bigger problems right now." "Ladies?" "No, thank you." "Honey, l`ll be right back." "Hi." "Adlai?" "I just can`t seem to get away from you guys." "Escaping for a night on the town?" "As D.C`s most popular playboy... the president felt my presence would be sorely missed, so... in the interest of national security, here I am." "Yes, gotta keep up appearances." "Of course, I don`t anymore." "l`m a political dead man." "Did you ever see anyone cut his own throat like I did today?" "No, no. lt`s all right." "By the way, I spoke to a friend." "Reston and Franco have the story." ""The Times" is going to run it tomorrow." "We`re not gonna make it to Monday." "Shit." "We can get Sorenson to lean on Reston but you`ll have to call Orville Dryfoos." "This is the sort of decision the publisher makes himself." "All right." "Thanks, Kenny." "Yes, sir, I understand." "But, you know, we held it on Bay of Pigs... and it was the biggest mistake of my life." "What makes this different?" "l`m asking you to hold the story until I can present our course of action... on Monday night." "All right." "But l`m gonna need a reason to give my boys." "They`re gonna scream for my head." "Listen, Orville." "You tell them this:" "that they`ll be saving lives." "including their own." "Yes, Mr. President." "How many congressmen have not responded yet?" "Fourteen." "Boggs is in the Gulf fishing?" "He was supposed to be campaigning." "Well, he`s not gone for long." "Get a plane there and get him back." "He wants to talk to LeMay again." "He`s still considering air strikes." "None of this works tomorrow." "Figure out how to cancel it." "Yes, sir." "We`re on the phones." "Cam, can you guarantee me you`ll get all the missiles?" "Sir, I guarantee we`ll get all the missiles we know about." "Mr. President, we can get better than ninety percent of them." "l`ll brief the congressional leadership tomorrow evening at 5:00." "At 7 o`clock, all United States armed forces worldwide... will stand up to Defcon 3." "I have a brief statement to make." "President Kennedy will address the nation tonight on radio and TV... on a subject of the highest national urgency." "He has requested airtime on all three networks for 7 p.m." "Thank you very much." "I am not willing to support anything but the toughest possible..." "Mr. President, congress cannot give you the support you`re looking for." "Mr. President?" "Sir?" "If they want this goddamn job, they can have it." "lt`s no great joy to me." "Mr." "President, here`s the speech." "l made those changes you wanted." "l need a minute." "Kenny, no." "A minute." "I don`t want a goddamn pep talk." "You`re not the quarterback anymore." "We`re on the brink!" "They`re trying to second-guess me into World War lll." "Well, it`s not gonna happen." "What`d you think congress would do?" "Well, I..." "Offer you unconditional support?" "Kiss your Catholic ass?" "They don`t think we even deserve to be here." "Well, what the hell do you think?" "We haven`t been impressive today." "They have good reason to question our judgment." "What do you want, Kenny?" "l want you to sit down." "Well, l`m not gonna sit down!" "I want you to sit down, loosen your tie and take a minute..." "l haven`t, I haven`t got a minute!" "You`re the president of the US." "They can wait for you." "Why not?" "Things can`t get much worse." "l don`t know." "We could have to go down to Lyndon`s ranch again dressed up as cowboys." "Shoot, shoot deer out of the back of his convertible." "That was a bad day." "You know, I thought there`d be..." "more good days." "You know, back when we were in the wards... that day Bobby made me come down and meet you?" "I didn`t get you at first." "I thought you were lucky." "Your father had a lot of money." "You were skinny." "Girls loved you." "I thought I could beat you and Bobby up together." "But he just kept going on and on about you." "I thought it was because he was your brother." "But I was wrong." "I was wrong." "Sleeping?" "No, not much." "But I slept last night though, you know, and, jeez, I... when I woke up, I just... somehow l`d forgotten that all this had happened, you know." "Then, of course, I remembered and... I just wished for a second somebody else was president." "You mean that?" "I said, for a second." "Boy, there is a lot of noise out there, Kenny." "You know what you`re doing, Mr. President." "You`re gonna make the best call you can... and you know they`re gonna second-guess you." "So what?" "We`re just gonna have to take our beatings as we go." "So what are we gonna do now?" "l`m going on TV." "You know, maybe the American people will go with me." "Even if their... elected representatives won`t." "You wear something nice for the TV." "Make sure Jackie picks it." "Excuse me." "Right, thanks." "Thanks, Pierre." "No, I just changed." "Okay, everybody." "I think we`re ready." "No, l`m fine." "l`m fine, thank you." "Mr. President, in 5,4,3,2..." "Good evening, my fellow citizens." "This government, as promised, has maintained the closest surveillance... of the Soviet military build-up on the island of Cuba." "Within the past week, unmistakable evidence has established the fact... that a series of offensive missile sites is now in preparation... on that imprisoned island." "The purpose of these bases can be none other... than to provide a nuclear capability against the western hemisphere." "Acting therefore in the defense of our own security... and under the authority entrusted me by the Constitution..." "I have directed that the following initial steps be taken immediately." "First: to halt this offensive build-up... a strict quarantine on all offensive equipment under shipment to Cuba... is being initiated." "All ships of any kind bound for Cuba... from whatever nation or port... will, if found to contain cargoes of offensive weapons, be turned back." "Second:" "I have directed the continued and increased close surveillance... of Cuba and its military build-up." "Should these military preparations continue, action will be justified." "I have directed the armed forces to prepare for any eventualities." "And third: it shall be the policy of this nation... to regard nuclear missiles launched from Cuba against any nation... in the western hemisphere as an attack by the Soviet Union... on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response... upon the Soviet Union." "Good speech, Teddy." "Yeah." "Well, I guess I get to keep my job." "No, it was a really good speech." "I can`t imagine what you did with the air strikes version." "I wasn`t able to write it, Kenny." "lt`s kind of hard to write the unthinkable." "I tried." "I just... I couldn`t." "We`re getting the Soviet response." "lt`s coming in on the teletype." ""The community of nations recognizes the right of freedom of the seas..."" "lt`s horseshit." "I agree." "They don`t know how to respond yet." "So now you`re Khrushchev." "What do you do?" "You run the blockade." "They`ll run the blockade." "Which is exactly what they appear to be preparing to do, Mr. President." "We`re tracking 26 ships inbound for Cuba." "They show no sign of changing course." "The closest ships, the Gagarin and the Kimovsk... will make the quarantine line by this time tomorrow." "Admiral Anderson, if the ships do not stop... exactly what are our rules of engagement?" "Well, Russian-speaking personnel have been transferred to all our ships." "When the quarantine takes places in the morning... our ships will attempt to make radio contact with the approaching vessels." "They will be ordered to reduce speed and stand by for inspection." "An inspection team will then board and search the vessel." "Weapons are found, the ship will be ordered out of the quarantine area... or, if they refuse, they`ll be towed into the nearest port." "What happens if the ship doesn`t stop for inspection or wanna be towed?" "We fire a warning shot across their bow." "And what happens if the ship ignores the warning shot?" "We then fire at its rudder, disable it, and carry on our inspection." "There will be no shooting without my explicit orders." "ls that understood?" "Yes, sir." "Well, admiral, it looks like it`s up to the navy." "The navy won`t let you down, sir." "There`s one other thing, Mr. President." "We`re begnning low-level photography runs over Cuba this morning." "It will be more detailed than the U-2 photography." "We`ll be able to firm up our estimates of the missiles readiness... and develop target packages for strikes, if you should order them." "To protect our pilots, we`re prepared to retaliate against any Sam site... or anti-aircraft battery that may open fire." "We have a flight of Thunderchiefs that will respond within minutes... to any attacks on our planes." "I got a bad feeling about what`s going on in there." "In the morning, l`m taking charge of the blockade from the situation room." "And McNamara is gonna set up shop at the Pentagon, keep an eye on things." "Good, because you`ll get armed boarders on the Soviet ships... with shots being fired across bows." "What about these low-level flights?" "We need the flights." "They`re starting in what?" "An hour." "You realize what you`re letting yourself in for?" "We need the flights." "The minute that first missile becomes operational we gotta go in there and destroy." "Fair enough!" "But Castro`s on alert... and we`re flying attack planes over their sites, on the deck." "There`s no way for them to know we`re carrying cameras, not bombs." "Damn it!" "We`re going to be shot at, plainly." "l`m your political advisor. l`m giving you a political analysis here." "This, this is a setup." "The chiefs wanna go in." "They need to redeem themselves for the Bay of Pigs." "They gotta go in this time, they gotta do it right." "l`m gonna protect those pilots." "They`re boxing us in with these rules of engagement." "If you agree to `em and one of our planes gets knocked down... or one of the ships won`t stop, the chiefs will have us by the balls... and will force us to start shooting." "They want a war, Jack, and they`re arranging things to get one." "How does a man get to a place where he says, "Throw those lives away"... so easily?" "Maybe it`s harder for them to say than they let on... but at the very least, they believe it`s in our best interest." "And, you know what... at the end of the day, they may well end up being right." "l`ll tell you one thing, we`ll triple check everything the chiefs say... with the guys that have to do it." "And nobody`s to know about this... but Bobby. I need redundant control over what happens out there." "And if things aren`t as advertised... then you`re gonna make sure they come out the way I want them to... starting with this low-level flight thing." "That`s gonna be tough." "You know how they are about chains of command." "Listen, you tell them those chains of command end at one place: me." "Thank you." "Go ahead, sir." "Speak up, lady. I cannot hear you." "I got a train to catch... and l`d like to be home by Christmas." "Yeah?" "That`s the one." "Mr." "O`Donnell." "What`s her name?" "Margaret." "Give me a break, l`m doing the best that I can." "Yes, sir." "I understand what you`re talking about. I speak the language." "What?" "Margaret, would you mind helping me with something?" "What do you need, honey?" "That tone of voice specifically." "What tone of voice?" "What the hell is he talking about?" "I told you, sir." "l`m sorry, you`re outta here." "Ready room." "Skipper, what are you doing?" "Looking out the door." "l`ll get him for you." "At what?" "Cuba." "Skipper!" "Telephone." "Commander Ecker." "Commander Ecker?" "Here the White House operator." "Hold." "Shit." "Honey, you don`t know what shit is." "Good morning, White House." "Commander?" "My name`s Ken O`Donnell, special assistant to the president." "Yes, sir." "The president`s instructed me... to pass along an order to you." "You are not to get shot down." "We`ll do our best, sir." "l don`t think you understand me." "You are not to get shot down under any circumstances." "Whatever happens, you were not shot at." "Mechanical failures are fine." "Crashing into mountains, fine." "But you and your men are not to be shot at, fired at or launched upon." "Excuse me, sir, what the hell is going on here?" "If you are fired upon, the president will be forced to attack the sites... that fire on you." "He doesn`t wanna have to do that." "lt`s very important that he doesn`t or things could go out of control." "What about my men?" "We don`t have anybody to protect us." "I`m gonna be writing letters home to parents." "If the president protects you, he may have to do it with the Bomb." "l`ve known the man for 1 5 years." "The problem is he will protect you." "So l`m asking: don`t make him protect you." "Don`t get shot at." "Okay, Mr. O`Donnell." "We`ll do what we can." "I know you will." "Good luck, you guys." "Find your way back." "Bye, guys." "Stay close." "Hey, Joey." "See you, Joey." "Thanks, Joey." "Ready to go, Jeremy?" "Hey, Bruce." "Skipper?" "Never mind, just do what I do." "Hand signs only?" "Gotcha." "You are clear." "Ready to go, sir!" "Good luck, skipper!" "Man!" "Shit, did you see it?" "Man, you were lucky, skipper." "Sparrows." "Must`ve been migrating." "Sparrows?" "Hit a couple hundred of them." "How many did you hit, Bruce?" "Sparrows?" "A few, I guess." "These, 20 millimeter or 40 millimeter sparrows, sir?" "Those are bird strikes." "Sparrows to be precise." "lt`s the way it is, guys." "Get that film pack done." "Commander Ecker." "Hello?" "Sir." "Commander." "l`ve been ordered to deliver the film to the Pentagon personally." "What`s going on here?" "The chiefs must wanna talk to you." "They`re gonna wanna know if you were fired on." "Were you?" "You could say that, sir." "Commander, listen to me." "I know this must fly in the face of everything you`ve come to serve... but I`m asking you to look through this to the other side." "Commander William B. Ecker reporting as ordered." "Commander." "Sir." "Put your gear down over here." "Would you like a glass of water or anything?" "No, thank you, sir." "Sir." "Commander." "Have a seat." "Now, commander, I assume you know why you`re here." "Son, I wanna know just one thing." "Those bastards shoot so much as a BB gun at you?" "It was a cakewalk, sir." "Mr. President, the OAS meeting starts in less than an hour." "Well, good." "I think we need this one, Dean." "We can`t expect miracles." "Listen, the quarantine is legal if we get a mandate." "Otherwise, it`s an act of war in the eyes of the world." "So you gotta get me the vote." "And, you know, make it unanimous." "Mr. President, the OAS hasn`t had a unanimous vote since..." "Unanimous, Dean." "I ask the board if they approve of the support to the quarantine of Cuba." "Who approves of it, please?" "Against?" "The resolution is approved by 1 9 confirmed votes." "In accordance with this afternoon vote, at the OAS... the quarantine will hereby be effective... as of ten o`clock tomorrow morning." "At 8 a.m. this morning the United States detonated a hydrogen bomb... above Johnston Island in the South Pacific." "The blast was quickly condemned by the Soviet Union... who called upon all nations to denounce the United States... for bringing the world to the brink of destruction." "Who the hell authorized this test?" "What will this say to the Russians?" "They look warlike?" "We`re lighting off nuclear weapons like it`s our private 4th of July." "You know what we should have done?" "We should`ve brought in the guys... from the Atomic Energy Commission and talked this through." "Look at these tests a little harder before just giving the go-ahead." "You know, last summer I read a book." ""The Guns of August."" "I wish every man on that blockade line had read that book." "lt`s World War I." "Thirteen million killed." "lt`s all because the militaries of both alliances believed... they were so highly attuned to one another`s movements, dispositions... they could predict one another`s intentions... but all their theories were based on the last war." "The world and technology changed and those lessons were no longer valid." "But it was all they knew, so the orders went out." "Couldn`t be rescinded." "The man in the field, his family at home, they couldn`t even tell you... the reasons why their lives were being destroyed." "But why couldn`t they stop it?" "What could they have done?" "Here we are, 50 years later." "If one of their ships resists the inspection, we shoot out its rudder... and board, they shoot down one of our planes in response." "So we bomb their anti-aircraft sites in response to that." "They attack Berlin." "So we invade Cuba." "And they fire their missiles." "And we fire ours." "Helen, I want you to keep the kids close tomorrow." "I want you to leave the TV on." "Sleep with it on in the bedroom until I call and tell you you can turn it off." "What`s happened?" "Nothing." "Nothing you don`t already know about." "Just... have the car ready to go if I call or the Civil Defense warning comes on." "What happens to you?" "l`m not leaving without you." "l`ll be evacuated with the president." "Great." "Great." "And while you`re under a rock somewhere with the president... what am I supposed to do with our five children, Kenny?" "Honey, we`re not gonna let it come to that. I promise." "Jack and Bobby, they`re... they`re smart guys." "You`re smart too." "Not like them." "Well, hi, Ken." "Helen asked me what arrangements we have for the families." "Yeah, I just checked that myself." "They`re being issued identity cards." "And the call comes... evacuation officers meet them at pre-arranged departure areas." "They go by helicopter to Mount Weather." "We meet them there." "Of course that`s for morale." "Missiles only take five minutes to get here." "The president`s asked Jackie and the children to return from the country... and be with him." "You know those pictures upstairs?" "Pictures of Lincoln?" "He looked so old near the end." "When we got here, I said, "lt`s not gonna happen to us."" "We were too young." "Why don`t you go home tonight?" "Go on home." "No. lt`s too much trouble to get the car." "Ken, we can get your car in 1 5 minutes." "No." "Go ahead." "No. l`ll let her sleep." "l`ll let" em sleep." "It almost seemed today as if time stood still." "The shooting hadn`t started yet, but there weren`t encouraging signs... that it could be avoided." "But worried, alarmed, afraid perhaps even... the American public nonetheless appeared determined and resolved." "This is Walter Cronkite." "Good night." "Paper?" "Yeah, thanks." "Here you go, sir." "Gentlemen, can you hear me?" "Yes, we hear you fine." "l`ve got one minute till 1 0 here." "The quarantine commences in one minute... and no sign of them stopping." "Sir." "Quarantine is now in effect." "And it looks like our first customers are the Gagarin and Kimovsk." "Chief, l`ve got something at zero-three-zero." "X.O, take a look at this." "New contact, skipper!" "What do we got?" "A Russian sub." "General quarters!" "General quarters!" "All hands, man your battle stations!" "General quarters!" "General quarters!" "All hands, man your battle stations!" "General quarters!" "General quarters!" "All hands, man your battle stations!" "General quarters!" "General quarters!" "All hands, man your battle stations!" "Bracket 231 correlates submarine at 9,000 yards." "lt`s protecting the freighters." "Bob, is there any way we can avoid stopping a submarine first?" "l`m afraid not, Mr. President." "The sub has positioned itself between the Pierce and the Soviet ships." "Admiral Anderson insists it`s too much risky stopping the freighters." "The Pierce would be a sitting duck for the sub." "Put me through to the Pierce." "Yes, sir." "Admiral Anderson." "The president wishes to speak directly to the captain of the Pierce." "ls that a problem?" "No, it isn`t, sir." "He`s putting you through, sir." "l`m patching you to the bridge now." "This is the captain of the Pierce." "Captain, this is the president." "Mr." "President?" "Is there any way... you can force that sub to the surface without damaging it or yourself?" "I can bring it up." "But whether it`s damaged or not is up to the sub." "Even if they force it up, it will be inspected over the crew`s dead bodies." "They`d be executed for allowing it when they got home." "Force the sub to the surface." "Yes, Mr. President." "Prepare to fire torpedoes." "Prepare to fire torpedoes." "Aye, sir." "Prepare to launch az rocket." "Prepare az rocket." "Aye, sir." "Watch your fingers!" "Watch your fingers!" "Watch it!" "What are they up to?" "They`re slowing down." "Mr. Secretary!" "l`m receiving reports the Russian ships appear to be stopping." "Mr. President, reports are coming in here to the Pentagon... that the ships appear to be stopping!" "Captain, belay that order!" "Hold your fire!" "Bob, where`s that coming from?" "One second, Mr. President." "Somebody find out what`s going on." "Those ships are definitely stopping." "Some are turning around." "Are they stopping?" "l don`t know what they are doing." "Admiral, admiral, what`s happening?" "Yes, sir, they are stopping." "Mr. President, reports are coming in from all around." "The ships are stopping." "Some are turning around." "Some are turning around." "We were eyeball to eyeball and I think the other fellow just blinked." "Yes, sir." "Yes, sir, we have that information." "Mr. President." "Mr. President, sir." "We have the tally from NSA." "We have 20 ships stopping and or turning around." "Six, however, appear to be continuing for the line." "lt`s a, it`s a mistake." "They must not have gotten their orders yet. l`d, let them go." "No, that`s unlikely, Bobby." "We`ve been monitoring the radio transmissions... from the Gagarin and the Kimovsk." "Their radios are working just fine." "One ship, an accident maybe." "Six, Mr. President, this is intentional." "Mr." "President, let them go." "Are you still here, Bob?" "Four of the six continuing ships are still a day away from the line." "They`ve stopped the ones we suspect have weapons aboard." "We`d look pretty bad shooting up a freighter full of baby food." "We sure as shit would." "Captain, I want you to maintain contact with those ships." "And do nothing until I order otherwise. ls that clear?" "Yes, Mr. President." "Contact only." "At its beginning this day looked as it might be one of armed conflict... between Soviet vessels and American warships... on the sea lanes leading to Cuba." "Find out how close our exercises are coming to their anti-ship missiles." "Goddamn it!" "How the goddamn hell did this happen?" "l`m gonna have Powers`s head on a platter next to LeMay`s." "Kenny, you hear me give the order to go Defcon 2?" "I remember giving the order to Defcon 3, but I must suffer from amnesia." "l`ve just been informed our nuclear forces are at Defcon 2." "They were limited." "The orders were limited to our strategic forces..." "Max!" "...in the continental U.S." "General LeMay is correct." "Technically, SAC has the statutory authority... I have the authority!" "I am the commander in chief of the US and I say when we go to war!" "We are not at war, sir, not until Defcon 1 ." "General... the joint chiefs have just signaled our intent to escalate to the Soviets." "You signaled an escalation which I had no wish to signal... and which I did not approve." "Just get out of here, Max." "Yes, sir." "Rescind the order." "Can all the chiefs." "Put Nitze, Gilpatrick and the undersecretaries in charge." "We can`t do that, Bobby." "Yes, we can!" "We can`t fire the chiefs, Bobby." "Our invasion talk will look like a bluff." "Or even worse if there`s been an attempted coup." "Jesus." "Kenny, give me a couple of minutes alone with Bobby, would you?" "Just, just try this on for size." "We get ahold of Walter Lippmann." "We leak the idea of pulling our Jupiter missiles out of Turkey... and the Soviets pull their missiles out of Cuba." "Act through the U.N.!" "K and K must talk!" "End the arms race, not the human race!" "Kenny." "What did you think of the Lippmann column this morning?" "l think it`s a bad idea." "Look, everyone is furious about it." "We trade away our missiles in Turkey and we`re dead politically." "You gotta stop `em." "We know it`s Jack and Bobby`s idea." "They leaked it to Lippmann." "The military guys are going ape." "Then they should speak up." "Christ." "Ken, it`s not that easy." "lt is." "They don`t trust who feel this way." "These people are right, the Kennedys, wrong." "We need you to talk to them." "They`ll listen to you." "Jack and Bobby are good men, but it takes..." "You mean the president of the United States and the attorney general?" "They are good men, but it takes a certain character, moral toughness to stand up to the Soviets." "You listen to me." "You`re in the White House right now because of the Kennedys." "Now they may be wrong." "They make mistakes, but they`re not weak." "The weak ones are these people who can`t seem to speak their own minds." "You know I don`t mean they`re weak." "No, they just lack moral toughness!" "Jesus Christ, Mac!" "You, you think l`ll play your Judas for you." "You never understood us, your kind." "We`ve been fighting with each other... our whole lives, but nobody plays us off each other." "And nobody ever, ever, gets between us!" "lt`s a goddamn trial balloon, Kenny!" "Somebody better publicly deny it... `cause there`s only one way the world`s gonna read this!" ""We sell out one of our friends for our own safety."" "Exactly." "Jesus Christ, they`re just killing us." "And enter into negotiations in order to normalize this confrontation... and avert the threat of a world war." "What is it that Sun Tzu says?" "War`s a moral contest." "They`re won in the temples before ever fought." "...this enormous danger for all mankind." "We exist at this moment... lt`s right here, it`s right here." "This is where we turn it around." "You call Adlai." "You tell him to stick it to this son of a bitch!" "...diplomatic resolution." "The US believes that with their economic boycott... by pressuring other countries to cease trade with Cuba... we would surrender due to hunger." "How does it feel, Mr. President... to be this heroic and force a country to surrender..." "Am I still on hold here?" "They`re trying to find him right now." "Ken, Adlai`s too weak!" "We have to convince Jack to pull him, get McCloy in there." "You can`t take him out this late." "Zorin will eat him alive." "Then talk to your brother, goddamn it." "The two of you don`t need my advice to get into trouble." "What`s gotten into you?" "Are you still sore about this Lippmann thing?" "Something your father would have done right there." "My father?" "l`m just trying to make a point." "This idea is that fucking bad." "Adlai can handle Zorin." "He knows the inning, he knows the score." "He better." "Because nobody believes he`s up to this." "Nobody." "Adlai, it`s Ken." "How you doing?" "l`m busy, Ken." "What do you need?" "The president told me to pass a word to you: stick it to them." "I hear you. l`m glad it`s you calling." "I, I thought it would be Bobby." "Adlai, the world has to know we`re right." "If we`ll have a political solution, we need international pressure." "You gotta be tough, Adlai." "You need to find it, buddy." "If they`re still sticking to their stonewall strategy, l`ll get `em." "l`m an old political cat, Kenny." "But l`ve got one life left." "l know you do." "See you, Ken." "Bobby!" "We call upon the world to condemn this purely American provocation." "We, the people of Romania, stand in solidarity... with the people of the Republic of Cuba and their revolution... in the face of this American threat to world peace." "Thank you, Mr. Chairman." "We are very glad that you could join us, Mr. Stevenson." "For the last two hours the entire world here is asking only questions." "The US is pushing the entire world to the ... brink of catastrophe." "The people of the whole world want to know why." "We are told again and again about some incontrovertible evidence... of offensive weapons in Cuba." "But no evidence can be shown to us." "Perhaps your spy planes are so secret... that you are simply incapable to present such evidence." "Some planes." "I make the call, Adlai is out." "McCloy goes in." "Let`s hope it doesn`t come to that." "Simply don`t have such evidence." "Perhaps the United States of America is simply mistaken." "Yes, the US A does not have any facts in hands, only falsifications." "John, get ready to send your staffer in." "He`s gonna be coming out." "The chair recognizes the representative from the US A." "Well, let me say something to you, Mr. Ambassador, we do have evidence." "We do have it, and it is clear and incontrovertible." "And let me say something else." "Those weapons must be taken out of Cuba." "You, the Soviet Union, have created this new danger..." "Come on, Adlai." "...not the United States." "Mr. Zorin, I remind you that the other day you did not deny... the existence of these weapons." "But today, again... if I have heard you correctly, you now say they do not exist." "All right, sir." "Let me ask you one simple question." "Come on, Adlai, don`t let him off." "Do you, Ambassador Zorin... deny that the U.S.S.R. has placed and is placing... medium and intermediate-range missiles in sites in Cuba?" "Yes or no?" "Don`t wait for the translation." "Yes or no?" "I am not in an American courtroom... and I do not wish to respond to questions... to questions that a prosecutor would put to the defendant." "You will get all the answers to your questions as this session progresses." "You are in the courtroom of world opinion right now... and you can answer yes or no." "You have denied they exist, I want to know if I have understood you." "Continue your statement." "You will get your answers in due course." "Don`t worry." "Don`t worry." "I`m prepared to wait for my answer until hell freezes over... if that`s what is needed." "John, l`ll get back to you." "...the evidence in this room... proving that the Soviet Union has lied to the world." "If you have decided not to continue your statement... the chair recognizes the representative from Chile." "I yield my time and the floor to the representative to the United States." "Well, ladies and gentlemen, since it appears we`re going to be here... for a while, shall we have a look at what the Soviets are doing in Cuba?" "May we have the presentation, please?" "Now, ladies and gentlemen, if you will observe in photograph A..." "Yeah." "Yeah." "...taken approximately August 29th..." "Old Adlai had it in him after all." "Zorin must not`ve got instructions." "Somebody in their Foreign Ministry`s blown it big time." "We have October 1 4th, the photograph taken then..." "Mr." "President." "...3 missile sites in construction." "The ship is called The Grozny." "We lost track of it yesterday at nightfall." "We thought we gave it plenty of room when we moved the quarantine back." "We just reacquired it." "It crossed the line hours ago." "Well, how the hell do you lose a goddamn tanker?" "What the hell is going on over there?" "Hail them again." "I want you to try them again." "We are kidding ourselves." "New coordinates for the Pierce." "Pierce coordinates." "25 degrees, 30 minutes north." "78 degrees, 1 0 minutes west." "Not responding, chief." "Tell the skipper." "They`re not responding, sir." "General quarters." "General quarters." "All hands, man your battle stations." "All hands, man your battle stations." "Very well." "Load your guns." "Guns are loaded, sir." "What was that, admiral?" "We`ve been hailing The Grozny for the last hour, Mr. Secretary." "The Grozny refuses to stop." "What are you doing?" "Carrying out our mission. lf you don`t mind, we`re very busy right now." "We need to be able to do our jobs." "Admiral... I asked you a question." "We`re going to follow the rules of engagement." "The rules of engagement which the president has approved and signed... in his order of 23 October." "Yes." "Yes, you may proceed, captain." " Clear your guns." " What?" "Damn it!" "Stop that firing!" "What?" "Stop that firing!" "Cease fire, cease fire!" "God help us." "The ship was firing star shells." "What?" "Star shells!" "Flares, Mr. Secretary!" "Goddamn it, l`ve got a job to do here!" "Now you`ve been camped out up there since Monday night." "You`re tired, you`re exhausted, you`re making mistakes." "You interfere with me and you will get some of my men killed." "And I will not allow that!" "Star shells." "Get out of our way, Mr. Secretary." "The navy has been running blockades since the days of John Paul Jones!" "I believe the president made it clear there would be no firing on ships without his express permission." "With all due respect, secretary we were not firing on that ship." "What the hell was that?" "Firing on a ship means attacking!" "We were not attacking that ship!" "We were firing over it!" "That was not the president`s intention when he gave that order!" "What if the Soviets don`t see the distinction?" "What if they make the same mistake I just made?" "There will be no firing anything near any Soviet ships... without my express permission, now is that understood, admiral?" "is it?" "Yes, sir." "I will only issue such instructions when ordered to by the president." "John Paul Jones!" "You don`t understand a thing, do you, admiral?" "This is not a blockade!" "This is language... a new vocabulary the likes of which the world has never seen!" "It is President Kennedy communicating with Secretary Khrushchev." "Who authorized this missile test?" "Who do you think?" "God knows what this is gonna communicate to the Soviets." "Communicate with the Soviets?" "We can`t communicate with the Pentagon." "And it`s just across the goddamn river." "LeMay must think you`re afraid of him." "l`m not taking that bait." "The bright move here is to move on." "...the United States destroyer Joseph P. Kennedy..." "This is the point at which we are concerned... that there might be shooting among the ships at sea." "The possibility that invasion might have to be undertaken... to assure that those bases are eliminated." "If invasion is undertaken, Russians have said they would retaliate... with rocket fire." "We have said if there`s rocket fire from Cuba... we will retaliate." "And there goes the whole ball game." "Kenny?" "What`s this?" "Can anyone just walk in here now?" "Ken, don`t worry, l`m not here to do an interview." "If you`re looking for a cup of sugar, John, you got the wrong door." "Kenny, we need to see the president." "Something`s happened." "I have lunch with him maybe once a month." "Way he talks, he acts like he knows Khrushchev personally... but he`s never elaborated." "l`ve used him as a source in a couple of stories." "The fbi has identified this Alexander Fomin as the Soviet resident... the KGB equivalent of one of our station chiefs." "He`s their highest ranking spy in this country." "And he knows John`s a friend of mine." "All the trademarks of a back-channel overture." "Yeah, some back channel." "ABC News guy, my goddamn next-door neighbor." "So they`ll remove the missiles, and we`ll pledge not to invade Cuba... or destabilize Castro or assist anyone who plans in doing so." "I think this may be our first real message from Khrushchev." "The alternative, Mr. President, is that this could be a trap." "And how is that exactly?" "Dangle a settlement... tie us down in negotiations, we come up short." "Why else would they approach us this way?" "lt`s deniable." "The Soviets have done nothing but lie to us." "This could be more of the same." "That may be why Khrushchev`s introducing this guy." "We`ve been burned by his usual players in the formal channels... so he brings in an honest broker." "That may be what they want us to think." "The truth is, Mr. President, we don`t really know who Fomin speaks for." "It could be Khrushchev. lt could be some faction in the Politburo... or the KGB itself." "We just don`t know." "By the way, Scali, your activities now fall under the secrecy codicils of the National Security Act." "Sorry, John, no Pulitzer." "Mr. President, we haven`t much time." "l`m scheduled to meet with him again in three and a half hours." "So it seems the question of the day is, "ls the offer legitimate?"" "And if it is, well, if it is, we can`t afford to ignore it." "So, John... we`ll have instructions for you in a couple of hours." "Thank you." "Thank you, John." "So we don`t have much time to play out back-channel communiqués." "Kenny... get over to your old stomping grounds and go through everything the fbi... has on Fomin." "And I need your best call. ls the guy legit?" "And is he speaking for Khrushchev?" "Okay." "So what we`ve got is this guy Alexander Feklisov... aka Alexander Fomin, declared consul to the Soviet embassy... but in reality the KGB papa spy." "An illustrious tour of duty during the Great Patriotic War... gets him on the party fast track." "Various tours of duty in KGB." "American postings." "He`s expert on us." "That is all we`ve got on papa spy." "How do you become the KGB top spy in the United States?" "You gotta know someone." "You gotta know someone." "So politics is politics." "Walter, get me Khrushchev`s files." "Pass me that." "l wanna their career chronologies... side by side." "We know they`re not related, right?" "Right." "They`re not from the same hometown, they went to different schools." "Right." "So if they were gonna meet, they should have met here." "l think they could have met." "They couldn`t have." "He was an engineer stationed outside of Moscow at the end of `41 ." "That`s it." "They know each other." "They`re war buddies." "That`s pretty thin, Kenny." "Well, real life usually is, Walter." "They know each other." "Khrushchev and Fomin were war buddies." "You sure?" "Don`t take it to court... but we`ve got good circumstantial evidence." "You`re there. I mean, what`s your instinct?" "I gotta move on with this." "My gut`s telling me Khrushchev`s turning to a trusted old friend... to carry his message." "Okay." "We`re going." "l`ve been instructed to tell you that the American government... would respond favorably to an offer along the lines you have discussed." "If such a solution were raised at the U.N. by Ambassador Zorin... he would find a favorable reply from Ambassador Stevenson." "So I understand you correctly." "If the missiles in Cuba were dismantled... returned to the Soviet Union, and a guarantee was made... not to reintroduce them, the United States would be prepared... to guarantee that it would never invade Cuba?" "That is correct." "This is from the highest authority?" "Yes, the highest authority." "There are two conditions." "The U.N. must be allowed... to inspect the removal of the missiles." "And the U.N. must also be allowed to observe the redeployment of forces from the American Southeast." "l can`t speak to that." "What`s the second condition, John?" "Time is of the essence." "How much time?" "Forty-eight hours." "In 48 hours there can be no deals." "l`ll see what I can do." "I think it`s very difficult to make a decision from this document." "Well, it looks to me like Fomin`s overture was genuine." "That`s a big if, Bobby." "lt`s 1 0 pages of sentimental fluff." "But he`s saying it right here he`ll remove the missiles... in return for a no-invasion pledge." "Our early analysis says this probably was written by Khrushchev himself." "lt`s a first draft, no signs of being polished by the Foreign Ministry." "In fact, it probably wasn`t even approved by the Politburo... as they wouldn`t let the emotionalism go by." "The analysts say it was written by someone under considerable stress." "Glad to know we`re not alone." "Well, it never was my intention to invade Cuba anyway... until they put the missiles in there." "Gentlemen, I thing we should seriously consider this deal." "Hi." "Hi." "You look old, O`Donnell." "You don`t." "lt`s 2:30 in the morning." "Are you flirting with me?" "We got a back-channel communication from Khrushchev this evening... feeling us out about a deal." "He confirmed it just a little while ago in a letter." "Thank God." "Jack kicked us out of his house for the night." "Darn it." "For a second there, I thought you`d been fired." "No such luck." "You know, l`m driving home... there was something I wanted to tell you." "Finish that thought." "Yes?" "Kenny, it`s Bob." "We`re getting another letter over the teletype from Khrushchev." "I have a bad feeling." "Okay. l`ll be right there." "You`re beautiful." "It looks like Fomin was a ploy and they were just stalling for time." "It gets worse." "Gentlemen, my specialists are in agreement:" "this morning`s letter is not Khrushchev." "Last night`s letter was." "The evidence supports only one conclusion: there has been a coup... and Khrushchev was replaced overnight." "Dean?" "At the very least, it suggests... he`s been co-opted by hard-line elements." "Which at the end of the day amounts to the same: a puppet Khrushchev." "And a hard-line Soviet government pulling the strings." "No deal." "And the missiles are almost operational." "What if the Soviets have no intention of honoring this second deal?" "Then tomorrow they make another condition." "Meanwhile the quarantine isn`t working... and they`re completing work on the missile sites." "Sir, I think we have to issue pre-invasion orders for our forces." "Mr. President, this morning`s photography is in." "Soviets have commenced a crash program to ready their missiles." "The first missiles became operational last night." "We expect they`ll all be operational in 36 hours." "Then we`re out of time." "We have to go in." "That may not be as easy as we thought either." "We have gotten confirmation that the Soviets have also deployed... battlefield nuclear weapons to Cuba." "Frogs, we call `em." "Short-range tactical nukes." "Now we don`t know whether they`ve delegated release authority... to their local commanders for use on our invasion troops." "The good news is as of this moment we know where the Frogs are... and we can target them too." "But the longer we wait, the harder it`s going to get." "We have no choice." "General, issue orders to our forces." "They will be prepared to execute the air strikes Monday morning." "The follow-on invasion according to the schedule thereafter." "l`ll need the official release orders on my desk on Sunday night." "Understood, sir." "We need to step up our overflights... finalize our pilots` target folders in order to carry out the strikes." "Permission granted." "Yes, sir." "Well, gentlemen, if anybody`s got any great ideas, now`s the time." "Major Anderson, phone call for you." "Thank you, all right." "Give me just a second here, guys." "This is Major Anderson." "Hello, hello?" "Anyone there?" "Major." "Yes, sir." "My name is Kenneth O`Donnell." "Special assistant to the president." "Major, a few days ago the president ordered me to help him... keep control of what`s going on out there." "l`ve been, l`ve been browbeating pilots, navy guys left and right... to make sure you don`t get us here in Washington into trouble." "But you know what?" "We`re pretty damn good ourselves at getting into trouble so... instead of riding your ass, l`m gonna tell you what`s going on here... and let you figure out how best to help us out up here." "Go ahead, sir." "Last night, it... looked like we were going to cut a deal to get us all out of this mess." "Today, the Soviets are reneging." "We`re gonna try and salvage the situation, but... a lot of things are going wrong today." "lt`s making everyone nervous." "If more things go wrong, people will become more nervous... and it will be very hard to avoid going to war." "l`m not sure what you`re trying to tell me, sir." "Just my standard line l`ve been repeating to guys like you all week." "Don`t get shot down." "Beyond that, whatever else you can do to help us, I`d appreciate it." "Sir... when you`re at 72,000 feet, there`s a million things that can go wrong." "Is your oxygen mix right?" "Are your cameras gonna freeze up?" "Are you leaving a contrail?" "Those things are beyond your control." "But... you know, when you realize that there`s a kind of peace, you know." "If you`re a good man and if your ground crew are good men... that is all you can ask for." "The grace of God, that will get you through." "Are you a religious man?" "Yes, sir, I am." "Good." "The plane is missing, Kenny." "We are presuming the pilot is dead." "lt`s hard to believe with the Soviet centralized command structure... that this could`ve been an accidental launch." "The question is, does this attack represent a definitive escalation on the part of the Soviets?" "Mr." "President... taken with the events of the past few hours, this confirms our fears." "We`re now dealing with a hard-line Soviet government... perhaps with Khrushchev as a puppet head, perhaps not." "We don`t know." "You okay?" "Yeah. l`m fine." "Mr." "President." "What now?" "A U-2 on a routine air-sampling mission got lost and penetrated Soviet airspace over Siberia." "Goddamn it!" "Soviets scrambled MlGs in pursuit, thinking it was a bomber." "Got out okay." "Somebody forgot to cancel the mission." "You know, there`s always some son of a bitch who doesn`t get the word!" "This, you know, is just what we need." "Soviets thinking we`re bombing them." "Anybody else?" "Mr." "President... our pilots are in danger." "We must order punitive air strikes against the Sam site that shot down..." "Major Anderson per our rules of engagement." "No." "I want confirmation it wasn`t some sort of accident first." "Mr." "President!" "l think that`s a good idea." "I can wait a day and a half." "Be safer for my boys to get the Sams Monday." "When we get the rest of the bastards." "Break!" "That`s the quarter!" "Hey, Dad." "Hey, sport." "You winning?" "Yeah." "is everything gonna be okay, Dad?" "Everything`s gonna be fine, Kenny." "I guess you won`t be coming home tonight." "I... I..." "Let`s go!" "Second quarter!" "lt`s okay, go on back to your game." "All right." "l`ll see you around, Dad." "First down!" "Break!" "Damn it!" "Jesus, Mary and Joseph." "Take off for 2 hours." "You`re gonna miss a little drama." "I told you how stupid it was to float that article." "Now you`ll do for real?" "The Jupiters are obsolete." "They were supposed to have been dismantled... I know they are obsolete!" "That`s not the point!" "The point is, you trade our missiles in Turkey for theirs in Cuba... they`re gonna force us into trade after trade, until finally... a couple of months from now, they demand something we won`t trade." "Like Berlin." "And we do end up in a war." "Not to mention that long before that, this administration will be dead." "I don`t care if this administration ends up in the freaking toilet!" "We don`t do a deal tonight, there won`t be any administration!" "lt`s a wrong move, Bobby, and it`s not just me who thinks that!" "Everyone on this so-called Excom is telling you exactly the same thing!" "Whose side are you on now, Ken?" "Goddamn it." "What if there hasn`t been a coup at all?" "What if it`s you two?" "What is that supposed to mean?" "What if it was you two... who invited that second letter by raising the possibility of a trade?" "Mr. President, we have only 30 hours left." "Whatever response we send, it will take several hours... for the wire to be received by our embassy and delivered to the Kremlin." "So we`re looking at early tomorrow morning at the earliest... before Khrushchev could respond." "Which one of you genius is gonna tell me how to explain it to the world... if we don`t make this trade?" "So what are we gonna say to the Soviets about this offer?" "Well, it depends. I mean... do we really believe there`s been a coup?" "What if Fomin wasn`t a ploy?" "What if his message was real?" "What if what is happening is a series of accidents?" "Accidents like them shooting down our U-2?" "Yes, accidents like that." "And the accident`s making the second letter seem more aggressive... and the whole situation appears worse than it really is." ""The Guns of August."" "That`s right." "So we just reject the second letter?" "No." "No, no." "We don`t reject it." "We accept the first letter and pretend the second doesn`t exist." "It won`t work because it`s wishful thinking!" "He made an offer, so I..." "lt`s the same wishful thinking... that blinded us while the Soviets were sneaking missiles in under our noses." "Ignore the second letter, agree to the conditions of the first." "There`s no reason to believe the Soviets will let it go." "Max is right." "Why will they accept it?" "It can work. lf, if they believe we`re gonna hit them." "And hit them hard." "We`ve got time for one more round... of diplomacy and that`s it." "The first air strikes start in 28 hours." "We have to make them agree to it." "Right." "So how do we do that?" "We give them something." "We tell them we`re gonna remove the missiles from Turkey." "Hang on!" "But we do that 6 months from now, so it appears there`s no linkage." "We also tell them, if they go public about it, we`ll deny." "Right." "We deny it, the deals off." "And we do it under the table to disavow any knowledge of it." "lt`s transparent, Kenny." "The press will be all over it." "Six months from now, we`re not gonna care, are we?" "We`ll deal with it then." "At least it will expose... if Khrushchev has been overthrown." "We`ll know who we`re up against." "Well, l`ve been thinking about Khrushchev." "And if this is a move to appease the hard-liners in his government... then it may be just the bone he needs to regain control of his own house." "Whoever carries the message has to hit the nail on the head." "Come across as too soft, they`ll push us." "Too hard, they`ll be cornered and even more dangerous." "All of you... all of you do understand there is an enormous risk in offering this deal." "Because if they turn us down, and we`ve already told them we`re coming on Monday morning..." "They`ll strike first." "Bobby." "You know Dobrynin best." "Then you`re it." "Ted, I want you to start working on the draft." "And, Bobby, you gotta go in there." "You gotta make them understand... we have to have an answer tomorrow, because Monday we go to war." "What do you want?" "A good-bye kiss?" "Joe, listen. l`ll take care of him." "Go on inside, grab some coffee." "We`ll be back pretty quick." "Are you sure?" "Sure." "What`s the matter with you?" "Forget how to open a car door?" "Jesus." "You rich people." "I promised the girls l`d take them riding tomorrow." "Make sure you keep that date." "We gave up so much to get here." "I don`t know." "Sometimes I think, what the hell did we do it for?" "Well, I don`t know about you, but l`m in it for the money." "We knew we could do a better job than everyone else." "Remember?" "You know, I... I, I hate being called the brilliant one." "The ruthless one." "The, the guy everybody`s afraid of." "I hate it." "l`m not so smart, you know." "l`m not so ruthless." "You`re right about the smart part." "I don`t know if I can do this." "There`s nobody else l`d rather have going in there than you." "Nobody else l`d trust Helen and the kids` lives to." "Take a left." "You smell that?" "They`re burning their documents." "They think we`re going to war." "God help us, Ken." "Sir, Ambassador Dobrynin is already here." "He`s waiting in your office." "Here." "l`ll whistle up some luck for you." "Mr. Ambassador, thank you..." "Who are you?" "A friend." "My brother, my friends, my countrymen and I... cannot and will not permit those missiles to become operational." "l promise you that." "Then our two nations will go to war." "And I fear where war will lead us." "If the missiles do not become operational... if you remove the missiles, then there will be no war." "At this moment, the president is accepting the terms... of Secretary Khrushchev`s letter of Friday night." "If the Soviet Union halts construction immediately, removes the missiles... and submits to U.N. inspection, the United States will pledge... to never invade Cuba or aid others in that enterprise." "If your Jupiter missiles in Turkey were removed also... such an accommodation could be reached." "That`s not possible." "The United States cannot agree to such terms under threat." "Any belief to the contrary was in error." "You want war?" "However, while there can be no quid pro quo on this issue... the United States can offer a private assurance." "Our Jupiter missiles in Turkey are obsolete... and have been scheduled for withdrawal for some time." "This withdrawal should take place within, say, six months." "Of course, any public disclosure of the assurance would negate the deal... and produce the most stringent denials from our government." "This private assurance represents the word of the highest authority?" "Yes." "And it can be relayed beyond Comrade Khrushchev`s ears... to the top circles of my government?" "Our pledge can be relayed to any government official..." "Secretary Khrushchev sees fit to satisfy." "With the caveat it is not to be made public in any way, shape or form." "And we must have an answer tomorrow at the latest." "l cannot stress this point enough." "Tomorrow?" "Tomorrow." "Then you must excuse me and permit me... to relay the substance of our discussion to my superiors." "Of course." "We have heard stories that some of your military men wish for war." "You`re a good man." "Your brother is a good man." "I assure you there are other good men." "Let us hope the will of good men is enough to counter... the terrible strength of this thing that was put in motion." "What`s going to happen?" "If the sun comes up tomorrow... it is only because of men of goodwill." "And that`s... that`s all there is between us and the devil." "This is Radio Moscow." "Premier Khrushchev has sent a message to President Kennedy today." "The Soviet prime minister reemphasizes... the need for urgent measures to prevent a fatal turn of events... and to preserve world peace." "In addition to instructions earlier transmitted... to stop construction work on installations in Cuba... the Soviet government has ordered the dismantling of weapons in Cuba... as well as their crating, and return to the Soviet Union." "is everybody ready for church?" "lt`s a beautiful morning." "Pass the butter to dad." "Dad, you want your paper?" "Dad, what`s wrong?" "The sun came up." "Everyday the sun comes up says something about us." "What does it say, Dad?" "What`s wrong with daddy?" "This is the foreign policy trophy we were hoping for." "Mr. President, sir." "Mr. President, great job." "Hold it, hold it!" "Well, Mr. President, I think I can speak for everyone here... when I say, "Bring on those midterms." "There`s no stopping us now."" "Four more years!" "All right!" "You know, it`s been, it`s been a long two weeks and... or whatever, but l`d like to thank you all." "I think you all did a great job." "And I just think... I don`t think we should be gloating too much." "It was... just as much a victory for them as it was for us." "Hear, hear." "Enjoy your morning." "Thank you, Mr. President." "Get some rest, Mr. President." "We`ve got a lot of new clout right now." "We can run the table on Khrushchev, the Middle East and Southeast Asia." "Right, you`re right." "Dear Mr. and Mrs. Anderson... I was deeply shocked when advised your son was lost... in an operational mission on Saturday." "October 27 th, 1 962." "Your son rendered distinguished and dedicated service to his country... throughout his career." "He was admired... and respected for his courage... his professional skill by all with whom he served." "His tragic loss will be deeply felt... and a grateful nation will be forever in his debt." "Ken, we`re out here!" "What kind of a peace do we seek?" "I`m talking about genuine peace." "The kind of peace that makes life on Earth worth living... not merely peace in our time, but peace in all time." "Our problems are man-made." "Therefore, they can be solved by man." "For, in the final analysis, our most basic common link... is that we all inhabit this small planet." "We all breath the same air, we all cherish our children`s future." "And we are all mortal." "CAPTIONS BY VIDEOLAR"