That's good to know. As for foreign policy, considering the current "hardline" Soviet leadership, in your opinion, Mr. President
@President_Lincoln , how would hypothetically RFK handle the "Ewol Commies"? Will he be as belligerent as Reagan or Scoop Jackson? Will he increase defense spending, including plans for a 700-ship Navy?
I could see RFK putting human rights as a cornerstone of his foreign policy similar to Carter IOTL. I doubt he would go as far as Reagan did to fund the Contras in Nicaragua if that even happens. I also doubt RFK would authorise any regime changes. Depending on who his Defence Secretary is maybe the Pentagon would get an increase but not to the levels Reagan gave
Excellent questions. Without giving too much away here, let's take a glimpse into RFK's potential foreign policy.
Bobby Kennedy has had a long, complex journey to become the person he is on the eve of the 1980 presidential election. As a young attorney, freshly graduated from the University of Virginia Law School, Bobby was a fervent anti-Communist. He even worked alongside Roy Cohn under the infamous Joseph McCarthy (a family friend of the Kennedys) for a time in the early 1950s. Later, during the early years of his brother's presidency, Bobby continued his preference for an aggressive foreign policy. The Cuban Missile Crisis, however, represented a major turning point in Kennedy's thinking. As the world stepped right up to the brink of global thermonuclear war and the end of civilization as we know it, RFK learned a valuable lesson: cooler heads prevail. You have to be tough, of course. Bobby Kennedy's entire world view is pure moralistic Catholicism. He believes in an ethical universe. There is good and there is evil. "White hats" and "black hats", he calls them, just like in an old Western film. But sometimes, the people you like are not the "white hats". The world is more nuanced, more complex. You have to be honest with yourself. You have to be fair. As he has matured, he's gained experience, and through that, wisdom. He understands that careful judgement must be exercised when it comes to geopolitics, especially in this thermonuclear age.
A dyed-in-the-wool liberal, Kennedy believes very deeply in individual freedom and autonomy, along with other human rights, like dignity and respect. His foreign policy, if elected, would be human rights-centric, for sure. It would also be tough and confrontational where it can be. The phrase "a fighter for peace" comes to mind. Some have called Bobby Kennedy "ruthless". So amend that to "a ruthless fighter for peace". Kennedy would neither back down from communist aggression, nor aggravate it with provocative geopolitical moves. Immediately, he would likely project strength to the hardliners who have just risen to power in Moscow (Suslov, Ustinov, and Gromyko) while still keeping open backchannel negotiations for renewed détente. Learning from the disastrous Bay of Pigs Invasion, and Romney and Bush's stumbles in Cambodia, Kennedy believes that "military adventurism" is a fool's errand. Kennedy would like to build on the work his brother did in limiting nuclear proliferation. A nuclear "freeze" and even arms-reduction treaties are certainly on the table, if the Soviets will play ball. As a Senator, Kennedy quietly supported President Bush's decision to travel to Beijing, shake hands with Chairman Zhou and recognize the People's Republic of China. Though he favors continued defense of Taiwan as a geopolitical reality, a "One China Policy" that does not recognize Beijing's control over the vast majority of China would be nonsensical.
On a personal level, Bobby has decades of experience as an informal diplomat. First as a well-off Irish-American socialite, then as Secretary of Defense in the latter half of JFK's administration. While Jack was seen as cool and intellectual, "the first Irish-American Brahmin", Bobby is tough, no-nonsense, and morally righteous. "The first Irish-American Puritan".
Hope this helps!