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The President's Secret Tapes

Civil Rights

Cuban Missile Crisis

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Presidential Recordings Beginning in 1939 and ending with the Nixon administration in 1974, taping systems have played an intriguing role in U.S. presidential history. John F. Kennedy was the first president to extensively record both his meetings and telephone conversations. The recording system used by Kennedy was designed and installed by Secret Service agent Robert Bouck in July 1962. Located underneath the Oval Office, it was connected to both the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room. The President could manually activate the system by pressing a button. Meetings and Conversations In all, President Kennedy selectively recorded over 238 hours of meetings and conversations that took place in the Oval Office or the Cabinet Room. These recordings capture discussions on many sensitive domestic and foreign policy matters. The system was a closely held secret. Most of President Kennedy’s top aides were unaware of the system until its existence became known during the U.S. Senate hearings on Watergate in 1973.

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Presidential Recordings Beginning in 1939 and ending with the Nixon administration in 1974, taping systems have played an intriguing role in U.S. presidential history. John F. Kennedy was the first president to extensively record both his meetings and telephone conversations. The recording system used by Kennedy was designed and installed by Secret Service agent Robert Bouck in July 1962. Located underneath the Oval Office, it was connected to both the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room. The President could manually activate the system by pressing a button. Meetings and Conversations In all, President Kennedy selectively recorded over 238 hours of meetings and conversations that took place in the Oval Office or the Cabinet Room. These recordings capture discussions on many sensitive domestic and foreign policy matters. The system was a closely held secret. Most of President Kennedy’s top aides were unaware of the system until its existence became known during the U.S. Senate hearings on Watergate in 1973.

Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

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