US Presidency
1964

Khrushchev was clearly the dominant figure in making Soviet policy. After Lenin and Stalin, he is only the third man in history to have made himself the undisputed master of Communist Russia. There were times when he was guilty of dangerous adventure. It required great American firmness and good sense first in Berlin and later in the Cuban missile crisis to turn back his threats and actions without war. Yet he learned from his mistakes and he was not blind to realities. In the last 2 years, his government had shown itself aware of the need for sanity in the nuclear age. He joined in the nuclear test ban treaty. He joined in the hot line which can help prevent a war by accident. He agreed that space should be kept free of nuclear weapons. In these actions he demonstrated good sense and sober judgment. We do not think it was these actions that led to his removal. We can not know for sure just what did lead to this secret decision.