US Presidency
1965

When our manned space program began, many said about space what men probably said 500 years before about America itself that the environment was hostile, that the climate was no good, that there was nothing there worth the trip anyway. These two young Americans have changed that conception forever. All people have a new sense of thrill, and excitement, and anticipation about space exploration because of the flight of Gemini 4. The joy and the thrill and the exhilaration that Ed White experienced on his walk from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic ran through the veins of us all. Our attitudes about space will never entirely be the same again. And let me make one other observation. I read with mixed emotions yesterday that Major White had decided to claim this State of his birth as his home State. Well, as President, I am supposed to be neutral on matters of State pride, but the glimmer of pride I allow myself to feel is subdued just a bit.