The presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower began at noon EST on January 20, 1953, with his inauguration as the 34th President of the United States, and ended on January 20, 1961. John F. Kennedy succeeded him after winning the 1960 presidential election. Eisenhower held office during the Cold War, a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. In domestic affairs, Eisenhower supported a policy of 'modern Republicanism' that occupied a middle ground between liberal Democrats and the conservative wing of the Republican Party. Eisenhower continued New Deal programs, expanded Social Security, and prioritized a balanced budget over tax cuts. The Eisenhower administration, initially thinking the pilot had died in the crash, authorized the release of a cover story claiming that the plane was a 'weather research aircraft' which had unintentionally strayed into Soviet airspace after the pilot had radioed 'difficulties with his oxygen equipment' while flying over Turkey.