Kennedy Assassination

Friday, November 22, 1963
Page Three

The limo now sped up to 80 miles an hour in a race to Parkland Hospital, which is 4 miles away.

At Parkland, chaos ensued. Agents surround Lyndon Johnson and over his protests, hustle him inside to protect him. He is now the President of the United States.

Mrs. Kennedy, bent over her dead husband, refused to allow him to be removed. She protected his lifeless body from view with her own. Sensing this, Agent Hill removed his suit jacket and placed it over the President's head. She had said to Hill, "you know he's dead, leave me alone."

Nellie Connally is annoyed that everyone is fussing over what she knows is a dead man, while her injured husband in the front seat is being ignored. Finally Connally is taken inside the hospital as is Kennedy, still with Agent Hill's coat over his head, his wife touching him.

Upon arrival, about 12:37 p.m., Kennedy still had a faint heartbeat which quickly extinguished. A doctor enlarged the bullet wound to perform a tracheotomy. Had it been any other patient, they most likely would have pronounced him dead but they tried to revive the mortally wounded young President.

Outside Parkland Hospital, November 22, 1963

Agents were suggesting to Johnson that he begin thinking about leaving Dallas and being sworn in as President. At this point, a conspiracy to kill them all was a real possibility. Johnson was less aware of Kennedy's condition than the agents, who understood fully how the story would end.

Cabinet upon their return to Washington later that evening.
From left, White House Press Secretary Pierre Salinger, Secretaries Freeman, Dillon, Rusk, Udall and Hodges.

Most of the Cabinet was in route to Tokyo. Aboard that plane was Secretaries of State Dean Rusk, Interior Morris Udall, Commerce Luther Hodges, Labor Wirtz, Agriculture Orville Freeman. Press Secretary Pierre Salinger was along as well. Upon receiving the news from Dallas, the plane turned around.

Attorney General Robert Kennedy, the President's brother, received the news at home in McLean, Virginia from FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover. Senator Edward Kennedy was at the Senate.

At 12:49 p.m. two priests, Father Oscar Huber and Father James Thompson arrived and Huber gave JOhn F. Kennedy the sacraments with his wife and doctors praying beside him.

Mrs. Kennedy returned to the hallway and a nurse asked her if she wanted to wash up. She responded, "no, I want them to see what they have done." She would repeat this to several people during this day.

Governor Connally was stabilized and sent to surgery. He was doing well and would survive.

Up until this point, there had been a hesitancy to release much information to the public. Perhaps it was as simple as no one wanted to say the words. All the public knew was that President Kennedy had been shot. No details. But an announcement had to be made. Mrs. Kennedy wanted the time of death placed after he received the sacraments and the Dr. Malcolm Perry agreed to this. It was now 1 p.m. and so it was fixed as the time.

Assistant Presidential Press Secretary Malcom Kilduff knew that now all power had shifted to Lyndon Baines Johnson and so he needed his approval to release the terrible news to the public. Approaching him, he prefaced his comments with, "Mr. President." It hit both Johnson and his wife hard as it was the first moment they knew that the worst had happened.

Debate ensued as to the exit plan. Security was an issue as the nature of the assassination was unclear. Also, Johnson did not want to leave without Jackie Kennedy who would not leave without her husband. In spite of Secret Service pressure to get to the safety of Air Force One, Johnson said, "I will not leave without President and Mrs. Kennedy." As a compromise, it was decided Johnson could wait for the Kennedys on board Air Force One and so he was evacuated from Parkland Hospital.

Assistant Press Secretary Malcom Kilduff announces President Kennedy's death.

Only then did Kilduff make the announcement to the press. "President John F. Kennedy died at approximately 1 p.m. Central Standard Time today here in Dallas. He died of a gunshot wound in the brain. I have no other details of the assassination."

Click to hear Kilduff's announcement

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