WASHINGTON, May 28, (APP/AFP) – John F. Kennedy —
young, heroic, charismatic — embodied the overflowing promise of possibility of 20th century America, until an assassin’s bullet ended his life in November 1963.
One hundred years after his birth, the youngest man ever elected
president, who once urged Americans to strive for the “New Frontier,” is still a political icon, and the country is celebrating his legacy, which lives on most visibly in his family.
“It’s an opportunity to reflect on what president Kennedy stood for,
and the belief and commitment he had to solve every challenge in front of him,” Congressman Joe Kennedy III, a great-nephew of the president, told AFP.
The lanky, red-haired grandson of slain attorney general Robert F.
Kennedy is part of the family’s third generation to carry the political torch, entering the House of Representatives in 2013.
For all but two years since 1947 — nearly a third of the history of
the United States — a Kennedy has served in elective office. They are the
quintessential American dynasty, the closest thing the country has to royalty.
JFK’s legacy, said the 36-year-old lawmaker from Massachusetts, is
“his call for all Americans, regardless of size or shape or background, to serve their country.”
“Many of my colleagues from both sides of the aisle have stopped me
to say they have been inspired by his call to service.”
First lady Jackie Kennedy became a global phenomenon, their White
House social sessions were the stuff of legend and lawmakers of all political stripes embraced the comity.