At 3.30 p.m. the car and driver came for them and they were in Conference Room 904 fifteen minutes later.
Robert Kennedy came down first.
“The media are beginning to start noticing things. Why so many lights on all through the night in unexpected places? People are checking on rumours, most of them in the wrong direction but we’re getting very near to leaking. I don’t know if we’ll last through tomorrow, Sunday.”
He looked up as the door opened and the President came in, tie-less and still handsome despite the strain showing on his face.
“Hi, all of you. Andy, there’s just one thing I have to go over with you. This question of Khrushchev backing off. People see that as a sign of weakness but I think that attitude is often a mistake. I’d say that if Nikita K is sure of himself and strong enough, he can afford to back off. If he’s weak he’ll just get carried along on the tiger, scared to get off in case his rivals eat him. What do you think?”
“You’re right. I’m sure of that.”
“So which is he, tough or weak?”
“He’s strong enough to back off. There are no rivals who would dare go for him at the moment.”
The President looked at Bobby. “There’s over a hundred ships deployed now in the Caribbean. First Armoured Division are heading for embarkation points in Georgia right now. Five other divisions on full alert, and B-52s with atomic weapons are on permanent airborne patrol. When one lands another takes off. I think the Trib has a good idea of something going on. I’m sending a letter to Khrushchev which he’ll get with a copy of my speech. He’ll get both from our ambassador while I’m talking on TV.
“I’m warning all our embassies an hour before I go on air. There will be anti-American demonstrations and all the usual crap that starts up whenever we issue a threat.” He stopped and looked at the others, shaking his head slowly as he said softly, “Outside it all goes on, Saturday night dates and dinner parties, the movies, the theatres, the cops, the crooks, the traffic, the hookers. None of them know that by this time tomorrow we will be in a flaming crisis. God help us.” As he walked to the door he stopped. “If there’s need for a meeting tomorrow I’ll contact you, Bill. I think we’ll just let it ride along. The decision’s made, we’ve just got to wait for the reaction. Thanks for your help, Andy. We owe you.”
Sunday October 21 passed without any call from the White House but on the Monday morning a message came through that they were to be available from noon. A car came for them at 3 p.m. and they went straight to Conference Room 904.
Robert Kennedy was waiting for them, clip-board in hand.
“Just to put you in the picture. We’ve made arrangements for twenty congressional leaders to meet the President at 5 p.m. We’ve even sent Air Force planes for those who can’t make it by commercial airlines. After that there are individual briefings by senior staff at State to forty-six ambassadors and other diplomats. At 6 p.m. Rusk is seeing Dobrynin, the Soviet Ambassador. Acheson is already on his way to brief NATO top brass and while the President is speaking Adlai Stevenson will deliver a formal request to Zorin at the United Nations to convene a special meeting of the Security Council.” He shrugged. “That’s about it. On the military side we’ve assembled more than enough resources to cope with anything likely to happen. There’s all sorts of rumours flying around the town, some are near the mark but most of them are way out. But they’ve obviously all realised that something’s going on.”
Malloy said, “What’s the President’s attitude in his speech?”
“That this is a deliberate attempt by Moscow to upset the balance of power. He intends exposing the deliberate attempts at deception by them, and Cuba will be blockaded by the US Navy—the term he’ll use is ‘quarantine’—and …” he glanced at his clip-board, “… it will be, I quote, our unswerving objective, unquote, to remove those missiles. Any ship attempting to run the blockade will be sunk by the US Navy and if a missile were launched from Cuba it would be regarded as an attack by the Soviet Union on the United States and the USA would respond immediately.”
Malloy nodded. “Sounds pretty grim.”
Kennedy shrugged. “It could have been worse if McCone hadn’t insisted on risking those U-2 surveys.” He paused. “Do you mind hanging around for a bit in case Jack wants some comment from you after his speech?”
Aarons shook his head. “I’ll stay as long as you want.”
At 5.40 the President and Bobby Kennedy came back to the room and it was obvious that he was very angry. It seemed that his meeting with the congressional leaders had been rough. The leaders claimed that the proposed response was too weak. They wanted action against Cuba immediately. Slowly, as Bobby talked with him he became calmer. Bobby had pointed out that when the President was first told about the missiles his reaction had been exactly the same. He had had time to work out the possible consequences of the various options and at least it was better that the politicians were so militant, they could have taken the view that his two-stage challenge to the Soviets was going too far too quickly.
Ten minutes later the President left to prepare for his broadcast and Bobby Kennedy took Aarons and Malloy to another room in the bunker where there was a radio and TV set and two rows of chairs. There were others already seated and a US Marine sergeant showed them to two empty seats before Bobby left the room to join his brother.
The room was silent as a meteorologist on the screen gave details of the weather all over the United States. Then the
