R.F.K. - The Man Behind J.F.K. |
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Bobby was born after the chosen siblings had been established in the Kennedy clan. The child that originally had low standing in the family hierarchy, the one not born and raised for power and whose only ambition was to please the father who ignored him, turned into the essential son, the defender of the family and mediator between Joe Sr. and JFK. Bobby was a sensitive, courageous, and determined man on the verge of achieving greatness at the time of his untimely death. RFK is said to have been a better man than his more lauded older brother, being the most caring of the clan and a human being born into wealth who could easily identify with the poorest of the poor without a hint of condesencion.
Although Bobby was the more caring of the Kennedys, his treatment of women was no better than the rest. Following the footsteps of his father Joseph, Bobby took advantage of his power and status to play the field. It has been said that Joe encouraged his sons to, "Get laid as often as possible!" which is what the future Attorney General Robert Kennedy did. Bobby, like his brother John was known for his abrupt dumpings where relationships were concerned – with contact ceasing without warning or explanation with there rarely being an honourable split of a relationship with a face to face meeting. JFK did the same thing with women, namelyMarilyn Monroe. Bobby was sent to L.A. in February of '62 to squash her lust for him. With libido in full swing, it was about this time that he began his own hot and heavy fling with the actress. Robert Kennedy’s chief priority when he assumed his new job at the White House was a war on organized crime. It was a fight in which he passionately believed. Bobby burned his candle at both ends, pursuing and exploiting the mob at the same time. The Kennedy brothers were startlingly successful in their quest. From 1961 to 1963, there was a 500% increase in defendants indicted and a 400% increase in convictions. He had even written a book about the Mob called “The Enemy Within.” In the book he said, “If we do not attack organized crime with weapons and techniques as effective as their own, they will destroy us.” Once the brothers were in power, they launched a determined assault against organized crime in America. It was in fact almost a crusade to eliminate the Mafia, with most of their initial thrust aimed at Carlos Marcello, Santo Trafficante Jr. and Sam Giancana. Bobby was a young man made old by tragedy but rendered ageless by his death. RFK was guilt struck over his brother's death. He always believed that it was his ruthless pursuit of organized crime that lead to his brothers assassination.With the assassination of his brother, Robert Kennedy inherited the hopes and aspirations of a bereft nation adopting his brother's political legacy in what became a personal quest for vindication and redemption. A highly successful and controversial political player in his own right, RFK was on the verge of gaining the Democratic Presidential nomination in the last year of his life. More than three decades have passed since Robert Kennedy was assassinated seeking the Democratic nomination for the presidency. During that time a powerful legend has grown around him. It decrees that he would have quickly ended the Vietnam War, violence in the cities, and racial and social injustice across the land. His assassination felled a man who had come to represent the impossible hopes and ideals of a just political system.
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