Why Did JFK Make Curtis LeMay a Joint Chief and Keep Him?

[Michael Griffith]

When U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff General Thomas White retired in early 1961, JFK named General Curtis LeMay as his replacement, which of course made LeMay one of the Joints Chiefs of Staff. LeMay assumed the office in July 1961. Just because LeMay had been the Vice Chief of Staff did not mean that Kennedy had to appoint him as Chief of Staff. He could have picked someone else. 

However, I understand that a new, young president would have risked a lot of discord with the Air Force by passing over a famous general such as LeMay for the Chief of Staff position, but I am surprised that JFK did not fire LeMay after LeMay's rude and insubordinate comments to him during the Cuban Missile Crisis and on other occasions.

Personally, I think LeMay qualified as a war criminal for his atrocious, barbaric bombing campaign against Japan in 1945. He bombed over 60 cities, most of which did not even come close to qualifying as valid military targets, and in the process killed, at the very least, 250,000 civilians. When asked about his bombing of Japanese cities, LeMay famously replied, "There are no innocent civilians."

Now, I am no shrinking flower when it comes to rules of engagement during war. I understand that sometimes you have no choice but to kill civilians because your enemy is using them as human shields and is placing heavy weapons among them to fire at your troops, at your vehicles, or at your planes. I also understand that sometimes you have to bomb certain factories, POL depots, power plants, shipyards, and other facilities that directly support your enemy's war effort, and that many times those facilities are located in or near civilian areas. But, even in those cases, you should make every effort to minimize civilian deaths. LeMay made no such effort, with the sole exception of his order to avoid bombing the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. 

When I get to heaven and have a chance to learn the whole story about the JFK assassination, I will not be a bit surprised if I find out that LeMay knew about the plot and warmly approved of it, or even that he was one of the plotters.

[David Lifton]

Michael: 

I agree that LeMay had the mentality you describe.  Furthermore -- and on that score-- wasn't there an episode with JFK where-- rejecting some advice offered by LeMay- JFK left his presence and (thoroughly exasperated) remarked, "And they call us the civilized world." (Source, A M Schlesinger, I think).  The problem -- i.e., "my problem" --with including LeMay in a plot (or in  "the" plot) is that I don't see any specific role for him to play; no specific function for him to fulfill.

DSL

9/5/22 - 10:40 AM PDT

[Paul Brancato]

34 minutes ago, David Lifton said:

Michael: 

I agree that LeMay had the mentality you describe.  Furthermore -- and on that score-- wasn't there an episode with JFK where-- rejecting some advice offered by LeMay- JFK left his presence and (thoroughly exasperated) remarked, "And they call us the civilized world." (Source, A M Schlesinger, I think).  The problem -- i.e., "my problem" --with including LeMay in a plot (or in  "the" plot) is that I don't see any specific role for him to play; no specific function for him to fulfill.

DSL

9/5/22 - 10:40 AM PDT

David - would you say the same about Lemnitzer - that he had no role to play?

[Michael Griffith]

5 hours ago, David Lifton said:

Michael: 

I agree that LeMay had the mentality you describe.  Furthermore -- and on that score-- wasn't there an episode with JFK where-- rejecting some advice offered by LeMay- JFK left his presence and (thoroughly exasperated) remarked, "And they call us the civilized world." (Source, A M Schlesinger, I think).  The problem -- i.e., "my problem" --with including LeMay in a plot (or in  "the" plot) is that I don't see any specific role for him to play; no specific function for him to fulfill.

DSL

9/5/22 - 10:40 AM PDT

Yes, as I said, I don't know if LeMay was one of the plotters or if he just knew about it, or if he didn't even know about it. I don't know. I do find it very odd that he went to the trouble of attending the autopsy. 

[David Lifton]

11 hours ago, Paul Brancato said:

David - would you say the same about Lemnitzer - that he had no role to play?

I don't know.  Again, I would ask my usual question: in your view, what role did he play?  DSL

[David Lifton]

6 hours ago, Michael Griffith said:

Yes, as I said, I don't know if LeMay was one of the plotters or if he just knew about it, or if he didn't even know about it. I don't know. I do find it very odd that he went to the trouble of attending the autopsy. 

The source for this allegation is Paul K. O'Connor.  I first interviewed PKO in Aug 1979.  In that original interview, he mentioned nothing about Curtis LeMay being at the autopsy.   As I recall, that claim wasn't first made until he became a fixture on the lecture circuit -- i.e., was invited to speak at Lancer.  Only then did he modify his account to include the assertion that LeMay attended the autopsy.  Based on my original telephone interview with O'Connor (Aug 1979), plus my filmed interview with him (a few months later), I would not give any credence to this claim. 

One other thing: It is highly unlikely that LeMay attended the autopsy for still another reason:  LeMay's  presence surely would have been noted in the FBI report written by SA's James Sibert & Francis O'Neill, who kept a list of who attended the autopsy.

Regarding LeMay's possible foreknowledge. Like you, "I don't know."  DSL

[David Lifton]

11 hours ago, Paul Brancato said:

David - would you say the same about Lemnitzer - that he had no role to play?

Agreed: no role to play.  (At least -- none that I am aware of.)  DSL

[Joe Bauer]

7 hours ago, David Lifton said:

The source for this allegation is Paul K. O'Connor.  I first interviewed PKO in Aug 1979.  In that original interview, he mentioned nothing about Curtis LeMay being at the autopsy.   As I recall, that claim wasn't first made until he became a fixture on the lecture circuit -- i.e., was invited to speak at Lancer.  Only then did he modify his account to include the assertion that LeMay attended the autopsy.  Based on my original telephone interview with O'Connor (Aug 1979), plus my filmed interview with him (a few months later), I would not give any credence to this claim. 

One other thing: It is highly unlikely that LeMay attended the autopsy for still another reason:  LeMay's  presence surely would have been noted in the FBI report written by SA's James Sibert & Francis O'Neill, who kept a list of who attended the autopsy.

Regarding LeMay's possible foreknowledge. Like you, "I don't know."  DSL

Did Paul O'Conner or anyone else at the autopsy mention someone smoking a cigar... or even cigar smoke?

If there was corroborating testimony of this...one might guess that LeMay may have been at the autopsy as he was known for smoking cigars, correct?

[Michael Griffith]

7 hours ago, David Lifton said:

The source for this allegation is Paul K. O'Connor.  I first interviewed PKO in Aug 1979.  In that original interview, he mentioned nothing about Curtis LeMay being at the autopsy.   As I recall, that claim wasn't first made until he became a fixture on the lecture circuit -- i.e., was invited to speak at Lancer.  Only then did he modify his account to include the assertion that LeMay attended the autopsy.  Based on my original telephone interview with O'Connor (Aug 1979), plus my filmed interview with him (a few months later), I would not give any credence to this claim. 

One other thing: It is highly unlikely that LeMay attended the autopsy for still another reason:  LeMay's  presence surely would have been noted in the FBI report written by SA's James Sibert & Francis O'Neill, who kept a list of who attended the autopsy.

Regarding LeMay's possible foreknowledge. Like you, "I don't know."  DSL

Have you read Doug Horne's research on LeMay's possible presence at the autopsy? 

O'Connor may not have realized who LeMay was or why his presence was important, so I don't think it is necessarily discrediting that he didn't mention this until later. And I'm not certain I would insist that Sibert and O'Neill's list of attendees is complete. 

Anyway, if it turns out that LeMay was not at the autopsy, so be it, but I'd be curious to get your take on Horne's research on the issue.

[Paul Cummings]

Mrs. Kennedy's request for the autopsy was for Bethesda (Navy) why would any of the remaining JCS be in the room?

[Paul Brancato]

2 hours ago, Paul Cummings said:

Mrs. Kennedy's request for the autopsy was for Bethesda (Navy) why would any of the remaining JCS be in the room?

I’m curious where you’ve learned that? I heard the location was changed on AF 1.

[Paul Brancato]

11 hours ago, David Lifton said:

Agreed: no role to play.  (At least -- none that I am aware of.)  DSL

I asked because LeMay gets mentioned more, possibly because Lemnitzer had been reassigned to head of NATO. This makes me more curious about his possible role. There is some evidence pointing to European assassins drawn from the Gladio ranks. 
as for LeMay, it is curious that so much effort was made to contact him by his adjutant, and if I’m not mistaken LeMay left his vacation and flew to DC, arriving at the airport closest to Bethesda in time to attend the autopsy. Circumstantial of course …

[Douglas Caddy]

About General LeMay

The General and World War III | The New Yorker

 

 

The above article is cited in 

 

Edited September 6, 2022 by Douglas Caddy

[Joe Bauer]

I think I remember an interview of either Paul O'Conner or James Jenkins where one of them recounted being asked by one of the doctors to tell someone in the gallery to put out a cigar?

That perhaps the smoke smell from this was negatively effecting them?

[Paul Cummings]

7 hours ago, Paul Brancato said:

I’m curious where you’ve learned that? I heard the location was changed on AF 1.

Don't know about the location changed. My understanding was because of JFK's military service in the Navy Bethesda was her choice.