Fifty-five years ago this weekend, 1,400 CIA-backed Cuban exiles attempted to invade Cuba at the Bay of Pigs and overthrow Prime Minister Fidel Castro. President John F. Kennedy inherited the covert Cold War-inspired plan from his predecessor, Dwight D. Eisenhower. But through a series of mistakes, the April 17, 1961, mission ended in disaster.
Â鶹´«Ã½AV quickly designed a special poll to document the American public's reaction to the failed invasion and to growing concerns about Cuba's communist leanings. Â鶹´«Ã½AV's polling showed that, of three actions the United States might have taken to deal with Cuba, the only popular choice was a trade embargo. Sixty-three percent of Americans agreed with refusing to "buy or sell products to Cuba so long as Castro is in power." Less than half -- 44% -- agreed with aiding anti-Castro forces by supplying them with money and war materials. Even fewer -- 24% -- agreed with sending U.S. armed forces into Cuba to help overthrow Castro.
| Agree% | Disagree% | No opinion% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Refuse to buy or sell products to Cuba so long as Castro is in power | 63 | 23 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Aid the anti-Castro forces with money and war materials | 44 | 41 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Send our armed forces into Cuba to help overthrow Castro | 24 | 65 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| April 1961 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Â鶹´«Ã½AV | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
According to jfklibrary.org, Kennedy felt he owed surviving members of the anti-Castro brigade his commitment to achieving what he called "a free Havana," and his administration initiated a plan to "sabotage and destabilize the Cuban government and economy." This included instituting a full trade embargo on Cuba a year later, followed by a full travel ban to the island in 1963.
Despite Kennedy's own disappointment over the Bay of Pigs, 61% of Americans approved of his handling of the Cuba invasion in Â鶹´«Ã½AV's late April 1961 poll, while just 15% disapproved and 24% were unsure. Separately, his overall job approval rating rose to 83%, up from 78% just before the invasion. Dr. Â鶹´«Ã½AV's headline for this poll read, "Public Rallies Behind Kennedy in Aftermath of Cuban Crisis."
Read more from the Â鶹´«Ã½AV Vault.
