Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served as the 37th vice president from 1961 to 1963. A Democrat from Texas, Johnson also served as a U.S. representative and U.S. senator. Johnson is one of only three, along with Richard Nixon and Andrew Johnson, to have served in all four federally elected positions of the U.S. government. Born in Stonewall, Texas, Johnson worked as a high school teacher and a congressional aide before winning election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1937. In 1948, he was controversially declared winner in the Democratic Party's primary for the 1948 Senate election in Texas and won the general election. He became Senate majority whip in 1951, Senate Democratic leader in 1953 and majority leader in 1954. In 1960, Johnson ran for the Democratic presidential nomination. Ultimately, Senator Kennedy bested Johnson and his other rivals for the nomination before surprising many by offering to make Johnson his vice presidential running mate. The Kennedy–Johnson ticket won the general election. Vice President Johnson assumed the presidency in 1963, after President Kennedy was assassinated. The following year, Johnson was elected to the presidency in a landslide, winning the largest share of the popular vote for the Democratic Party in history, and the highest for any candidate since the advent of widespread popular elections in the 1820s. Johnson's Great Society was aimed at expanding civil rights, public broadcasting, access to health care, aid to education and the arts, urban and rural development, and public services. He sought to create better living conditions for low-income Americans by spearheading the war on poverty. As part of these efforts, Johnson signed the Social Security Amendments of 1965, which resulted in the creation of Medicare and Medicaid. Johnson made the Apollo program a national priority; enacted the Higher Education Act of 1965, which established federally insured student loans; and signed the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which laid the groundwork for U.S. immigration policy today. Johnson's stance on the issue of civil rights put him at odds with other white, southern Democrats.

From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Notable quotes

“Making a speech on economics is a lot like pissing down your leg. It seems hot to you, but it never does to anyone else.”
— Private comment, as quoted in Name-Dropping (1999) by John Kenneth Galbraith, p. 149.
“Let's face it. Our ass is in a crack. We're gonna have to let this nigger bill pass.”
— Said to Senator John Stennis (D-MS) during debate on the Civil Rights Act of 1957. As quoted in
“Well, I think we may have lost the south for your lifetime—and mine.”
— Comment to journalist and special assistant Bill Moyers, as quoted in Charles Kaiser, " 'We May Have Lost the South': What LBJ Really Said About Democrats in 1964", The Guardian, January 23, 2023
“There are no problems which we cannot solve together, and there are very few which any of us can settle by himself.”
— President Johnson's thirty-fourth news conference was held on the front lawn at the LBJ Ranch, Johnson City, Tex., at 10:45 a.m. on Saturday, November 28, 1964. Source: Lyndon B. Johnson, The President's News Conference at the LBJ Ranch. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley from The American Presidency Project.
“I hope that you of the IPA will go out into the hinterland and rouse the masses and blow the bugles and tell them that the hour has arrived and their day is here; that we are on the march against the ancient enemies and we are going to be successful.”
— Remarks to the International Platform Association (August 3, 1965); reported in Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Lyndon B. Johnson, 1965, book 2, p. 822
“It's probably better to have him inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in.”
— On FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, as quoted in The New York Times (31 October 1971)

Quotes via Wikiquote (CC BY-SA), each with its original source.

Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served as the 37th vice president from 1961 to 1963. A Democrat from Texas, Johnson also served as a U.S. representative and U.S. senator. Johnson is one of only three, along with Richard Nixon and Andrew Johnson, to have served in all four federally elected positions of the U.S. government.

Overview

Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served as the 37th vice president from 1961 to 1963. A Democrat from Texas, Johnson also served as a U.S. representative and U.S. senator. Johnson is one of only three, along with Richard Nixon and Andrew Johnson, to have served in all four federally elected positions of the U.S. government. Born in Stonewall, Texas, Johnson worked as a high school teacher and a congressional aide before winning election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1937. In 1948, he was controversially declared winner in the Democratic Party's primary for the 1948 Senate election in Texas and won the general election. He became Senate majority whip in 1951, Senate Democratic leader in 1953 and majority leader in 1954. In 1960, Johnson ran for the Democratic presidential nomination. Ultimately, Senator Kennedy bested Johnson and his other rivals for the nomination before surprising many by offering to make Johnson his vice presidential running mate. The Kennedy–Johnson ticket won the general election. Vice President Johnson assumed the presidency in 1963, after President Kennedy was assassinated. The following year, Johnson was elected to the presidency in a landslide, winning the largest share of the popular vote for the Democratic Party in history, and the highest for any candidate since the advent of widespread popular elections in the 1820s. Johnson's Great Society was aimed at expanding civil rights, public broadcasting, access to health care, aid to education and the arts, urban and rural development, and public services. He sought to create better living conditions for low-income Americans by spearheading the war on poverty. As part of these efforts, Johnson signed the Social Security Amendments of 1965, which resulted in the creation of Medicare and Medicaid. Johnson made the Apollo program a national priority; enacted the Higher Education Act of 1965, which established federally insured student loans; and signed the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which laid the groundwork for U.S. immigration policy today. Johnson's stance on the issue of civil rights put him at odds with other white, southern Democrats.

From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Notable quotes

“Making a speech on economics is a lot like pissing down your leg. It seems hot to you, but it never does to anyone else.”
— Private comment, as quoted in Name-Dropping (1999) by John Kenneth Galbraith, p. 149.
“Let's face it. Our ass is in a crack. We're gonna have to let this nigger bill pass.”
— Said to Senator John Stennis (D-MS) during debate on the Civil Rights Act of 1957. As quoted in
“Well, I think we may have lost the south for your lifetime—and mine.”
— Comment to journalist and special assistant Bill Moyers, as quoted in Charles Kaiser, " 'We May Have Lost the South': What LBJ Really Said About Democrats in 1964", The Guardian, January 23, 2023
“There are no problems which we cannot solve together, and there are very few which any of us can settle by himself.”
— President Johnson's thirty-fourth news conference was held on the front lawn at the LBJ Ranch, Johnson City, Tex., at 10:45 a.m. on Saturday, November 28, 1964. Source: Lyndon B. Johnson, The President's News Conference at the LBJ Ranch. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley from The American Presidency Project.
“I hope that you of the IPA will go out into the hinterland and rouse the masses and blow the bugles and tell them that the hour has arrived and their day is here; that we are on the march against the ancient enemies and we are going to be successful.”
— Remarks to the International Platform Association (August 3, 1965); reported in Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Lyndon B. Johnson, 1965, book 2, p. 822
“It's probably better to have him inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in.”
— On FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, as quoted in The New York Times (31 October 1971)

Quotes via Wikiquote (CC BY-SA), each with its original source.

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