Inspired from youth by Albert Camus' sense of the Absurd, I try to be a voice for REASON in the growing darkness and moral insanity of global capitalism .
Tuesday, July 14, 2026
GOOGLE AI search result : Yes , American left wing writer Gore Vidal had a lot to say about John F. Kennedy's Chicago Mafia connections
[Yes, Gore Vidal commented extensively on the Kennedy family's Mafia connections, specifically targeting how patriarch Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. utilized organized crime networks to help swing the 1960 presidential election in Illinois (Chicago) and West Virginia.As Jacqueline Kennedy’s stepbrother, Vidal had intimate, firsthand access to the family during the 1960 campaign before a bitter, permanent falling out with Robert F. Kennedy in 1961. In the decades that followed, Vidal leveraged his insider knowledge to aggressively dismantle the "Camelot" myth in essays, interviews, and memoirs.Vidal’s specific commentary on the 1960 election and the Mafia focused on several core assertions:The 1960 Election RiggingThe Chicago and West Virginia Votes: Vidal frequently spoke and wrote about how "Papa Joe" Kennedy bought the 1960 election. He openly stated that Joseph Kennedy used his long-standing underworld ties—specifically working through figures like Frank Sinatra—to enlist Chicago Mob boss Sam Giancana to stuff ballot boxes in Cook County and flood West Virginia with cash to secure the Democratic nomination and subsequent presidency.The "Holy Family" Takedown: In his famous 1967 critique titled The Holy Family published in Esquire, Vidal pierced the public worship of the Kennedys, characterizing their rise not as a triumph of idealistic democracy, but as the calculated result of immense wealth, public relations manipulation, and transactional backroom deals.Joseph Kennedy's Mafia HistoryFrank Costello Ties: In his 1995 memoir, Palimpsest, Vidal detailed the family's deep discomfort with Joseph Kennedy's history. He corroborated rumors that the elder Kennedy had bootlegging partnerships during Prohibition and noted that Joe Kennedy regularly lunched with mobster Frank Costello in New York City well into the 1950s.The Ultimate BetrayalRobert Kennedy's War on the Mob: Vidal often pointed out the grim irony of the Kennedy-Mafia nexus. He noted that after the Chicago Outfit helped secure the White House, JFK appointed his brother Robert Kennedy as Attorney General. RFK’s subsequent, relentless war on organized crime was viewed by the Mob as a lethal betrayal of the deals Joseph Kennedy had brokered, a narrative Vidal believed directly set the stage for the family's later tragedies.Vidal famously kept a photograph of John F. Kennedy in his library. When asked why, he stated it was not out of nostalgia for Camelot, but to serve as a "constant reminder never to be deceived by anyone's charm again."AI can make mistakes, so double-check responses ]
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