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Nine pages of John F. Kennedy's hand-corrected notes for a speech on labor, 8 x 10.5, plus one 8 x 3.75 section, with most (but not all) corrections made in Kennedy's own hand, mostly in blue ballpoint, with a few edits in pencil and fountain pen. The pages are not entirely continuous, marked "1," "2," "4," "c," "e," "i," "f," "g," and "k." Kennedy opines on labor reform: "Perhaps the most shocking illustration of the importance of securing a much greater Democratic majority in Congress was the cynical act of the House Republicans, aided and abetted by Secretary of Labor Mitchell, in killing all chance for labor reform legislation this year…Labor reform will be an issue in this fall's election." In an ensuing paragraph, the typed text twice mentions Jimmy Hoffa; Kennedy strikes through both instances of his name, amending it to "racketeers."
Imagining a future Democratic administration, he promises: "We can build the schools and the hospitals and the dams that our nation needs. We can wage unrelenting war against drought and poverty and illiteracy and illness and economic insecurity. We can build, through strength and justice and realistic leadership, a lasting peace." Kennedy writes down a few abstract ideas, connecting past and present: "25 years—FDR—Plodding Feet, Candles."
Following further discussion of a forthcoming labor bill—this time explicitly invoking Jimmy Hoffa's name—Kennedy jots, "The Bill must be passed during the next sess." He closes the speech by quoting the words of Woodrow Wilson: "We must neither run with the crowd nor deride it—but seek sober counsel for it—and for ourselves."
On the backs of two sheets, Kennedy jots down several names, including Iowa Democratic Party chairman Duke Norberg, Don Mitchell, Luke McManus, Frank Brannan, Jan Fisher, Bill Ginsberg, and several others. All together, Kennedy's handwriting amounts to about one hundred words. In overall fine condition.
