Penn State s chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha, the National Political Honor Society, hosted a discussion panel on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday in the Katz Building —
Congress, the Cuba Resolution and the Cuban Missile Crisis
President Kennedy signs the authorization of the naval quarantine of Cuba on Oct. 23, 1962. (Abbie Rowe, https://tinyurl.com/mfjr6w6d; Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Licensing#Material in the public domain)
How much influence did Congress exert in the events of the Cuban missile crisis? Conventional wisdom tells us that the legislature’s influence was minor or even nonexistent. Graham Allison, who some observers regard as the leading expert on the Cuban missile crisis, wrote, “What direct role did Congress play in these decisions? Zero none at all.” Arthur Schlesinger likewise wrote in “The Imperial Presidency” that “there was no legislative consultation, there was most effective executive consultation … [b]ut Congress played no role at all …. It was only after he had made his decision that Kennedy called in congressional leaders. The object was not to consult them but to inform th