Kennedy, Robert Francis

Kennedy, Robert Francis (b. 20 Nov. 1925, d. 6 June 1968). US politician Born at Brookline, Massachusetts, he studied at Harvard and the University of Virginia Law School, where he obtained an LL B in 1951. He entered politics as a campaign manager for his older brother, John F. Kennedy, and then became a congressional legal counsel. When John became President in 1961, he was appointed Attorney-General, from which position he launched a fierce attack on organized crime and took steps to address the problem of racial discrimination. However, he was unable to curtail effectively the power of the FBI and its director, Hoover. Though his relations with President Johnson were difficult because of a long-standing personal feud, he continued to serve as Attorney-General after John Kennedy's assassination until 1964, when he won election to the US Senate from New York. There, he developed a reputation as a compassionate liberal in matters of social and welfare policy, and as an opponent of Johnson's policies in Vietnam. He finally condemned the war in south-east Asia and declared his candidacy for President in March 1968, following the Tet offensive. In a tumultuous campaign, he won a series of primary elections culminating in his victory in California, where he was assassinated a few minutes after learning of his success.