mr. president.
mr. president, i believe my team is in agreement. if we permit the introduction of nuclear missiles to a soviet satellite nation in our hemisphere, the diplomatic consequences will be too terrible to contemplate. the russians are trying to show the world they can do whatever they want, wherever they want, and we're powerless to stop them. if they succeed.
appeasement only makes the aggressor more aggressive. confidence in our security commitments around the world will falter, allies will become unsure in the face of soviet pressure, and the soviets will be emboldened to push us even harder. we must remove the missiles one way or another. it seems to me the options are either to build up the crisis 'til they give in, or we hit them. an air strike.
we need to go over what you're going to say.
mr. president, our deliberations have led us to the conclusion that, for the moment, a blockade of offensive weapons to cuba is our best option. but we'll still need a strong showing of support from the organization of american states to give us an umbrella of legitimacy.
mr. president. the oas meeting starts in an hour. i haven't prepared at all. we can't expect --
mr. president, the organization of american states hasn't had a unanimous vote since --
unanimous. one abstenation.
are they stopping?
we were eyeball to eyeball and i think the other fellow just blinked.
come on, adlai, don't let him off!
kenny, we need to see the president. something's happened.
the fbi has identified this alexander fomin as the soviet resident, the kgb equivalent of one of our station chiefs. he's their highest ranking spy in this country. and he knows john's a friend of mine.
the truth is, mr. president, we don't even really know whom fomin speaks for. it could be khruschev. it could be some faction in the politburo or the kgb itself. we just don't know.
mr. president, we're receiving a letter from khruschev over at state.
it doesn't necessarily mean there's been a coup. khruschev's name is signed to the letter.
but at the very least.  it does suggest he's been co-opted by hard line elements.
mr. president, agreeing to such a trade would be tantamount to paying ransom. they'll put a gun to our head again, and expect us to pay again.
whatever response we send, it will take several hours for the wire to be received by our embassy and delivered to the kremlin. so we're looking at early tomorrow morning at the earliest before khruschev could respond.
max is right. why will they accept it?
but we have to make them agree to it. so how do we do that?
whoever carries the message has to hit the nail on the head. come across as too soft, they'll push us. too hard, they'll be cornered and even more dangerous.