hall House]
             In 1941, right before the U.S. entered into World War II, Kennedy volunteered for the Army, but was rejected because of his weak back. Eager to enlist, he engaged in strengthening exercises and in September, joined the U.S. Navy. While on active duty in the pacific as a lieutenant (junior grade) in 1943, the boat he commanded-PT 109-was sunk by the Japanese. Kennedy managed to get the survivors to an island, towing one man three miles through the sea. He repeatedly swam into the dangerous waters hoping to see a rescue ship when he encountered two islanders and sent them for help with a message carved onto a coconut. He received the Purple Heart and the Navy Marine Corps Medal for rescuing his crew but he aggravated an old back injury, when thrown across the deck, and contracted Malaria. He was discharged in early 1945. [Lowe, Jacques -- 1961, Portrait, the Emergence of John F. Kennedy, Bramhall House]
             Faced with the dilemma of choosing a career, he worked for a while with the Hearst newspaper as a reporter. Ultimately he decided on politics. He took the place of his brother Joseph, who has seemed destined for a political career but had been killed in World War II. His opportunity came when James M. Curley vacated his seat in the House to become Mayor of Boston. In 1946, Kennedy ran successfully as a Democrat, he was reelected in 1948 and 1950. As a Congressman, he backed social legislation that benefited his "working-class" constituents. On domestic affairs he followed the Fair Deal policies, fighting for slum clearance and low-cost public housing. As a member of the Education and Labor Committee he wrote his own report opposing the Taft-Harley bill. Kennedy supported President Harry S. Trumans' foreign policies for the most part, although criticizing the administration's weak stand against the Communist Chinese. JFK held a strong, anti-Communist foreign policy thro!
             ughout his career...