Freedom Fighters

56. Unravelling

March 1961
Washington, D.C, United States of America

John Fitzgerald Kennedy sighed as he flipped through the briefing folder of the operation for the hundredth time. His eyes would get tired after a while, and then he would rub his hands together for heat, before placing them over his eyes. He felt like cursing. Barely two months into his presidency, and he had a CIA-sponsored invasion to deal with. 

Eisenhower certainly did not tell him about this when he was running for presidency, nor did that bastard Nixon, who had been the previous Vice President. 

The two other men in the meeting room stayed dead silent, as Kennedy sat there, gathering his thoughts on the invasion plan. 

"Explain to me the main premise the invasion is based on again?" he asked no one in particular. 

The younger man with a mop of blonde hair was Jacob Esterline, the CIA Operations Director. He straightened up in his seat. With a cool smile, he answered, "Mr. President. It is expected that this operation will precipitate a general uprising and cause a revolt of a large segment of the Cuban army and militia."

Kennedy found the words utterly ludicrous, but he merely nodded. 

Jacob Esterline continued. "If widespread revolt does not happen, Mr. President, the area the brigade manages to capture can be used to establish a provisional government. If we recognise them as such, we can use it as a reason to pacify the country and overthrow Castro."

Kennedy felt like his brain had just expanded, and a dull ache in his forehead. He reached for his cup of coffee and sipped it. To hell with Eisenhower, who made him inherit such a mess. An invasion of Cuba? A plan made in hell indeed.

After allowing the coffee to rejuvenate his mind, he said, "So the best scenario would be for this invasion to incite revolts against Castro?"

He faced the two CIA top officials in the room. Beside Jacob Esterline, sat Richard Bissell, the CIA Deputy Director for Plans. Bissell, a bespectacled grey-haired man with a protruding jaw, replied. 

"Yes, Mr. President. That would be the best case scenario."

"And highly unlikely," Kennedy stated. "Castro has wildly popular support amongst his own people."

"The intelligence we gathered suggests that the area around the coastal town of Trinidad contains high concentrations of dissidents."

Kennedy closed the folder, and shook his head. "I showed the plan to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They gave the plan, optimistically, a 30% chance. Besides, it is too 'spectacular'. I don't want to announce to the whole world we are behind it. Yes, the Escambray mountains near Trinidad will provide the brigade with an escape route, but we don't want a protracted war. A daytime invasion as well? That's too much visibility. The whole world will realise we are involved."

Kennedy sighed again. He did not want to call this off. To have to call such a major operation off so early in his Presidency would be disastrous, especially one like this which already had many months of planning and millions of dollars sunk into it. However, the backlash from the UN... he could already imagine it. And he dreaded it.

"Here's the thing," he said. "I don't want to call this off. Do you have another plan ready? One that is more covert. I don't want American involvement to be too obvious."

Across the table, Esterline whispered something, and Bissell shared with him a look of understanding. 

"Mr. President," Bissell said, "we do have an alternative plan that will be more covert. We drafted it in case you would not approve the first plan."