Executive Committee of the National Security Council

PROPOSAL FOR THE PRESIDENT

OCTOBER 1962

Mr. President,

As Commander in Chief, you bear a profound responsibility to protect the American people and
maintain your role as leader of the Free World. We have weighed the options before us to
manage the current crisis between the United States and Cuba. After careful consideration, we
respectfully propose you mandate a blockade of U.S. warships to block Cuba from their major
supply lines. We highly advise this as a suitable option. This course of action has a myriad of
unique factors to consider. There are two factors to consider heavily for your decision. This
course of action will cause Fidel Castro to slowly lose the support of his citizens, by cutting off
the supply lines necessary for the survival of the Cuban people. We believe this will cause
Castro to get cold feet with the USSR and cause Cuba to disarm their arsenal of missiles.
Placing a military blockade in Cuba would force the Cuban and USSR military forces into
vulnerability. Although the blockade would pull more American troops and use resources, the
positive consequences of this option outweigh the negative effects. Greater conflicts are
possible in the future, however, this is an issue of top priority and thus calls for immediate
action. Considering this, setting up a blockade would be the most effective and viable option.

We urge you to consider this option when making your decision.

Sincerely,
Sage Campbell, Ethan Peterson, and Levi Mamuad