Why was President J.F. Kennedy given an open top motorcade to ride in thus making him a soft target?
Actually there was a bullet proof top available for the limo that Kennedy and group rode in. The risk was considered minimal and Kennedy himself wanted to show himself and Jackie off to the crowd. They were used to being very popular with the crowd and didn’t think anything would happen. It’s interesting to note that Kennedy had a rather fatalistic viewpoint of the possibility of assassination similar to Lincoln. They figured that if someone was determined enough it would happen even with security measures. So they didn’t want to overdo the security measures for fear of showing weakness.
Hate to break it to you but there was no blunder involved. There was no rule at the time that said the Presidential Limo had to have a hard top, that actually came about because of JFK’s assassination. The idea of a hard top limo for the President, or even having a convertible with the top up in good weather, was seen as denying the public the right to see the chief of state when he passed through their town. With the top down Presidents could sit and wave to the public. No one gave a thought to the possibility of a sniper attack on a President while he was in his car. In fact the Secret Service was more concerned with an assassin getting up close to the president. That is what had happened with Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley. All three men their assassin get up close to them and fire point blank at them where they were sure not to miss. No US President had been assassinated from long range and the Secret Service was not concerned with long range shots. As for Presidents before JFK’s
