The evening before Kennedy's assassination there was a dinner party at the Murchison mansion in Dallas, Texas. The special guest was J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the FBI. Other high level guests included Richard Nixon, H. L. Hunt (of Hunt Oil) and other special "guests" from the roster of the Del Charro Hotel.

H. L. Hunt [right] was likely the richest American in 1963. His estimated worth was about 5 billion dollars. He was especially interested in preserving the Oil Depletion Allowance and disliked the social programs proposed by the Kennedy administration. He told the gathering of compatriots that the only way to get Communists like the Kennedy brothers out of office is to "shoot 'em out."

Ironically, Hunt Oil benefited from Johnson's rise to power and, in more recent times, stands to benefit from the War in Iraq. In September 2007, Hunt Oil signed a deal with the Iraqi Kurds to develop their vast oil reserves. It is the just first big oil company to reap the plunders of Bush's war. Yes, the rich get richer.

The Merchison Mansion guests ate quail for dinner and, shortly after they finished, Lyndon Johnson arrived. The male members quickly assembled behind closed doors.

One of the female guests was Medeline Brown, LBJ's girlfriend. Brown had met Johnson right after he won the Senate seat and following the "Box 13" scandal. He was celebrating his victory in a Texas hotel and first danced with Medeline, then handed her his hotel room key. The two had an affair spanning many years and their "meetings" were often arranged with the help of Johnson's assistants.

That night, Madeline remembers being surprised to see Johnson, as he was not scheduled to be at the dinner party.

"When Lyndon arrived they all went into a conference room and you could just feel the atmosphere. When Lyndon came out... he was red in the face... he took my hand and said, 'Those god damned Kennedys will never embarrass me again. That's not a threat. That's a promise!'"

Years later, Madeline saw how troubled Johnson seemed, as if harboring some psychological demons. Throughout Texas there were rumors that he had been responsible for the death of JFK. One evening, Madeline Brown asked the question she had always wanted to ask. Johnson became extremely angry and used foul language and eventually blamed the assassination on "big oil" and the CIA.

The "Arranger" -- Edward Clark

If the decision to murder Kennedy was made that night at the Murchison mansion, the plans must have been ready much earlier. This meeting in Dallas, the night before the assassination, was merely the failsafe point where the crafted and pre-meditated murder was given the "go ahead." It was a done deal.

From the testimony of Billy Sol Estes, a close associate of Johnson, we learn that the plot was coordinated by a man named Clark.

Edward Aubrey Clark [right] was born San Augustine, Texas on 15th July, 1906. He obtained his first degree from Tulane University in New Orleans. In 1927 Clark married Anne Metcalfe of Greenville, Mississippi, and heir to the largest cotton plantation system in the South.

Clark received a law degree in 1928 from the University of Texas. After leaving law school, Clark became a county attorney in San Augustine. In 1932 he moved to Austin and served as assistant attorney general of Texas.

In 1935 Clark became assistant to Governor James Allred. Soon after he met Lyndon B. Johnson and the two men became close friends. The governor appointed Clark secretary of state in 1937. The following year Clark opened a private law practice with Everett Looney. He also worked as a political lobbyist for the oil industry. One of his main clients was Big Oil, a company owned by Clint Murchison. He was one of the "guests" at the Del Charro Hotel, owned by Murchison, and was known as the "arranger."

A few years after the assassination, Clark's law firm partner couldn't resist bragging about Clark's involvement in the affair. He told Barr McClellan, who worked at the firm, "I'm the only living man who knows what happened in Box 13..." (Referring to Johnson's rigged senate election) "But Clark took care of things in Dallas."

Clark planned the assassination for many possible cities, finally deciding that the murder would be best done on their own turf. Through his many contacts and the "guests" of the Del Charro Hotel, Clark had access to the mafia, the FBI and the CIA. The latter was involved through the mob's association with William K. Harvey, [right] a former FBI man who worked with the CIA's foreign assassination projects. The plans were elaborate but, as history shows, very effective. Not only did they succeed in killing Kennedy but they also achieved their financial goals, political goals and covered their tracks.

So, what about the stories we were told... the anti-Castro fanatic, Lee Harvey Oswald and the single shooter theory... Get ready for some more surprises.

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