Citizens of the United States! Three days ago, on April 12, 1961, the Soviet Union successfully sent a man into space to orbit the Earth. It is imperative that we as a nation band together to combat the communist threat of space domination. 
The Soviets have painstakingly triumphed over us in sending a satellite, a being, and a man into space. America cannot sustain another loss. It is imperative that we unite as a nation to ensure the protection of our citizens from this threat! With the radical changes in global power after the second World War, the United States and Soviet Union emerged from the war as the world’s two most dominant powers; however, as time progressed our wartime allyship dissipated, the clash of our ideological and geopolitical interests grew.
By 1961, this rivalry expanded, as it advanced within the development of  science, the military, technology, and the unknown cosmos. The United States and Soviet Union are competing not only for technological superiority but also for international pride, for their countries influence, for the prestige of being first, for becoming the leading world power.  The newly inaugurated Kennedy administration faces the assertive tension from the Soviet Union while also dealing with tensions of other outcomes of the cold war.
Since the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957, the Soviet Union has reached a multitude of highly publicised milestones. The first artificial satellite, the first animal in orbit, the first photograph of the far side of the Moon. NASA acknowledged that the Soviet Union had achieved most major “firsts” of the early Space Race. On April 12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit Earth aboard the Vostok 1. Yet another “first” for the Soviets. This gave Kennedy a drive, it gave Kennedy a sense of urgency. Realizing that the US is falling behind, Kennedy ordered a rapid evaluation of the national space capabilities, and took it to congress. He announced that the US will put a man onto the moon before the end of the decade.
With this announcement , U.S. astronaut Alan Shepard is on the cusp of  launching America’s first human spaceflight with Project Mercury. With Russia becoming more reckless, the U.S must demonstrate it will not allow the Soviet Union to dictate the future of space.  The American aerospace industries do possess an enormous industrial capacity, advanced research institutions, and an abundance of financial resources, the U.S. trail behind the Soviets in several major spaceflight achievements.  The Soviets proved themselves capable of placing a human into orbit, while an American spacecraft remained mainly focused on short suborbital flights.
Project Mercury represents America’s immediate opportunity for Americans to prove themselves in space. Mercury remains very limited compared to the Soviet Vostok program, making the race exponentially difficult. The Space Race isn’t simply a competition between scientists. Every achievement, every feat, every launch is a demonstration of national strength that can shift the world’s perspective of American and Soviet power. As the tensions rise across the cold war, the U.S must decide how far they are willing to go.