MIAMI, Nov. 14, 1960 (UPI) - President-elect John F. Kennedy and Vice President Richard M. Nixon today had what Kennedy described as a "very cordial meeting" for an hour at Nixon's vacation headquarters. They arranged to meet again in Washington, probably early next month.
The president-elect said he found Nixon "very cooperative" in discussing problems of the transition from a Republican to a Democratic administration and they discussed "the many problems facing the United States."
Kennedy saw reporters briefly after the meeting. Nixon had nothing to say immediately.
Speaking for the Democrats, Kennedy said "we are assuming responsibility in a most hazardous time and I think it would be helpful to see the vice president again."
Kennedy also said he thought this was a time for bi-partisanship in foreign affairs and he thought both parties respected the situation.
Asked about the possibility of using Nixon in his administration Kennedy said, "Mr. Nixon had a responsibility as the leader of his party and perhaps he could better describe that responsibility than I could."
Kennedy said they also talked about "problems which face the United States between now and Jan. 20 and also some of the problems which face the United States around the world."
The president-elect said he found the meeting "very beneficial."
A reporter asked if there was discussion of the recently-concluded 1960 campaign.
"We discussed it from a professional point of view," Kennedy said amid laughter. "I asked him how he took Ohio."
Kennedy flew from his vacation headquarters in Palm Beach to Miami where Nixon is vacationing. The Democratic victor and the Republican loser met at 11:40 a.m. in brilliant sunshine on the steps of the Key Biscayne Hotel.
They clasped hands warmly with broad smiles, then walked shoulder to shoulder through a swarm of photographers to Villa 69, a small dwelling immediately back of the villa where Nixon and his family are staying.
Kennedy landed at Miami International Airport where a crowd of several hundred well-wishers greeted him and the mayor of Miami presented a gold key to the city.
In a 15-mile motorcade from the airport to Key Biscayne, an island southeast of Miami, there was a constant crowd on at least one side of the road most of the way. Kennedy rode a good bit of the 15 miles sitting up on the back of the convertible waving to the spectators.
As he neared the Key Biscayne Hotel, there were a number of signs in the crowd saying "Help Cuba" and "Cuba Yes, Russia No."
Kennedy and Nixon both arrived in Florida last Friday. Kennedy went to the estate of his father, Joseph P. Kennedy, in the heart of the nation's most exclusive winter colony. Nixon went to the small but swank Key Biscayne Hotel, about 10 miles southeast of Miami.
After a good night's sleep and talking by telephone with Democratic leaders around the country, Kennedy on Saturday had an opportunity to study the perilously small margin by which he defeated Nixon. In a nation of nearly 180,000,000 population, less than 400,000 votes separated winner from loser.
After dining with his old friend and campaign associate, Dave Powers of Everett, Mass., Kennedy made up his mind. He picked up a telephone Saturday night and placed a call for Nixon.
Pierre Salinger, press secretary to Kennedy, said the President-elect had a dual purpose in seeking out Nixon:
"First, the senator wants to congratulate the vice president on the campaign he conducted, and second, he wants to resume cordial relations which existed between them during their 14 years in Congress."
Although there had been suggestions from within both parties since the election that Nixon be given a role in the new Administration, there was no indication that Kennedy's trip to Miami today was any forerunner of a coalition.
Kennedy during the campaign spoke of his intention to use the best men of both parties, particularly in selling the United States abroad. Conceivably he might have some related idea in store for Nixon.
The gesture of Kennedy traveling to Miami to see Nixon was rare and possibly without precedent in American politics. Usually the winner in a national election wants no part of his defeated foe immediately after a campaign.
Meantime, the Kennedy headquarters here buzzed with other developments:
Gov. Luther H. Hodges of North Carolina was regarded as set for secretary of commerce in the Kennedy cabinet. Officially, Salinger said Kennedy would "make no final decisions nor will he make any announcements about cabinet posts until after Thanksgiving."
Gov. Abraham Ribicoff of Connecticut, widely regarded as the leading possibility for attorney general in the Kennedy Cabinet, will have lunch here tomorrow with the senator. Ribicoff, who is vacationing in nearby Hollywood, played a prominent role in Kennedy's campaign.
Sen. W. Stuart Symington (D., Mo.) will spend next weekend with Kennedy here, primarily to deliver a detailed report on reorganization of the Defense Department.
