Five Decades of Fear & Loathing: An Authorized Drew Spinoff (Volume I).

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

I’ve been working on and off on a Nixon era timeline for some time, and have decided to combine my multiple incomplete works into one single series. This will cover the history of the United States from 1970-2020 in three planned installations. It is important to note that this is not entirely an original work; while the initial POD is original in 1970, I plan on integrating Drew’s legendary Fear, Loathing, and Gumbo timeline from AH.com with the author’s permission.

This timeline’s convergence with Drew’s work will not be entirely the same; I have removed some aspects, added in others, and by the mid-1970s, the timeline will be venturing into completely original territory. I chose to adapt Drew’s timeline because of the elaborate and original constitutional crisis he created, which will set the course of events for the later part of the series. For example, there will be no “Rumsfeldia.”

I want to credit Castro and Cathcon for devising and trailblazing the format I’ve used in this timeline to cover the administrations of thirteen Presidents in the most detail possible. General events will be covered in a day to day timeline format, while other events will be covered through narrative entries. I want to capture as much of the nitty gritty as I can, and I hope you’ll find this timeline to be successful in that endeavor.

Jerry.

December 31st-January 1st, 1970.

The Winterland Ballroom, San Francisco, California.

The show had been, all in all, a pretty stand-out gig. The Grateful Dead had roared through a trance inducing version of "China Cat Sunflower" that kicked in the LSD trips of scores of young concert-goers. Afterwards, they sailed effortlessly and seamlessly through a variety of acoustic, bluesy songs before once again roaring through "Mason's Children," "Uncle John's Band," and a particularly psychedelic version of "The Eleven" that left their indisposed audience in awe of the crashing choruses that sounded like chariots thundering out of Valhalla. A few old classics - "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" and "The Race is On" along with the jug-band sounding "Cumberland Blues" before closing out the set with a funky cover of "Dancing in the Streets." Jerry smiled radiantly, his teeth shining among the sea of thick black facial hair. He was in his element - this was what brought the Dead alive.

After the show, the band retreated behind the stage as the audience milled about in an ever present cloud of marijuana. Young women clad in tie-died dresses, their hair adorned with flowers, danced in circles while amateur musicians beat on drums. The acid trips began to plateau, and the crowds began to file out as New Year's Eve evolved into New Years morning. Behind stage, Jerry struck a match to light a cigarette as a local television camera crew circled in. A young female reporter, on assignment to cover the New Year's celebrations across San Francisco, pushed a microphone into his face. "What do you think the 1970s will hold for America?" she asked. "It will be a decade of peace, magic, myth, bliss, celebration, and spirituality" replied Garcia.

Little did he know that night how wrong he'd be. But at the dawn of 1970, the Counter-Culture, though nearly fatally wounded by the incident at Altamont, still limped forwards into an uncertain future. The events of the last decade seemed far away. There was an extremely close presidential election that bared the hint of scandal. Then there was the death of John Kennedy, cut down by an assassins bullet in the prime of his life. There was the ever present threat of nuclear war, most recently illustrated by the Cuban Missile Crisis. In the south, the black population had made itself heard while on the campuses a new generation of activists found their voices. In Vietnam, the best and brightest of a generation died face down in the muck in a quagmire that seemed without end.

In fact, by 1970, it seemed the last bit of hope from the 1960s had died with Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy. The unexciting candidacy of Hubert Humphrey and the venomous rhetoric of George Wallace ensured that Richard Nixon would finally achieve his dream of winning the President in 1968, the sad final chapter of the tragedy that was Camelot. For the eternally optimistic like Jerry Garcia, there was an innate cause to hope. But to many of his contemporaries, such as the fractured Beatles or the hibernating Bob Dylan, the onset of the 1970s had little to offer besides more division, violence, and blight.
Sunday, January 11th, 1970: The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Minnesota Vikings 23-7 in Super Bowl IV.
Monday, January 12th, 1970: The Nigerian breakaway province of Biafra falls to federal troops, ending three years of civil war. Biafra’s self-declared President, C. Odumegwu Ojukwu, flees into exile in the neighboring Ivory Coast as Nigerian federal troops closed in on his remaining loyalist forces.
Monday, January 19th, 1970: President Nixon nominates Florida Judge G. Harrold Carswell to the Supreme Court. A fiercely conservative jurist, Carswell’s nomination generates immediate controversy in Washington. Though Nixon praises Carswell as “highly qualified,” the NAACP forcefully condemns the Carswell nomination as “a spiteful, politically motivated step backwards.”
Tuesday, February 3rd, 1970: In a surprise announcement, Senator George Murphy (R-CA) announces his resignation from the Senate due to health concerns. Murphy, who underwent surgery to remove his larynx after contracting aggressive throat cancer, had lost his ability to speak above a whisper and claimed to be unable to perform his duties in the Senate. Governor Reagan is said to be considering Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare Robert Finch, Congressman Barry Goldwater Jr., businessman and conservationist Ike Livermore, and State Education Superintendent Max Rafferty to the seat.
Wednesday, February 18th, 1970: The so called “Chicago Seven” were found not guilty on most major charges in relation to the 1968 riots at the Democratic National Convention. Five of the seven were, however, found guilty on lesser charges in relation to crossing state lines with the intention to riot, which could carry a sentence upwards to five years. All five have signaled their intention to appeal.
Tuesday, March 3rd, 1970: Governor Reagan appoints Max Rafferty to George Murphy’s Senate seat. An archconservative who had backed George Wallace’s 1968 presidential candidacy, Rafferty immediately declares his candidacy for reelection in the 1970 Senate race. It is rumored in Sacramento that Governor Reagan appointed Rafferty to the seat in order to bolster the conservative wing of the California Republicans
Saturday, March 7th, 1970: At 8:17 PM, a massive explosion rips through a dance at Fort Dix in New Jersey. The blast levels the hall and leaves survivors bloodied and confused in the aftermath. As first responders rush to the scene, an anonymous caller to a local radio station claims credit for the bombing on behalf of the Weather Underground, a left-wing guerrilla group. A total 56 people are killed and over two hundred injured in the attack.

Investigators search for clues after the blasts.

Tricky Dick.

Sunday, March 8th, 1970:

The White House, Washington DC.

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Monday, March 9th, 1970: The FBI names Kathy Boudin, Ted Gold, and Diana Oughton as suspects in the Fort Dix bombing. A nationwide manhunt for the trio is launched.
Tuesday, March 10th, 1970: Boudin, Gold, and Oughton are tracked down to a hotel near Saratoga, New York. The three heavily armed suspects open fire on police as they move in to make an arrest. During the crossfire, Boudin is killed by a police sniper while attempting to create cover fire for Oughton and Gold, who flee through a back window into the nearby woods. Gold and Oughton managed to evade a heavy police presence and remains on the run.

JJ.

Wednesday, March 18th, 1970:

The Napoleon House, New Orleans, LA.

The Napoleon House was a freshly minted historic landmark in New Orleans, and a well beloved restaurant. Its upper floors, mostly offices, many of them vacant, provided the perfect hideaway for the upcoming political conclave. Some of the bigwigs of Louisiana’s steamy politics had gathered, but the guest of honor was running late.

Former First Lady Blanche Long stared at the gumbo in her bowl, waiting for the arrival of the Governor. Across the room, newspaper publisher Sam Hanna smoked a Marlboro, dropping his ashes carelessly on the floor. The young Gus Weill and State Senator Billy Boles engaged in idle conversation, holding off on the topic at hand until the arrival of the last guest. State Senator Sixty Rayburn read the Times-Picayune, glancing out the window to Royal Street below, where a brass band happily played a slow, rickety, and distinctly New Orleans version of “Shine On Harvest Moon” to a crowd of tourists and locals alike.

At last, the lone black Cadillac pulled up to the building, and Rayburn watched as the Governor was whisked inside by three state troopers, almost completely unnoticed by the gathered crowd. As soon as the Governor disappeared from sight, the sounds of footsteps coming up the stairs was heard by all present. Blanche gave a sigh of relief, delighted that the meeting of such importance was finally about to occur.

“How are ‘yall?” asked Governor McKeithen as he entered the room while the State Troopers took up posts outside the room. He bent down to greet Blanche with a kiss and moved forward to heartily shake the hand of Gus Weill, his longtime assistant and a former campaign aide. Moving across the room to greet Boles, Rayburn and Hanna, shaking their hands with the same amount of vigor as he did with Weill, before finally taking his seat at the round table in the room, followed quickly by the others.

“So let’s get down to business here” said McKeithen, “what’s this business about me running for President about and how many times will I have to say no to you all?”

“Govanah” Hanna addressed McKeithen, “this ain’t flattery. We frankly don’t need to flatter you, we go back a good ways.”

“Then Sixty, what exactly is this about?” responded McKeithen.

Well connected to the Democratic National Committee and House Minority leader Hale Boggs, Blanche Long spoke up. “The party is fixing on voting for the McGovern proposals and it’s going to be changing everything. The way we pick nominees will never, ever, be the same. You don’t have to win-”

“Well, there we have it, I don’t have to win. I’ll be a favorite son again?” interrupted McKeithen.

“…you don’t have to win them all” Blanche continued. “But if you get a small chunk here, a small chunk here, this is going to correlate to delegates."

“A lot of delegates” interjected Weil from the other side of the table.

“JJ, you might not outright win the nomination. But you can take enough delegates with you to the convention and stop McGovern. He engineered all of these changes to the party structure to enhance his own ambitions. For the sake of the party, we need you to run” Blanche interjected confidently.

“And who will fund such an endeavor? Aint nobody know who I am!” McKeithen responded in exasperation and shock that such a proposal was actually truly being debated before him.

“We got friends in the oil fields, running the wells and running the boardrooms” responded Senator Boles.

“And” Weill added, “we got Russell and Boggs on our side. Big names.”

“Say I run” McKeithen quizzed Weill, “say I actually jump in. Say I pull third or fourth in a few states and beat out Wallace in the south. Say I come in second or third in the delegate count. I can swing it for Muskie, or Humphrey, or Jackson. Alright. But why me?”

“JJ, I’m a newspaper man. I know public opinion, I know what they think and what they want, and they want two things: a president they can trust and a nominee they know can win. And JJ, and no offense, Mrs. Long, I know you don’t mean it that way, but you’re selling JJ short here. He can win-we can win. We can do this.” Sam Hanna’s words sunk into McKeithen, as they did to everyone else in the room.

“He’s right.” Blanche broke the silence. “You can win. And you will win. You ought to do this, Governor. We need you. The party needs you.” Finally, Rayburn spoke up: “Don’t worry about the money, we’ll get it for you. You won’t be short on funds. If you go ahead with this, we can make it happen.”

Another long pause filled the room. The silence wasn’t haunting, nor deafening. It was the silence of a man making a choice. Not a reasoned choice, but an impulse choice. Finally, McKeithen spoke.

“Well” he declared, “I guess I’m ‘runnin for President. Won’t ‘cha help me?”
Wednesday, March 18th, 1970: The Cambodia military removes Prince Sihanouk from power in a military coup and declare the creation of the Khmer Republic. The coup, engineered by General Lon Nol, was motivated by Sihanouk’s political waffling. The toppled Prince, who had in recent years walked a tight rope as he attempted to balance out left and right leaning political factions to maintain control over his country, had run afoul of many of the country’s ruling elites as the war in Vietnam threatens to engulf the entire region
Friday, March 20th, 1970: The Senate Judiciary Committee begins hearings for Judge Carswell’s nomination to the Supreme Court. The committee’s Chairman, Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), is particularly hostile to Carswell during the first day of hearings.
Sunday, March 22nd, 1970: On an appearance of NBC’s Meet the Press, Senator Birch Bayh (D-IN) vows to filibuster the Carswell nomination should it reach the Senate floor. The White House responds via Press Secretary Ron Ziegler, who called Bayh’s comments “unprecedentedly partisan” and warned that such a filibuster could “shatter” the decorum of the Senate.
Wednesday, April 8th, 1970: Judge Harrold Carswell is successfully confirmed to the Supreme Court of the United States by a vote of 51-50 in the Senate; Vice President Agnew was forced to break the tie, voting in the affirmative for Carswell’s nomination. The tie is a shocking turn of events for Senate Democrats, who believed they had the votes and were counting on a last minute filibuster from Senator Bayh. However, Senator Bayh happened to be in New Hampshire on the morning of the vote and inclement weather prevented his flight from returning to Washington in time.
Friday, April 10th, 1970: Paul McCartney confirms that “The Beatles” are no more; according to McCartney, Lennon privately informed the band he’d be leaving in September to pursue a solo career, planning to collaborate with his companion Yoko Ono instead. The breakup of The Beatles sparks despair among their legions of fans and fellow musicians alike, with George Harrison and Ringo Starr both expressing their shock and disappointment at the sudden dissolution of one of the world’s most innovative musical groups.
Thursday, April 23rd, 1970: Prince Sihanouk, in exile in East Germany, announces the formation of the Royal Government of the National Union of Kampuchea (or GRUNK, the French language acronym) at a press conference. GRUNK, which will compose of several political parties and paramilitary groups that are at odds with General Lon Nol, has received immediate diplomatic recognition from a number of communist and non-aligned nations such as China, Cuba, Libya, North Korea, and the Soviet Union. The alliance of Prince Sihanouk and the Khmer Rouge has many in Washington scratching their heads; “politics makes strange bedfellows” quips Henry Kissinger to reporters.

Wednesday, April 29th, 1970: Troops enter Cambodia!

   

President Nixon explains the details of the campaign at a press conference.

WASHINGTON, DC: President Nixon has announced that the American military will begin targeting Viet Cong and NVA positions in Cambodia in a press conference at the White House, sparking outrage from the anti-war movement. The campaign, which began only hours before the President’s announcement, will result in the expansion of the war into Cambodia, and possibly, Laos, will mainly target supply lines used to infiltrate South Vietnam.  The campaign will be conducted along with Cambodian government forces on the ground with the goal of securing the southern region of Indochina from communist insurgents seeking to overrun the Cambodian and South Vietnamese government.

Nixon’s decision to expand the war into Cambodia was met with almost spontaneous outrage from the anti-war movement, with student demonstrators quickly taking to the streets in protest. President Nixon reportedly authorized the campaign nearly a month ago, with South Vietnamese ground forces entering Cambodia through a region known as “Parrots Beak” with heavy American air support, where after they rendezvoused with Cambodian ground troops, began to launch several coordinated attacks on known Viet Cong and NVA supply depots.

Congressional leadership was quick to gather on Capitol Hill to condemn the “illegal and unconstitutional” expansion of the war (in the words of Senator Mike Gravel (D-AK). Senators Frank Church (D-ID) and Sherman Cooper (R-KY) have announced plans to introduce a bill to Congress that would prohibit the sale of American weaponry to Cambodia as well as defunding any American military operation taking place outside of the borders of South Vietnam in relation to the war in Southeast Asia. Senator Cooper has expressed interest in possibly corralling Congressional allies to engage in an effort to repeal the Gulf of Tonken Resolution, which has given the President a free hand to conduct military operations in Indochina.
Authors Note: This is a timeline that I've been working on for two years, and I consider my...magnum opus of timelines? When I saw how well received The Long National Nightmare was, I decided the time has come to drop this early timeline.

If you haven't read Fear, Loathing, and Gumbo over at AH.com, I'd recommend reading it first. You don't have to, because this timeline's POD actually predates Drew's ATL over on AH.com. I have currently written this timeline up until the summer of '77, but will continue writing until I reach the end point in 2020. I hope you all enjoy this as much as you did/will enjoy the original by Drew, who couldn't be more kind in allowing me to publish a spinoff here,

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Monday, May 4th, 1970: Slaughter at Kent State.

   

KENT, OH: Protests against the American incursion into Cambodia resulted in carnage and chaos after the Ohio National Guard opened fire on student protesters on the campus of Kent State University in Ohio, killing six and injuring another ten. The shooting came on the tail end of four days of relatively calm student protests, days after Ohio’s Governor Jim Rhodes deployed National Guard troops to the small college town of Kent on Thursday night in relation to President Nixon’s latest announcement on the war.

The incident itself occurred after several protesters began to throw back tear gas canisters towards the advancing soldiers, who with fixed bayonets were attempting to corner the protesting students near a fenced off area by Prentice Hall. As the retreating students continued to chant anti-war slogans and hurl small projectiles at the Guardsmen, a shot was fired off, believed by many to have been from the pistol of an unknown guardsmen. The shot sparked panic among the students and soldiers, the former of whom began to disperse rapidly in multiple directions. Immediately afterwards, at least twenty of the soldiers opened fire into the crowd, resulting in the deaths of six students in a matter of seconds. A further nine students were severely injured.

The shooting drew a larger number of curious students out once the brief barrage of gunfire ended. Geology professor Glenn Frank and another of faculty members who witnessed the shooting quickly were able to deescalate situation as many angry students began to taunt and threaten the Guardsmen. Other students laid hovered over the bodies of dead friends and acquaintances. President Nixon has called the shootings “an unfortunate accident” in a brief statement, further writing that “when dissent and violence come hand in hand, it only invites tragedy.” Several student protests have broken out at campuses across the nation, with counter-culture protestor and agitator Abbie Hoffman calling for “days of rage” in an impassioned speech to students who gathered spontaneously in New York.

Friday, May 8th, 1970: “Hard Hat Riots” in New York.

   

NEW YORK, NY: Protesters and construction workers clashed violently on the streets of New York in the wake of the Kent State massacre in yet another bloody incident. The riot began when hundreds of students protesting the recent incident at Kent State encountered pro-Nixon unionized construction workers who were counter-protesting. The construction workers, several of whom claimed to be military veterans, became enraged when two students unfurled a banner that read “Kathy Boudin is a hero!” and attacked the two. A total melee ensued.

During the course of the chaos, one student protester managed to enter nearby New York City Hall to raise the Viet Cong flag over the building (where much of the riot was unfolding across the street), further enraging construction workers and friendly pedestrians of similar political persuasions. The pro-Nixon mob consequently stormed the building, overwhelming local police and forcing their way to the roof where they raised the American flag, and beat the protestor savagely before being ejected by the overwhelmed police. The incident has called into question the city’s confidence in Mayor John Lindsay, who has in turn criticized the New York City police for “allowing violence to be inflicted on peaceful student protesters” and for failing to protect City Hall from the mob.

Ultimately, police were able to quell the melee that broke out on the streets. Though the crowds had dissipated for the most part, several destroyed cars, smashed store fronts, and pools of blood staining the sidewalk remained. Sporadic incidents of violence were reported well into the night, with unionized, pro-war laborers angrily engaging the various groups of dispersed students. Over 100 injuries occurred during the chaotic street violence.

Saturday, May 9th, 1970: 100,000 Protestors in Washington.

   

WASHINGTON, DC: Over 100,000 student protestors have taken to the streets of the capital to demonstrate against the war in Vietnam. The protestors, almost entirely comprised of young students, have been marching repeatedly back and forth between the Capitol building and the White House as they loudly chanted anti-war and anti-Nixon slogans. Police have been careful and cautious in their response to the protestors, fearing that riots could break out in the wake of the Kent State shooting and the so called “Hard Hat riot” that occurred previously in New York. The tension in the air between the police and the demonstrators was palpable, and the lingering fear of even more violence was on the minds of all involved in the protests.

Security at the White House was slightly increased, though President Nixon has made it a point in the face of the demonstrations to show that the business of governance would go on undeterred by the large groups of protestors. Among the most noticeable precautions used by police and secret service personnel was the White House being blocked off with several busses, designed to make it impossible for the large throngs of student demonstrators from coming too close to the executive mansion.

Several student groups, primarily Students for a Democratic Society, have called for a nationwide student strike designed to shut down campuses and overwhelm local law enforcement agencies in a move to put even more public pressure on the administration. Several student leaders in Washington have also issued a list of demands, which is topped by their request to speak with President Nixon personally on the matter. The demonstrators will continue on Sunday with their protests and have issued a wide array of demands.

Nixon.

Saturday, May 9th, 1970:

The White House, Washington, DC.

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Monday, May 11th, 1970: Anti-war protestors clash with National Guard units that enter Washington in the early morning hours to clear out the encamped demonstrators. Fearful that the situation could spiral out of control and result in a repetition of Kent State, a majority of the anti-war activists comply. The stiffest resistance takes place when large crowds of angry students, still chanting anti-war, anti-administration chants, are forced back off the streets and contained on the National Mall, where the remaining 10,000 or so tried in vain to continue their protests. By nightfall, only a few hundred protesters remained actively on the streets.

Saturday, May 20th, 1970: McWho?

   

NEW ORLEANS, LA: With the midterm elections months away, the first speculation over the 1972 presidential candidates are already underway as rumors have swirled in Washington that the little known Governor of Louisiana, John Julius McKeithen, will be making a trip to New Hampshire next week to meet with local Democratic activists.

McKeithen’s prospective candidacy has the backing of the politically influential Long family and their political machine-still deeply relevant in the state of Louisiana-is working to lay the groundwork for a possible McKeithen candidacy. More importantly, the Long family’s strong fundraising connections in Louisiana’s deep pocketed oil and gas industry will go a long way in benefitting the potential campaign. Still, McKeithen remains a dark horse candidate if he chooses to go through with a run, with former Vice President Hubert Humphrey, Senators Ed Muskie and Ted Kennedy, and former Governor George Wallace viewed as the main frontrunners.

McKeithen’s potential strengths lie not only in his decent fundraising network and Washington ties, but also in his ability to represent what many have come to call “the new south.” A somewhat moderate Governor with a populist streak and a history of working to improve race relations, McKeithen may prove to be a very annoying thorn in the side of former Governor Wallace, who is expected to be returned to the Governor’s mansion this November and is likely to make another presidential bid, this time as a Democrat. His lack of name recognition would also hinder him if he so chooses to enter the race.
Thursday, June 18th, 1970: Edward Heath’s Conservative Party wins the 1970 British General Election, winning a narrow majority of 330 seats in the House of Commons. Labor loses 76 seats, and are reduced to 288 seats while the Liberal Party’s parliamentary party is halved down to merely six seats. Harold Wilson resigns as Prime Minister in the wake of the election, but remains leader of the Labor Party.
Wednesday, June 23rd, 1970: Robert Finch resigns as Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to take a job as a White House counselor to President Nixon. The President nominates Deputy Secretary of State Elliot Richardson to fill Finch’s slot as head of HEW.
Thursday, July 16th, 1970: Consumer activist Ralph Nader announces his candidacy for United States Senate in Connecticut, where he plans to enter the Democratic primary against incumbent Senator Thomas Dodd.
Friday, July 31st, 1970: Chet Huntley retires from broadcasting after nearly fifteen years, leaving NBC to build a resort in Montana. John Chancellor will replace him as anchor of the NBC Nightly News.
Tuesday, August 5th, 1970: The Senate confirms Elliot Richardson as Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare by a vote of 97-1. The only opposition comes from Senator Max Rafferty (R-CA). Meanwhile, John Irwin, a former aide to General MacArthur in the Second World War, is confirmed by a unanimous vote as Deputy Secretary of State to replace Richardson.

Friday, August 7th, 1970: Incident at Marin Courthouse.

   

SAN RAFAEL, CA: An attempt to free Black Panther George Jackson, on trial for the murder of a prison guard, left seven people dead at the Marin County Courthouse in San Rafael, California. Jonathan Jackson, the 17 year old brother of suspect George Jackson and the mastermind of the escape attempt, and fellow Panther William Christmas, shot their way into the courtroom and took presiding Judge Harold Haley hostage while freeing the three other suspects on trial. After taking hostages, a standoff ensued, which concluded with a daring attempt to escape the surrounded courthouse. During their attempts to leave the courthouse on foot, nearby police snipers opened fire, injuring both George and Jonathan, who promptly shot and killed the Judge before fleeing back into the courthouse, where he was killed by police who entered the building through a back door. A severely injured and unconscious George Jackson was taken into custody in the parking lot. Christmas meanwhile continued to flee on foot, opening fire on several police officers, killing three before he too was gunned down by the police as he attempted to hijack a car.

The violent incident is a watershed moment in the Black Panther Party’s guerrilla campaign, which has a history of involvement in attacks against what they claim to be corrupt law enforcement. Aside from Jackson, his brother, and Christmas, the other two attackers were promptly retaken into custody having never left the courtroom and the remaining hostages, who were uninjured. The FBI has taken control of the investigation at the request of Governor Reagan, who described the events as an “atrocious terrorist attack” and made headlines when he announced that radical professor and Black Panther associate Angela Davis was the owner of the guns used in the attack. A warrant for Davis’s arrest has been made public.

President Nixon and leaders in Congress from both sides of the aisle condemned the incident, with the administration announcing that the President will soon begin working with Congress to curb the growing amount of political violence in the United States. The incident is the second of it’s kind in recent weeks, coming mere months after the bloody bombing at Fort Dix left scores of military personnel dead. 
Sunday, August 9th, 1970: Angela Davis, wanted for her role in the Marin County shootout, arrives in East Germany. She is given political asylum by the government.
Thursday, August 27th, 1970: The Women’s Strike for Equality takes place in New York City, with 20,000 women taking part in the demonstration.
Sunday, August 29th, 1970: A anti-war march being conducted by a number of Chicano organizations in California goes south when Brown Berets (a Chicano version of the Black Panther Party) clash violently with the police sent to control the thousands strong crowd. Lawyer Ruben Salazar was killed when he was hit directly in the head by a tear gas canister fired into the crowd, leading Brown Beret leader Raul Grijalva to call for a nationwide “immigrant strike” in response to Salazar’s controversial death. The planned strike doesn't come to fruition in the end.

[Lord Byron]

Good start so far and I have only two requests:  don't abandon this and start posting this on AH.com (assuming you have access)...

Waiting for more, and interested to see what direction you're taking this TL...

[Continential]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Sunday, September 6th, 1970: Hijackings across Europe.

   

ZARKA, JORDAN: Palestinian militants hijacked five flights in Europe and diverted them to a desolate base in Jordan. The hostages, totally over 350, were separated between Jews and non-Jews, the latter being released immediately and unharmed into Jordanian custody upon arrival at an airstrip known as “Dawson’s Field.”

The remaining Jewish hostages will be held until a myriad of demands from the hijackers, who identify as members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), are met. The Israeli government is currently rumored to be weighing their options, including a possible rescue attempt, though it is also rumored that President Nixon has strongly warned the Israeli’s against this. In the meantime, the fate of the hijacked passengers remains in the hands of the PFLP militants.

The hijackings are the latest incident of violence in a year marred by a sudden resurgence of terrorism across the globe. The Red Crescent has been on the scene, bringing badly needed food and water to the hijackers and hostages alike under the watchful eye of militants on the ground, many of whom have left the Palestinian refugee camps around Jordan to link with the militants at their base in a large show of solidarity. The growing activism of militant groups in Palestinian refugee camps has posed a problem for the government of Jordan’s King Hussein, who has reportedly expressed his concerns to President Nixon.

Nixon.

Sunday, September 7h, 1970:

The White House, Washington, DC.

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Tuesday, September 8th, 1970: Israel attacks Lebanon.

   

TEL AVID, ISRAEL: In response to the recent hijackings, the Israeli military has announced that it has launched a surprise three pronged assault into Lebanon, attacking several Palestinian refugee camps and destroying weapons caches belonging to the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. The raids were successful, with no Israeli casualties reported, and hundreds of weapons and explosive stockpiles being destroyed or seized.

The attacks left hundreds of Palestinian militiamen dead, mostly due to corresponding airstrikes on the camp in the moments before the attacks. Yasser Arafat has decried the attacks as a “needless provocation” and blamed the PFLP for the hijackings, not the PLO. The Israeli government was quick to point out that the attacks had been in the work for months since the Avivim school bus massacre in May, in which nine children and three adults were killed when PFLP militants fired rocket propelled grenades into the bus, and are unrelated to the Dawson’s Field hijacking.

Friday, September 11th, 1970: Hijackings end after successful raid.

   

ZARKA, JORDAN: The American military carried out “Operation Sandy Storm” in the early morning hours to great success. Several helicopters baring Special Forces arrived at Dawson’s Field from Italy, taking the militants on location by surprise. The militants immediately abandoned the remaining hostages, who were by and large unharmed, and fled inside the planes where they claimed to hold a few remaining prisoners. After the Special Forces accounted for all hostages and called the militants bluffs, airstrikes were called on the field and the planes were destroyed with the militants inside as scores of American military helicopters arrived to spree the rescued hostages back to freedom in neighboring Israel.

The Air Force also conducted surgical strikes on the Jordanian city of Irbid, where rapidly assembling Palestinian militants were preparing to reinforce the besieged hijackers at Dawson’s Field. President Nixon described the operation as a “complete and total success” at a press conference, and vowed that he would continue to use American military power “when and willing” to combat terrorism around the globe.
Friday, September 18th, 1970: The Jimi Hendrix Experience is over; the acid-rock musician died at the age of 27 from an apparent overdose of sleeping pills at his London flat. Discovered by his girlfriend, Hendrix was rushed to a nearby hospital and pronounced dead on arrival.

Sunday, September 20th, 1970: Syria, Jordan go to war.

   

DAMASCUS, SYRIA: In the wake of the Jordanian crackdown on Palestinian refugees in the small Middle Eastern kingdom, Syrian tanks have rolled across the border on the order of the Syrian President and are racing towards the city of Irbid, which is in full rebellion against King Hussein. The Syrian government is describing the actions as “preliminary acts of self-defense” for their “allies in the cause of Palestinian liberation.” Jordan has described the intervention as an act of war, and has mobilized troops to assault the Syrian column that has rapidly penetrated the borders.

President Nixon has condemned the invasion as a “needless escalation” while Yasser Arafat welcomed the news and called for other Arab nations to join the in “the just cause of liberation and revolution.” To a degree of distrust among the State Department, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser has publicly offered his services as a mediator in the conflict, which he claims will “destabilize the entire region and shatter the anti-imperialist struggle,” fighting words that President Nixon has found unconvincing.

The burgeoning Syrian-Jordanian conflict strikes a deep chasm in the Arab World, with Jordan becoming increasingly isolated from their former Syrian allies and King Hussein has complained of pressure, being lodged between them and neighboring Iraq, another Baathist state. Representatives from both the Jordanian and Syrian governments have claimed that victory is near, and that the conflict will not devolve into a stalemate.

Nixon.

Sunday, September 20th, 1970:

The White House, Washington, DC.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Wednesday, September 23rd, 1970: Jordan routes Syria.

   

IRBID, JORDAN: The Jordanian army has successfully defeated and dislodged a Syrian force that has occupied the city of Irbid, a stronghold of Palestinian militants, despite suffering numerous casualties in the beginning of the operation. The attack has none the less been highly successful, with the Syrians returning across the border just 72 hours after initially crossing.

The Palestinian stronghold of Irbid was consequently placed under Jordanian military control, where foreign observers are reporting atrocities are being committed against those Palestinian refugees who have refused to submit to the authority of King Hussein. Summarily executions and forced dislocations have been claimed by some Palestinian refugees who have fled the city along with Syrian forces; many of these men are PFLP or PLO associated militiamen fearing retribution.

The Jordanians are massing on the border in a defensive posture to prevent further Syrian incursions while Egyptian President Nasser arrived in Damascus for preliminary talks with Syrian President Atassi before he advances to Amman for discussions with King Hussain. Jordan and Syria will meet with one another in Cairo later this year for peace talks.

Monday, September 28th, 1970: Nasser dead!

   

DAMASCUS, SYRIA: Gamal Abdel Nasser, the iconic Egyptian President and elder statesmen of the Arab world, died suddenly from a massive heart attack while traveling on a plane from Damascus to Amman. Nasser was stricken after a heated and tense exchange with Syrian President Atassi over his failed attempt to occupy parts of neighboring Jordan. The Egyptian President’s plane was forced to make an emergency return to Damascus, where Nasser was rushed to a hospital and pronounced dead on arrival.

The Egyptian leader will be succeeded by Anwar Al-Sadat, who takes power in an Arab nation plunged into mourning at the death of their leader. Tributes came in from across the Arab World, with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat praising him as a “revolutionary brother” while Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi was reported by Libyan state run radio to have been distraught by the news. Figures ranging from Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau to Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro have also released statements on the demise of Nasser. The funeral for Nasser is expected to be a major gathering of leaders of the Arab and non-aligned world, and the first major event in Sadat’s tenure.

[Lord Byron]

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

Well, that's fine; I tended to think that the original Fear, Loathing, and Gumbo had become too much of a dystopia by 1980 (for the US, anyway)...

Waiting for more...

[Lumine]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

I look forward to it! Fear, Loathing and Gumbo is an absolute classic, and whilst Rumsfeldia is always interesting to read - if terribly depressing - the TL really jumped the shark by the end of Rumsfeld's first term.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

I look forward to it! Fear, Loathing and Gumbo is an absolute classic, and whilst Rumsfeldia is always interesting to read - if terribly depressing - the TL really jumped the shark by the end of Rumsfeld's first term.

Rumsfeldia is like the Godfather III in that regard

[Continential]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

I look forward to it! Fear, Loathing and Gumbo is an absolute classic, and whilst Rumsfeldia is always interesting to read - if terribly depressing - the TL really jumped the shark by the end of Rumsfeld's first term.

Rumsfeldia is like the Godfather III in that regard

I love Drew's huge updates but sometimes I wish he uploaded smaller updates at a time

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

I look forward to it! Fear, Loathing and Gumbo is an absolute classic, and whilst Rumsfeldia is always interesting to read - if terribly depressing - the TL really jumped the shark by the end of Rumsfeld's first term.

Rumsfeldia is like the Godfather III in that regard

I love Drew's huge updates but sometimes I wish he uploaded smaller updates at a time

There was once a 14 month gap IIRC.

[Continential]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

I look forward to it! Fear, Loathing and Gumbo is an absolute classic, and whilst Rumsfeldia is always interesting to read - if terribly depressing - the TL really jumped the shark by the end of Rumsfeld's first term.

Rumsfeldia is like the Godfather III in that regard

I love Drew's huge updates but sometimes I wish he uploaded smaller updates at a time

There was once a 14 month gap IIRC.

and it feels like there is going to be another 14 month gap again

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

No, this TL is closer to FLAG72 and goes it’s own way by 1980. So Rumsfeld doesn’t become POTUS, no civil war with Christian fundies, etc.

And I’d rather not post this on AH.com, where I have an account as well, because it’d be rude to Drew. This is for the community here, not for broader readership. That’s what I promised Drew at least.

I look forward to it! Fear, Loathing and Gumbo is an absolute classic, and whilst Rumsfeldia is always interesting to read - if terribly depressing - the TL really jumped the shark by the end of Rumsfeld's first term.

Rumsfeldia is like the Godfather III in that regard

I love Drew's huge updates but sometimes I wish he uploaded smaller updates at a time

There was once a 14 month gap IIRC.

and it feels like there is going to be another 14 month gap again

Is he even still writing it? Most updates are by Bookmark recently. Still a fun read of course.

[Continential]

Could you a TL on William Winter winning in 1988 in Rumsfieldia?

snip

Yeah, it is really detailed and I wish Drew bookmarked the Fear, Loathing and Gumbo and the earlier Rumsfieldia posts.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Monday, October 5th, 1970: A group calling itself the “Quebec Liberation Front,” a left-wing nationalist organization demanding Quebec’s independence from Canada, kidnaps James Cross, the British Trade Commissioner to Canada, from his home in Ottawa. The kidnapping sparks a nationwide political crisis.
Tuesday, October 6th, 1970: A proposal formulated by National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger to allow direct arms sales to Israel (rather than the extension of credits as before) is presented to Congress by Senator Jacob Javits (R-NY).

Nixon.

Wednesday, October 7th, 1970:

The White House, Washington, DC.

Brian Lamb: The fall of 1970 was quite a time for President Nixon. What was the White House like during those tough months?

Pat Buchanan: It'd be a pretty big understatement to say those few months were hard. They were tremendously trying. The old man was being pulled every which way by every international crisis conceivable. There was Cuba. There was the war in South East Asia. There was the Middle East and Black September followed by the October crisis. He was playing a game of whack-a-mole, putting out fire after fire.

Brian Lamb: And on top of that, midterm elections as well-

Pat Buchanan: -yes, Nixon campaigned vigorously over the country for Republican candidates everywhere. And he handled much of his affairs from Air Force One, just writing pages of notes on that yellow legal pad.

Brian Lamb: And Republicans did quite well in that election, they picked up...what, uh, they picked up like 4 seats if I remember correctly?

Pat Buchanan: Yes, they picked up four seats...well, two technically-

Brian Lamb -yes, Buckley as a Conservative and uh, Byrd...uh, Harry Byrd, went from Democrat to independent.

Pat Buchanan So we basically gained four seats net, and that was a big, big deal considering the events of the summer, with the Marin shootings involving those Black Panthers and Angela Davis, not top mention Kent State and the following demonstrations. And so, when we won those seats, it was seen as the Silent Majority puffing out it's chest. And I think that it was enough to scare Ted Kennedy out of the Democratic race for good alongside Chappaquiddick, which left a pretty serious void in the party establishments.
Wednesday, October 28th, 1970: Mstislav Keldysh, President of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, and NASA Administrator James Fletcher announce that a tentative agreement has been reached between the two nations, thus green lighting the planning stage for a joint Soviet-American space program.
Saturday, October 31st, 1970: The leaking of a memo from the Japanese Defense Ministry sparks outrage in China. The memo, which details possible ways for Japan to rearm itself if necessary, was called “an imperialist blueprint” by the Chinese government, which in typical fashion threatened war should Japan expand her armed forces.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

1970 United States Senate Elections

1970 Alaska Senate Special Election
(R) Ted Stevens: 56.29%
(D) Ralph Rivers: 43.71%
(Republican hold)

Former Congressman Ralph Rivers attempt to regain political office is thwarted by incumbent Ted Stevens, who wins the remainder of Dewey Bartlett’s term and will soon face his third Senate campaign in as many years in 1972.

1970 Arizona Senate Election
(R) Paul Fannin: 52.25%
(D) Stewart Udall: 47.75%
(Republican hold)

Former Interior Secretary Stewart Udall was a high value recruit for the Democrats, but ultimately, he failed to unseat the conservative Paul Fannin from his position.

1970 California Senate Election
(R) Max Rafferty: 49.76%
(D) John Tunney: 48.65%
(PF) Robert Scheer: 1.46%
(AIP) Charles Ripley: 0.13%
(Republican hold)

Rightwing activist Max Rafferty, fresh off his loss in the 1968 Senate election, successfully won the primary to replace the retiring Senator George Murphy and encountered strong opposition to moderate Democrat John Tunney. In a close election, Tunney lost due to the presence of a Peace and Freedom Party candidate who managed to win a marginal amount of voters that came directly from Tunney’s pockets. Rafferty is expected to be among the most far right members of the Senate and will likely be a bomb-thrower. The Democratic loss in California is seen as a vote of confidence in the President by the so called “Silent Majority.”

1970 Connecticut Senate Election
(D) Ralph Nader: 43.86%
(R) Lowell Weicker: 42.98%
(I) Thomas Dodd: 13.16%
(Democratic hold)

Senator Thomas Dodd’s independent campaign for Senate came up short after his primary defeat by activist Ralph Nader. Weicker, a one term Congressman, saw his hopes to be Connecticut’s “fresh face” dashed when Nader took the Democratic nomination in one of the most watched Senate primaries in the country. Like his opposite Californian counterpart, Max Rafferty, Nader is expected to be a force in the Senate.

1970 Delaware Senate Election
(R) William V. Roth Jr.: 59.35%
(D) Jacob Zimmerman: 40.65%
(Republican hold)

1970 Florida Senate Election
(D) Lawton Chiles: 53.46%
(R) William Cramer: 46.54%
(Democratic hold)

Despite intense personal support from Richard Nixon, the Florida Republican Party fails to push Cramer over the top. None the less, Cramer makes inroads for the Republican Party in deep (Atlas) red Florida.

1970 Hawaii Senate Election
(D) Cecil Heftel: 50.55%
(R) Hiram Fong: 49.45%
(Democratic gain)

Longtime incumbent Hiram Fong is unseated by businessman Cecil Heftel is a closely watched election that comes down to just a thousand votes. While Hawaii’s Democratic Lt. Governor (and concurrently Secretary of State) Thomas Gill has indicated he will certify the race for Heftel, Fong is requesting a recount on Oahu to examine disputed votes.

1970 Illinois Senate Special Election
(D) Adlai Stevenson III: 61.37%
(R) Ralph Tyler Smith: 38.63%
(Democratic gain)

The legacy of Everett Dirksen is not enough to prevent the Democrats from taking back this Senate seat from interim appointee Ralph Tyler Smith in an election that never had an inkling of being close.

1970 Indiana Senate Election
(R) Dick Roudebush: 50.44%
(D) Vance Hartke: 49.56%
(Republican gain)

Congressman Richard Roudebush defeats Senator Vance Hartke, dashing his presidential dreams (and making fellow Indiana Democrat and possible contender Birch Bayh very, very happy) following a closely fought and highly negative race.

1970 Maine Senate Election
(D) Ed Muskie: 61.23%
(R) Neil Bishop: 38.77%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Maryland Senate Election
(R) John Glenn Beall: 51.39%
(D) Joseph Tydings: 48.61%
(Republican gain)

Congressman John Glenn Beall defeats incumbent Senator Joseph Tydings in a narrow race. Many had touted the fiscally conservative and socially liberal Maryland Senator as a potential Presidential contender for 1972.

1970 Massachusetts Senate Election
(D) Edward Kennedy: 65.23%
(R) Josiah Spaulding: 34.77%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Michigan Senate Election
(D) Philip Hart: 60.28%
(R) Lenore Romney: 39.72%
(Democratic hold)

Despite strong personal popularity, former Michigan First Lady Lenore Romney fails to unseat the even more popular Senator Philip Hart of Michigan.

1970 Minnesota Senate Election
(D) Hubert Humphrey: 55.82%
(R) Clark MacGregor: 44.18%
(Democratic hold)

With Eugene McCarthy retiring from the Senate (and flirting with a second campaign for President in 1972), former Vice President Hubert Humphrey makes a triumphant return to the Senate. But the question remains whether he intends to stay in the Senate or seek the Presidency again in 1972.

1970 Mississippi Senate Election
(D) John Stennis: 92.78%
(I) William Thompson: 7.22%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Missouri Senate Election
(R) John Danforth: 49.57%
(D) Stuart Symington: 49.34%
(AIP) Gene Chapman: 1.09%
(Republican gain)

In an extremely tight race, Missouri's Attorney General John Danforth unseats longtime Senator and one time Presidential candidate Stuart Symington in a race watched around the country. Danforth’s victory, like Cecil Heftel in Hawaii, sparks requests for a recount from Senator Stuart Symington.

1970 Montana Senate Election
(D) Mike Mansfield: 62.37%
(R) Harold Wallace: 37.63%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Nebraska Senate Election
(R) Roman Hruska: 55.00%
(D) Frank Morrison: 45.00%
(Republican hold)

1970 Nevada Senate Election
(D) Howard Cannon: 59.90%
(R) William Raggio: 40.10%
(Democratic hold)

1970 New Jersey Senate Election
(D) Harrison Williams: 60.15%
(R) Nelson Gross: 39.85%
(Democratic hold)

1970 New Mexico Senate Election
(D) Joseph Montoya: 55.42%
(R) Carter Anderson: 44.58%
(Democratic hold)

1970 New York Senate Election
(C) James Buckley: 39.15%
(D) James Ottinger: 37.13%
(R) Charles Goodell: 23.72%
(Conservative gain)

Charles Goodell, the Republican Congressman appointed to the Senate following the death of Senator Kennedy in 1968, falls to third in a three way race. The narrow victor is James Buckley, the Conservative Party of New York’s candidate and brother of leading conservative intellectual William F. Buckley. James Ottinger comes within two points of taking the seat back for the Democrats, but the power of Buckley’s name, his immense fundraising, and most importantly, the Silent Majority’s strong backing.

1970 North Dakota Senate Election
(D) Quentin Burdick: 58.76%
(R) Thomas Kleppe: 41.24%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Ohio Senate Election
(R) Robert A. Taft Jr.: 51.78%
(D) Howard Metzenbaum: 48.22%
(Republican gain)

In a tight race, Robert A Taft Jr., scion of the Taft dynasty, takes the seat of retiring Democratic Senator Stephen Young. None the less, the race was narrow, perhaps due to the lingering tension of the Kent State massacre that has left even Ohio’s silent majority divided.

1970 Pennsylvania Senate Election
(R) Hugh Scott: 51.25%
(D) Bill Sesler: 48.75%
(Republican hold)

Influential Senator Hugh Scott clings onto his seat narrowly in the wake of a tough challenge from State Senator Bill Sesler. The Senate Minority Leader’s narrow victory is a sign of Republican weakness in what is considered to be an important state electorally for the Republicans.

1970 Rhode Island Senate Election
(D) John Pastore: 71.00%
(R) John McLaughlin: 29.00%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Tennessee Senate Election
(R) Bill Brock: 51.47%
(D) Al Gore: 48.53%
(Republican gain)

The Southern strategy pays off in Tennessee, where the Republican candidate, Congressman Bill Brock, is able to rally many former Democrats against the pro-Civil Rights Senator Al Gore Sr. The campaign is a nasty affair and highly watched, with the results proving that the GOP is making inroads in the formerly solid South.

1970 Texas Senate Election
(D) Lloyd Bentsen: 52.87%
(R) George Bush: 47.13%
(Democratic hold)

After successfully primarying Ralph Yarborough (who Bush surely would have defeated), businessman and former Congressman Lloyd Bentsen is able to turn back Congressman George Bush in his second bid for the Senate.

1970 Utah Senate Election
(D) Frank Moss: 56.38%
(R) Laurence Burton: 41.88%
(AIP) Clyde Freeman: 1.74%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Vermont Senate Election
(R) Winston Prouty: 56.56%
(D) Phillip Hoff: 44.44%
(Republican hold)

1970 Virginia Senate Election
(I) Harry Byrd Jr.: 44.81%
(D) George Rawlings: 36.40%
(R) Ray Garland: 18.79%
(Independent gain)

Refusing to pledge loyalty to the Democratic Party, Harry Byrd runs for Senate as an independent and is reelected by eight points, a clear vote of confidence in the Virginia Senator and his opposition to civil rights.

1970 Washington Senate Election
(D) Henry Jackson: 91.01%
(SWP) Bill Massey: 8.99%
(Democratic hold)

1970 West Virginia Senate Election
(D) Robert Byrd: 80.00%
(R) Elmer Dodson: 20.00%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Wisconsin Senate Election
(D) William Proxmire: 68.13%
(R) John Erickson: 31.87%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Wyoming Senate Election
(D) Gale McGee: 55.00%
(R) John Wold: 45.00%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Senate Elections
Democrats: 53 (-4)
Republicans: 45 (+2)
Conservative: 1 (+1)
Independent: 1 (+1)

Senate Majority Leader-elect: Mike Mansfield (D-MT)
Incumbent Senate Majority Leader: Mike Mansfield (D-MT)

Senate Minority Leader-elect: Hugh Scott (R-PA)
Incumbent Senate Minority Leader: Hugh Scott (R-PA)

Ted.

Sunday, November 9th, 1970:

The Kennedy Compound, Palm Beach, FL.

There was a considerable amount of blood in the water in the first two years after the 1968 election; the conundrum for the surviving Kennedy brother was that he was unsure if it were Nixon’s or his own. In the wake of Chappaquiddick, the Massachusetts Senator and one time frontrunner went in the course of a few hours from being one of the President’s biggest fears to one of his easiest targets. Though few were willing to permanently write-off the career of the innately ambitious scion of one of America’s most legendary political dynasties, even fewer seemed to seriously the Senator a potential contender for the Democratic nomination in 1972.

For those few dreamers who still eyed 1972 with some sense of promise (most of whom happened to share the surname “Kennedy”), the first half of 1971 would be judgement day for their last surviving prince’s career. Tainted by Chappaquiddick, Kennedy’s position as Senate Minority Whip was facing a test in the form of Senator Robert Carlyle Byrd of West Virginia. The Dixiecrat who had once filibustered the Civil Rights Act was an odd fit for such a position considering the increasingly liberal direction of the party, though over the course of the proceeding years he had largely moderated his segregationist views and strengthened his relations with his colleagues.

After celebrating the midterm results, Kennedy immediately departed Washington in favor his family’s estate in Palm Beach, where he was joined by his brother-in-law Sargent Shriver, aide Paul Kirk, family adviser Arthur Schlesinger Jr., and DNC Chairman Larry O’Brien over the coming days. There would be women, booze, and strategy sessions a-plenty. But mostly women and booze. On the morning of Friday, November 6th, the four men sat down in the grassy yard overlooking the seawall and beach, the cool Florida fall breeze blowing through the palm trees as the men bantered lightly. But the elephant in the room couldn’t be ignored.

“Look, I can get this passed” Teddy began, eying each of his four companions with a solemn, resolved expression of purpose that fooled the masses but not the men present, continuing: “Byrd can’t get the votes. They won’t let a, er, a segregationist take that position. That won’t happen. I can sense the mood there.”

“Don’t be too apathetic, Ted. Byrd’s been working real hard. I thought he just wanted Appropriations. But he’s just like you-he wants it all, Ted!” O’Brien’s warning was not simply the result of some juicy political intel; it was common sense, apparent to all but Kennedy.

“I know my turf, Larry, I know what Byrd’s hatching in January. Don’t worry about it. If we panic, if we legitimize Byrd’s challenge and make this an actual contest rather than a cloakroom gossip game, then we’ll be in trouble. We’re gonna make 1971 ‘argh year. The year of ‘da Kennedys.”

“Ted,” Sargent beseeched, “you can’t be talking about the year after 1971, right?”

“Not today, no, too early. But we’ll pencil that in the agenda at the start of the summer-”

‘Ted, you won’t win. You can’t run now. We lost Jack and Bobby to our enemies. We can’t lose you to our supposed friends-“

“The polls are saying otherwise, though. Can you believe that after all that I’m at-“

“Ted” interjected Schlesinger, “God threw you a miracle. Don’t waste it now. Lay low. Work smart, not hard, and most of all, not recklessly.”

“So here me out;” for the first time, Kennedy’s words revealed a sense of desperation.

“It’s now or never.”

“That’s not what Jack or Bobby would say.“

“Or the old man” added Shriver.

“I sit this out, I’m going to be sidelined until 1980. That is too long to wait for what I can get done to be done. So what do I do? What am I supposed to do?”

“This is what you do.” Paul Kirk’s confidence was made transparent in the strength of his voice, which strung together crafted the image of the gritty Washington fixer well beyond Kirk’s 32 years, though his youthful appearance betrayed this immediately.

“We work hard, but we lay low. Byrd won’t be a problem, and if he becomes one, we make way for him. No big deal. Reuther and you have been working for years to pass a healthcare reform package. This can be your moment, with or without the job as Whip-it’d be easier as, obviously-

“Well ‘er, uh, no shit wise man!” interjected Kennedy, a comment Kirk had already trained himself to ignore.

“You get the votes together. You pass the bill. You put the ball in Nixon’s court, and you let the public decide. If he vetoes it against the will of the public, your stock goes up, you get in. He vetoes it, the public applauds, you stay put, lose nothing, and lay low. If he signs it, you become the biggest star in the Senate and Nixon puts himself on the way to reelection. And that gives you 1976.”

“Worst case scenario, Paul. The bill meets fierce opposition, the Dixiecrats buckle, Byrd becomes a problem. Humphrey will handwring and McGovern will say it won’t go far enough. We’ll have to water it down, but Nixon and Scott would deliver the votes. Then Nixon vetoes it anyway?”

“Why’d he do that?”

“He’s an odd fellow.” A historian and public intellectual, Schlesinger’s poignant observation was taken far more seriously than his joke had intended. But it rang true to those present.

“So he vetoes it. We’re down for the count in 1972. But at the very least, it’ll give me a cause to fight for and a good enough reason to be out there without being out there. We’ll er uh, we’ll keep them all waiting. We’ll keep them wondering. If the mood is right, it’ll propel us. If the mood is wrong, we live anther day. I think we’re done here for now. We’ll fondle the details later, but right now let’s fondle er uh….something else.”

The men agreed to adjourn, keeping both the subject matter of the meeting and their….other minor indiscretions quiet; no, it was a simple fishing trip. No politics, no girls. Just clean, relaxing fun. The secrecy pact did not have to be verbalized to be understood, and was formalized by the shaking of hands and the patting of backs.   

Unfortunately for them, the Cuban in the van outside had been an active listener and a silent participant in their meeting. He had worked hard to gain the grounds crew’s trust, and he worked harder the day he planted the bugs. But now he had completed his mission, he completed his cigarette, and most importantly, he had everything he was going to need on one tape.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

1970 House & Gubernatorial Elections

1970 Alabama Gubernatorial Election
(D) George Wallace: 51.27%
(I) Albert Brewer: 43.96%
(I) Shorty Price: 3.40%
(PHB) Jerome Couch: 1.37%
(Democratic hold)

After losing his primary to Wallace, Governor Brewer ran as an independent. Despite his strong support from Republicans and African Americans, he failed to cling onto the Governor’s Mansion, and George Wallace once again was elected Governor of Alabama.

1970 Alaska Gubernatorial Election
(D) William Egan: 50.26%
(R) Keith Miller: 46.525
(AIP) Ralph Anderson: 3.22%
(Democratic gain)

Incumbent Governor Keith Miller is defeated by William Egan, the former Democratic Governor of Alaska, after popular Governor Walter Hickel was named as Secretary of the Interior by President-elect Nixon in 1969.

1970 Arizona Gubernatorial Election
(D) Raul Castro: 51.62%
(R) Jack Williams: 48.38%
(Democratic gain)

Former Ambassador Raul Castro upsets Jack Williams in a narrow race that saw a list minute surge in Hispanic voter registration due to the incident in Las Angeles that resulted in rioting and the death of popular lawyer Ruben Salazar.

1970 Arkansas Gubernatorial Election
(D) Dale Bumpers: 61.33%
(R) Winthrop Rockefeller: 31.93%
(AIP) William Carruth: 6.74%
(Democratic gain)

Dale Bumpers makes good on his promise to take Winthrop Rockefeller out to the woodshed when he defeats him by a margin of nearly 30 points.

1970 California Gubernatorial Election
(R) Ronald Reagan: 50.25%
(D) Jesse Unruh: 46.93%
(PF) Ricardo Romo: 1.42%
(AIP) Bill Shearer: 1.40%

Potential presidential contender and incumbent Governor Ronald Reagan is reelected over “Big Daddy” Jesse Unruh, the Speaker of the California State Assembly, in what was considered the most important and widely watched gubernatorial race in the nation.

1970 Colorado Gubernatorial Election
(R) John A. Love: 50.26%
(D) Mark Hogan: 47.61%
(LR) Albert Garule: 2.13%
(Republican hold)

Despite strong challenges, Republican incumbents in Connecticut and Colorado cling on by extremely narrow margins. In Colorado, a challenge from the United Left backed LaRaza Party is blamed for the victory of John Love.

1970 Connecticut Gubernatorial Election
(R) Thomas Meskill: 50.33%
(D) Emilio Daddario: 49.67%   
(Republican gain)

1970 Florida Gubernatorial Election
(D) Ruben Askew: 56.84%
(R) Claude Kirk: 43.16%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Georgia Gubernatorial Election
(D) Jimmy Carter: 61.28%
(R) Hal Suit: 38.72%
(Democratic hold)

State Senator Jimmy Carter romps to victory over a token Republican candidate.

1970 Hawaii Gubernatorial Election
(D) John Burns: 62.73%
(R) Samuel King: 37.23%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Idaho Gubernatorial Election
(D) Cecil Andrus: 54.32%
(R) Don Samuelson: 45.68%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Maine Gubernatorial Election
(R) James Erwin: 50.68%
(D) Kenneth Curtis: 49.32%
(Republican gain)

1970 Kansas Gubernatorial Election
(D) Robert Docking: 55.33%
(R) Kent Frizzell: 43.95%
(C) Everett Sperry: 0.72%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Maryland Gubernatorial Election
(D) Marvin Mandel: 53.12%
(R) Charles Blair: 44.88%
(AIP) Bob Merkle: 2.00%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Massachusetts Gubernatorial Election
(R) Francis Sargent: 55.07%
(D) Kevin White: 44.00%
(SL) Henning Blomen: 0.65%
(PBH) John Hedges: 0.28%
(Republican hold)

1970 Michigan Gubernatorial Election
(D) Sander Levin: 49.55%
(R) William Milliken: 49.49%
(AIP) James McCormick: 0.66%
(SWP) George Bouse: 0.20%
(SL) James Horvath: 0.10%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Minnesota Gubernatorial Election
(D) Wendell Anderson: 53.10%
(R) Douglas Head: 46.73%
(I) Karl Heck: 0.17%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Nebraska Gubernatorial Election
(D) James Exon: 54.86%
(R) Norbert Tieman: 42.39%
(AIP) Albert Walsh: 2.75%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Nevada Gubernatorial Election
(R) Paul Laxalt: 48.72%
(D) Mike O’Callaghan: 42.61%
(I) Charles Springer: 5.23%
(AIP) Daniel Hansen: 3.44%
(Republican hold)

1970 New Hampshire Gubernatorial Election
(R) Walter Peterson: 44.34%
(D) Roger Crowley: 43.59%
(AIP) Meldrim Thomson: 12.07%
(Republican hold)

1970 New Mexico Gubernatorial Election
(D) Bruce King: 50.11%
(R) Pete Domenici: 47.24%
(I) John Salazar: 2.65%
(Democratic hold)

1970 New York Gubernatorial Election
(R) Nelson Rockefeller: 49.11%
(D) Arthur Goldberg: 40.73%
(C) Paul Adams: 9.87%
(CP) Rasheed Storey: 0.15%
(SWP) Clifton DeBerry: 0.10%
(SL) Stephen Emery: 0.04%
(Republican hold)

1970 Ohio Gubernatorial Election
(D) John Gilligan: 54.68%
(R) Roger Cloud: 42.87%
(AIP) Ed Lawton: 2.45%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Oklahoma Gubernatorial Election
(R) Dewey Bartlett: 49.68%
(D) David Hall: 48.14%
(AIP) Reuel Little: 2.18%
(Republican hold)

1970 Oregon Gubernatorial Election
(R) Tom McCall: 53.18%
(D) Robert Straub: 46.35%
(I) Don Yeager: 0.47%
(Republican hold)

1970 Pennsylvania Gubernatorial Election
(D) Milton Shapp: 57.06%
(R) Ray Broderick: 39.88%
(C) Andrew Watson: 2.36%
(AIP) Francis McGeever: 0.51%
(SL) George Taylor: 0.17%
(SWP) Pearl Chertov: 0.02%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Rhode Island Gubernatorial Election
(R) Herbert DeSimone: 51.41%
(D) Frank Licht: 48.19%
(SWP) John Powers: 0.40%
(Republican gain)

1970 South Carolina Gubernatorial Election
(R) Albert Watson: 49.66%
(D) John West: 48.26%
(I) Red Bethea: 2.08%
(Republican gain)

1970 South Dakota Gubernatorial Election
(D) Richard Kneip: 55.00%
(R) Frank Farrar: 45.00%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Tennessee Gubernatorial Election
(R) Winfield Dunn: 50.21%
(D) John Jay Hooker: 47.53%
(AIP) Doug Heinsohn: 2.26%
(Republican gain)

1970 Texas Gubernatorial Election
(D) Preston Smith: 54.69%
(R) Paul Eggers: 45.31%
(Democratic hold)

1970 Vermont Gubernatorial Election
(R) Deane Davis: 59.10%
(D) Leo O’Brien: 41.90%
(Republican hold)

1970 Wisconsin Gubernatorial Election
(D) Pat Lucey: 54.76%
(R) Jack Olson: 45.24%
(Democratic gain)

1970 Wyoming Gubernatorial Election
(R) Stanley Hathaway: 66.67%
(D) John J. Rooney: 33.33%
(Republican hold)

1970 House of Representatives Elections
Democrats: 255 seats (+12)
Republicans: 180 seats (-12)

Speaker-elect of the House: Carl Albert (D-OK)
Incumbent Speaker of the House: John McCormack (D-MA)
House Majority Leader: Hale Boggs (D-LA)
House Majority Whip: Tip O’Neill (D-MA)

House Minority Leader: Gerald Ford (R-MI)
House Minority Whip: Leslie Arends (R-IL)

Nixon.

Wednesday, November 4th, 1970:

The White House, Washington, DC.

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Friday, November 13th, 1970: Syrian Defense Minister Hafez Al-Assad takes power in Syria, overthrowing President Al-Atassi in a military coup. The Baath Party leader Saleh Jadid, the de-facto leader of Syria, was sent into exile along with his figurehead Al-Atassi. The regime was largely undone due to political discontent at the socialist oriented economic agenda and the major humiliation Syria suffered at the hands of the Jordanians during the “Black September” conflict earlier in the year.  
Tuesday, November 17th, 1970: Lt. William Calley goes on trial for his role in the My-Lai massacre at Fort Benning.
Wednesday, November 18th, 1970: After meeting with Cambodia’s Deputy Prime Minister Sisowath Matak, President Nixon calls on Congress to appropriate $155 million dollars in aid to Cambodia. The aid package would mostly be used to expand and better equip Cambodia’s military, which has been weakened by the growing divide between supporters of Lon Nol and the deposed King. The money would in addition fund the Cambodian government’s efforts to stall the Khmer Rouge insurgency in the countryside.
Tuesday, November 25th, 1970: President Nixon fires Interior Secretary Walter Hickel after the latter criticized the administration’s Vietnam policies publically. The President nominates Congressman Rogers Morton (R-MD) as his replacement.
Wednesday, November 26th, 1970: The government of Guinea accuses Portugal of facilitating a failed invasion of the West African nation. According to the account of the Guinean government, mercenaries in the employ of Portugal landed near Conkary via sea with the intent of overthrowing the Soviet aligned regime of Sekou Toure. The landing falls apart, and most of the mercenaries are quickly apprehended and confess under torture.

Muskie.

Thursday, November 27th, 1970:

Washington, DC.

On paper, he was the ideal man to take on Nixon. A young lawyer turned war hero who served a term as Governor and was three times elected to the Senate, Edmund Muskie had quite the resume upon his selection by Vice President Humphrey to be his running mate in 1968. Four years after their narrow loss to Richard Nixon after peace talks failed in murky circumstances, Muskie was at the midpoint of Nixon’s term the frontrunner” in the words of Cronkite. His position was imperiled from the start by the overshadowing questions surrounding the political future of Senator Kennedy, in limbo post-Chappaquiddick. But Kennedy, however omnipresent, wasn’t the only pressing concern for Muskie.

Senator McGovern, who had led the effort for reforming the party’s nominating process, was becoming the anti-war, liberal wing of the party’s favorite. His support among young voters in particular frightened Muskie, who feared his rival would monopolize the party’s left-wing and run a long-lasting, insurgent campaign. Muskie wasn’t an enemy of the party’s youth activists; he was popular among their ranks. With a strong record on civil rights and a history of challenging President Nixon over the war in Vietnam, Muskie’s problems with the young voters of America in 1970 weren’t political as much as they were personal. Muskie simply lacked the passion that McGovern, a man of only mild charisma himself, elicited and struggled to show warmth and struggled to appear authentic. Muskie had to anchor his candidacy among another wing of the party.

Then there was Governor Wallace. The firebrand populist, after his 1968 presidential bid as the nominee of the American Party and his subsequent political rebirth in Alabama’s 1970 gubernatorial election, was one of the leading contenders for the nomination. His appeal to white, blue collar voters was strong, while his law and order platform seemed to be picking up steam across the country in the aftermath of the Fort Dix bombings, which at the dawn of 1971 positioned the Governor to be not only one of Muskie’s bigger fears, but President Nixon’s as well.

The New Dealers of course would be another concern. Though Muskie was popular among the party’s New Dealer base and most working-class moderates for his strong defense of and desired expansion of LBJ’s “Great Society,” he faced competition from a plethora of rivals including Senators Birch Bayh, Fred Harris, Vance Hartke, Harold Hughes, Hubert Humphrey, Henry Jackson, and Eugene McCarthy along with Congressman Wilbur Mills, Mayors John Lindsay and Sam Yorty. All of whom represented the mainstream base of the Democratic Party, the pragmatic progressive tradition of Kennedy and Johnson, the old school New Dealer-ism that united minorities in the cities, blue collar union workers, leftist students, and the more moderate elements of the receding Democratic heartland in the south, and all of whom were simply in one way or another unsuited to challenge one of the nation’s most controversial and polarizing Presidents in nearly three hundred years of American history.

Sorting the knowns and unknowns was the biggest preoccupation of the Muskie campaign’s early efforts; Muskie was certainly running. It had not been a question; the hot-tempered Senator, like so many of his contemporaries, was an ambitious man who had kept his eyes trained on the prize. As Kennedy and his top aides cavorted in Palm Beach to ponder the question as to whether a campaign was still salvageable, Muskie was hard at work in Washington attempting to sow confusion among the ranks of the Democratic Senate caucus to undermine his potential rivals. As Senator McGovern led the charge to reform the delegate selection process of the Democratic Party, Senator Muskie was working with the likes of Mayor Daley and other party bosses to maintain the establishment’s grip on the party. His staff had worked to pull together a respectable fundraising base and had repeatedly put Muskie into the center of many of the prominent policy debates, his top aides speaking liberally to the press with the latest scoop from the all but announced operation. However, his campaign’s early opposition research and polling efforts on the other hand went unnoticed, and Muskie’s many friends in Washington were eager to present the “provisional frontrunner” with the latest bits of gossip in order to enter into the next nominee’s good graces.

Those working on the behalf of the President could certainly relate.

[Lord Byron]

Good updates; BTW, its the 1970 House and Gubernatorial elections, not 1974...

Waiting for more, of course...

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

I’ll have something up today or tomorrow. I have this written through the 1977 off year elections and I want the output to equal the input so I can get a head start on part II, which will cover 1981-2001. Part III will be 2000-2020.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Wednesday, December 2nd, 1970: President Nixon signs legislation establishing the Environmental Protection Agency, and names Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus as its first director.
Thursday, December 3rd, 1970: Under pressure from Canadian law enforcement hot on their tail, the FLQ releases James Cross from captivity and announces in a communique that they’d suspend their “armed struggle.”
Monday, December 7th, 1970: The UN General Assembly adopts a watered-down anti-apartheid resolution that encourages member nations to implement a weapons embargo on South Africa. UN Ambassador Charles Yost threatened to veto any resolution that included a mandatory arms ban.
Sunday, December 13th, 1970: Massive protests break out in Poland after the communist regime announces a sudden increase in food prices. Within days, their ranks swell by the thousands as the regime of Wladysaw Gomulka attempts to suppress dissent.
Thursday, December 17th, 1970: Polish soldiers open fire on protesters in the coastal city of Gdynia, killing 50 and injuring hundreds more.
Friday, December 18th, 1970: In a private conversation, Soviet leader Leonid Breznhev warns Gomulka that the Soviet Union will implement the “Breznhev doctrine” should events in bordering Poland spiral out of control. Word spreads among the elites of the ruling United Polish Worker’s Party, and the knives soon come out.
Sunday, December 20th, 1970: In a palace coup, Gomulka is “retired” as General Secretary of the United Polish Worker’s Party and replaced by the slightly reform minded Edward Gierek, who announces a rollback of the price increases announced only a week before.
Tuesday, December 22nd, 1970: The regime of Muammar Qaddaffi seizes all western assets in Libya, sparking international outrage. Qadaffi encourages other regimes in the region to seize western assets in order to “redress the western cancer” that according to him are “eating away at the spirit of the unliberated African and Arab peoples of the world.”
Tuesday, December 29th, 1970: President Nixon signed the Occupational Safety and Health Act into law at a Rose Garden ceremony.

Saturday, January 2nd, 1971: McKeithen first to enter ’72 race.

   

Governor McKeithen chats with an associate before the announcement.

NEW ORLEANS, LA: Governor John Julius McKeithen of Louisiana, a southern Democrat with a moderate track record on race relations and a folksy, populist appeal, has announced his candidacy for President at a rally in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Governor was joined onstage before a large crowd of supporters in New Orlean’s iconic Jackson Square by Senators Allen Ellender and Russell Long, as well as members of Louisiana’s delegation to Congress and his family, friends, and other assorted political allies. McKeithen has raised eyebrows with his frequent visits to New Hampshire after several months of planning and fundraising.

McKeithen has brought longtime advisor and former Louisiana State Senator Billy Boles on board as his campaign manager, while Bert Lance, who currently serves as Georgia’s State Highway Administrator, will take over as finance director on the recommendation of Governor Carter, who has endorsed McKeithen.
“Friends, here in Louisiana, this administration has been on the forefront of what many have deemed “the New South.” We are pioneering a new future right here in Louisiana, where we have undertaken the first steps to overcome a century of mistrust and mistreatment of our fellow citizens. We now have replaced the politics of the machines with the politics of consensus, throwing out the good old boys network that governed from the steamboat gambling parlors and giving power back to the people who matter-the working, decent people of this state. We have brought unprecedented modernization to this great state, from new libraries and schools in Jefferson Parish to the soon to be completed Superdome in New Orleans. We have done this together here in the Bayou State, yet there is still more to be done.

President Nixon promised peace with honor, but all he has to show for it is the coffins of the young men killed in this aimless war. President Nixon promised to restore law and order at home, though riots still plague our cities and radicals still threaten our domestic tranquility. In the Middle East, the Arab nations have turned on one another, while beyond that Iron Curtain, communist regimes are suppressing the cries for freedom uttered by people who yearn not only for their basic human dignity but affordable and readily available food and other basic commodities. Richard Nixon’s legacy of failure disqualifies him from a second term in the White House, and the time has come for new leadership with a new vision for a new America.

Which leads me to why I stand here today; I’m the product of Columbia, Louisiana. I’m a veteran and I’m a father and ‘ah husband. I’ve lived an amazing life, and have been blessed to have been given so many great opportunities in this state. I’ve lived the American dream and now I’m fighting to keep it so you can live it ‘too. And that fight goes straight to the top. Which is why today I am announcing my candidacy for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Won’t ‘cha help me?

Monday, January 3rd, 1971: The 92nd United States Congress convenes, comprising of Democratic majorities of 255 in the House and 53 in the Senate.

Sitting US Senators, as of Spring, 1971.
Alabama: John Sparkman (D), James Allen (D)
Alaska: Ted Stevens (R),Mike Gravel (D)
Arizona: Paul Fannin (R), Barry Goldwater (R)
Arkansas: John McClellan (D), J. William Fulbright (D)
California: Alan Cranston (D), Max Rafferty (R)
Colorado: Gordon Allott (R), Peter Dominick (R)
Connecticut: Abraham Ribicoff (D), Ralph Nader (D)
Delaware: Caleb Boggs (R), William Roth (R)
Florida: Lawton Chiles (D), Edward Gurney (R)
Georgia: Richard Russell (D), Herman Talmadge (D)
Hawaii: Daniel Inouye (D), Cecil Heftel (D)
Idaho: Frank Church (D), Leonard Jordan (R)
Illinois: Charles Percy (R), Adlai Stevenson III (D)
Indiana: Birch Bayh (D), Dick Roudebush (R)
Iowa: Jack Miller (R), Harold Hughes(D)
Kansas: James Pearson (R), Bob Dole (R)
Kentucky: John Sherman Cooper (R), Marlow Cook (R)
Louisiana: Allen Ellender (D), Russell Long (D)
Maine: Margaret Chase Smith (R), Ed Muskie (D)
Maryland: Charles Mathias (R), John Glenn Beall (R)
Massachusetts: Ted Kennedy (D), Ed Brooke (R)
Michigan: Philip Hart (D), Robert Griffin (R)
Minnesota: Walter Mondale (D), Hubert Humphrey (D)
Mississippi: James Eastland (D), John Stennis (D)
Missouri: Thomas Eagleton (D), John Danforth (R)
Montana: Mike Mansfield (D), Lee Metcalf (D)
Nebraska: Roman Hruska (R), Carl Curtis (R)
Nevada: Alan Bible (D), Howard Cannon (D)
New Hampshire: Norris Cotton (R), Thomas McIntyre (D)
New Jersey: Clifford Case (R), Harrison Williams (D)
New Mexico: Clinton Anderson (D), Joseph Montoya (D)
New York: Jacob Javits (R), James Buckley (C)
North Carolina: Sam Ervin (D), Everett Jordan (D)
North Dakota: Milton Young (R), Quentin Burdick (D)
Ohio: William Saxbe (R), Robert Taft Jr. (R)
Oklahoma: Fred Harris (D), Henry Bellmon (R)
Oregon: Mark Hatfield (R), Bob Packwood (R)
Pennsylvania: Hugh Scott (R), Richard Schweiker (R)
Rhode Island: John Pastore (D), Claiborne Pell (D)
South Carolina: Strom Thurmond (R), Ernest Hollings (D)
South Dakota: Karl Mundt (R), George McGovern (D)
Tennessee: Howard Baker (R), Bill Brock (R)
Texas: John Tower (R), Lloyd Bentsen (D)
Utah: Wallace Bennett (R), Frank Moss (D)
Vermont: George Aiken (R), Winston Prouty (R)
Virginia: Harry Byrd Jr. (I), William Spong (R)
Washington: Warren Magnuson (D), Henry Jackson (D)
West Virginia: Jennings Randolph (D), Robert Byrd (D)
Wisconsin: William Proxmire (D), Gaylord Nelson (D)
Wyoming: Gale McGee (D), Clifford Hansen (R)

Monday, January 4th, 1971: Gallup releases first 1972 polling.

   

Gallup: 1,000 Registered Voters (Nationwide).
(R) Richard Nixon: 40%
(D) Generic Democrat: 34%
Independent/Other: 4%
Undecided: 22%

Gallup: 1,000 Democratic Voters (Nationwide).
Edward Kennedy: 41%
Edmund Muskie: 15%
George McGovern: 12%
George Wallace: 11%
Hubert Humphrey: 10%
Henry Jackson: 5%
John McKeithen: 3%*
Eugene McCarthy: 2%
Birch Bayh: 2%
Harold Hughes: 1%
Vance Hartke: 1%
*Declared candidate.
Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) is the clear and prohibitive frontrunner for the Democratic Party nomination should he choose to run according to the first nationwide polling of Democrats across the nation. The poll, which also paired Nixon and a “generic Democrat,” showed the President maintaining a relatively solid lead over any opponent, with nearly a quarter of voters being undecided at the current moment. The only presently declared candidate for President, Governor John McKeithen of Louisiana, polled low in the Democratic pack dominated by widely known political figures such as Kennedy and Wallace. Support for a third party was significantly down with many Wallace voters who prefer he run again as a Democratic candidate instead of seeking the American Independent Party nomination in ‘72.
Wednesday, January 5th, 1971: The Khmer Rouge goes on the offensive in Cambodia, seizing control of large swathes of the northwestern corner of the country. In response, the Lon Nol regime begins persecuting ethnic Vietnamese, claiming that North Vietnam is aiding the rebellion.
Sunday, January 17th, 1971: The Baltimore Colts win Super Bowl V 16-13 over the Dallas Cowboys.

Monday, January 18th, 1971: McGovern enters race.

   

Today I announce my candidacy for the presidency of the United States.  My wife, Eleanor and I have come home to South Dakota to make this announcement because here we shaped our basic political faith; here we were given the opportunity of public service.  We are grateful to you for that opportunity and for your faith.  We shall conduct this new effort to the honor of South Dakota, the nation, and ourselves.
 
You, my fellow South Dakotans, have not always agreed with my position on public issues.  That was especially true in the early 1960’s when I stood almost alone in opposition to the sending of American troops to Southeast Asia.  Despite these differences, you have rewarded my willingness to state my convictions freely and honestly.  I anticipate the same fair hearing from citizens across the land.  Thoughtful Americans understand that the highest patriotism is not a blind acceptance of official policy, but a love of one’s country deep enough to call her to a higher standard.
 
I seek the presidency because I believe deeply in the American promise and can no longer accept the diminishing of that promise.  Our country began with a declaration of man’s rights to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.“ These liberating ideals gave such meaning and purpose to the new American nation that our forebears proclaimed, “We mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.“

There is no higher standard to which our nation can repair then to the ideals of our founding documents.  So as a candidate for the presidency, I shall see to call America home to these principles that gave us birth.  I have found no better blueprint for healing our troubled land than is contained in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  But I find a nation drifting so far from those ideals as to almost lose its way.

I believe the people of this country are tired of the old rhetoric, the unmet promise, the image makers, and the practitioners of the expedient. The people are not centrist or liberal or conservative. Rather, they see a way out of the wilderness. But if we who seek their trust, trust them; if we try to invoke the “better angels of our nature,” the people will find their own way. We are the children of those who built a great and free nation. And we are no less than that. We must now decide whether our courage and imagination are equal to our talents. If they are, as I believe, then future generations will continue to love America, not simply because it is theirs, but for what it has become-for what, indeed, we at this moment have made it to be.

SIOUX FALLS, SD: Senator George McGovern (D-SD), a reliably liberal voice in the Democratic Party and one of the leading figures in the movement to reform the process to select party’s presidential nominee, today announced his candidacy for President at a rally in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. This makes McGovern the second candidate to announce his candidacy for 1972, following Louisiana’s Governor John McKeithen. McGovern is hoping to monopolize the youth vote in order to propel him to the nomination according to campaign manager Gary Hart, a Colorado lawyer and activist. 

McGovern, who served in the House of Representatives from 1956 until he gave up his seat in 1960 to pursue a longshot Senate bid, and who has served in the Senate since his second successful 1962 Senate race, has a deep bank of legislative experience to draw from. The Senator also has executive experience from his time as Director of the Food for Peace program under President Kennedy. Since his election to the Senate, McGovern has been one of the most notably progressive voices in Washington. He declined an opportunity to run for President in 1968, only to later enter the fray at the chaotic Democratic National Convention as a last minute alternate to Hubert Humphrey in the wake of Robert Kennedy’s assassination. McGovern came in a distant third place during the balloting, and soon afterwards spearheaded the effort to reform the nomination process of the party, resulting in the adoption of the proposals offered by what the press has deemed the “McGovern-Fraser Committee.”

The role Senator McGovern played in reforming the nomination process gives the Senator a unique advantage of his other potential Democratic challengers, whom will be entering uncharted waters in 1972. By taking the nomination process out of the hands of the party bosses and handing it to the party grassroots, McGovern’s coalition may turn out to be a vital force in the party’s primaries. These unique factors give Senator McGovern, a man deemed “to decent to be President” by Walter Lippmann, the status of a frontrunner despite his many radical or controversial positions.
Thursday, January 21st, 1971: Senator Richard Russell (D-GA) dies at the age of 73, forcing fellow Democrat Jimmy Carter, Governor of Georgia, to appoint a replacement. Leading the pack of potential replacements is former Governor Ernest Vandiver, who is the husband of Russell’s niece.
Monday, January 25th, 1971: Charles Manson and three female followers (Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, and Patricia Krenwinkel) are convicted for their roles in the Tate-LaBianca murders in a Los Angeles Court.

Tuesday, January 26th, 1971: President Nixon nominates former Congressman George HW. Bush to serve as the next American Ambassador to the United Nations after Charles Yost resigns to take up an academic position at Columbia University.

Governor Jimmy Carter appoints State Senator Sam Nunn, aged 39, to Richard Russell’s vacant Senate seat.

The Senate confirms Rogers Morton as Interior Secretary by a vote of 98-1; the lone dissenter is Senator Frank Church (D-ID), an environmentalist and increasingly noticed figure in Washington.
Wednesday, January 27th, 1971: Idi Amin seizes power in Uganda in a military coup as President Milton Obote attends a Commonwealth of Nations conference in Singapore. The coup is welcomed in London and Washington, where Obote’s socialist leaning government was unpopular.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Wednesday, January 27th, 1971: Humphrey announces ’72 candidacy.

   

PHILADELPHIA, PA: Former Vice President Hubert Humphrey has announced that he will once again seek the Presidency, four years after his narrow defeat at the hands of President Nixon. Humphrey, who last year was returned to the Senate following the retirement of Eugene McCarthy, had served as Vice President under Lyndon Johnson following his long career in the Senate and Minnesota politics. If nominated, Humphrey would be the second Democratic presidential nominee to be successively nominated for the office in twenty years.

The expected announcement was made during a speech at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Humphrey, the standard bearer for the establishment liberals who casts off the radicalism of McGovern or McCarthy in favor of a more pragmatic approach. Humphrey’s biggest obstacle may indeed be the possible presence of Senator Ted Kennedy in the race, who polls indicate is the current frontrunner should he run in 1972. Still, Humphrey believes that his campaign will manage to successfully lock up a majority of the delegates before the convention, stressing that the Vice President has “learned from” the debacle of the 1968 convention.
Friday, February 5th, 1971: Apollo 14 successfully lands on the moon. Stepping onto the moon, Alan Sheppard declared “it’s been a long way, but we’re here” as the NASA control room erupted into spontaneous celebration. The astronauts plan to conduct a variety of scientific experiments during their short time on the lunar surface, before making their return to earth in the coming week.
Monday, February 8th, 1971: Congressman Wilbur Mills (D-AR) announces his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination in a statement released by his office.
Tuesday, February 9th, 1971: A 6.5 magnitude earthquake originating from the Sierra Madre Fault rocks California, killing 64 and rattling much of southern California. Governor Reagan declares a state of emergency in response to the quake.
Wednesday, February 10th, 1971: John Connally is sworn in as Secretary of the Treasury after being confirmed by a 51-44 vote in the Senate. Incumbent Treasury Secretary David Kennedy is in turn going to continue serving as Ambassador to NATO, where the previous Ambassador Robert Ellsworth is standing down to prepare for a possible return to Congress.

Friday, February 26th, 1971: Polls show shifting Democratic ground.

   
Gallup: 1,000 Registered Voters (Nationwide).
(R) Richard Nixon: 40%
(D) Generic Democrat: 36%
Independent/Other: 4%
Undecided: 20%

Gallup: 1,000 Democratic Voters (Nationwide).
Edward Kennedy: 31%
Hubert Humphrey: 14%*
George McGovern: 13%*
Edmund Muskie: 12%
George Wallace: 10%
Henry Jackson: 5%
Birch Bayh: 5%*
John McKeithen: 4%*
Eugene McCarthy: 3%
Harold Hughes: 2%
Wilbur Mills: 1%*
*Declared candidate.
The latest Gallup poll taken of Democratic voters shows that Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts is still the clear favorite for the nomination. However, his absolute silence on whether or not he will seek the Presidency and questions raised about his electoral viability following the murky circumstances of the 1969 Chappaquiddick incident have put a dent into his lead. Aside from Kennedy, the four top contenders are Senators Hubert Humphrey (D-MN), George McGovern (D-SD), and George Muskie (D-ME) and Governor George Wallace (D-AL). Humphrey, while popular among the party’s establishment and with solid liberal credentials, placed second in the poll and is particularly strong among voters in industrial states.

However, the younger generation of Democrats, decidedly liberal, favor Senator McGovern instead. McGovern may benefit tremendously if the Democratic Party adopts the reforms he supported which would implement a primary system. Humphrey’s former running mate, Senator Ed Muskie, hasn’t indicated whether or not he will enter the race though prominent Maine Democrats insist that Muskie won’t be influenced by Humphrey’s decision to run either way. Lastly, it is unknown if Alabama’s populist firebrand Governor will make another gander at the White House. Many observers predict that Wallace will seek the Democratic Party nomination, though the fact that the American Independence Party pushed back their own convention to after the Democratic Convention is a clear sign that Wallace is interested in seeking the presidency under any potential banner available to him.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Monday, March 1st, 1971: Capitol bombed by radicals.

   

WASHINGTON, DC: The Weather Underground, the shadowy clique of left wing radicals who carried out the devastating Fort Dix bombing last year, struck the heart of the American government in another dramatic act of terror. The Capitol Building suffered severe damage after a bomb hidden in a bathroom exploded, though the blast failed to injure or kill anyone in the vicinity, something that police are calling “a miracle.”

President Nixon was quick to arrive on the scene following the explosion, touring the damage and visiting with shaken congressional staffers, where he condemned the attacks as “an appalling act of cowardice.” The FBI has taken the lead in the investigation, though no suspect has yet to be named in the sudden attack. The Weather Underground claimed responsibility in an anonymous call to a Washington radio station, and a communique was published later in the evening in which the group defended the attack, which they claimed was committed in retaliation for America’s “aerial genocide in Indochina.”

FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover vowed to “get the bastards” at a press conference, while President Nixon met with top national security advisers after his visit to the capital to discuss the possibility of creating an anti-terrorism task force to tackle the growing problem of radical groups engaging in violent direct action. Senator Ralph Nader (D-CT), only weeks into his tenure, was the first Senator to speak about the blasts on the Senate floor only hours after the explosion. “Attempts to halt the people’s business will only result in the people’s wrath” Nader warned the radicals in the speech, before pivoting to express his concerns that the attack shouldn’t inspire greater surveillance of American citizens by the government.
Monday, March 1st, 1971: The McGovern-Frasier Committee releases its report on reforming the Democratic Party. Among the proposals adopted are the implementation of a primary system to give the grassroots greater say in the party’s nomination process, and quotas to ensure minorities and women are fairly represented at the Democratic convention..
Wednesday, March 3rd, 1971: Congressman Ken Helcher (D-WV) declares his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination. A progressive, pro-civil rights maverick within the Democratic caucus, most expect Helcher’s presidential campaign is merely a method to increase his profile.
Friday, March 5th, 1971: Pakistani President Yahya Khan declares martial law in East Pakistan, where large anti-government protests have broken out. Tensions have been escalating for over a year, starting when the East Pakistan based Awami League won a majority in the nation’s parliament but was refused the opportunity to form a government. The decision of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the leader of the Awami League, to call a general strike in East Pakistan sparked the larger popular protests.
Sunday, March 7th, 1971: Sheikh Mujibur Rahman called for East Pakistan to secede after years of political dominance by West Pakistan during a speech to tens of thousands of supporters at the Dhaka Race Track. Pakistani soldiers in the rebellious breakaway province within hours are facing hostile crowds of rioters in cities across the region.
Monday, March 8th, 1971: Former North Carolina Governor Terry Sanford announces in a letter to students at Duke University (of which he is President of) that he will not seek the Presidency in 1972.

Monday, March 8th, 1971: “Fight of the Century” takes place.

   

NEW YORK, NY: For the first time, two undefeated boxers have taken each other on in the ring. Joe Frazier managed to defeat Muhammed Ali after fifteen rounds in one of the most watched events in boxing’s history. Ali was bitter in defeat, claiming that the result was “a white man’s decision” that had more to do with his controversial political opinions then it had to do with the actual fight itself. Frazier disagreed, joking “maybe he just ain’t that good” when pressed by reporters after the fight.

The fight, which took place at New York’s Madison Square Garden, was preceded by a circus life atmosphere in which tickets were highly priced and celebrities ranging from Woody Allen to Frank Sinatra were in the audience. “The fight was tremendous” said Donald Trump, a 25 year old real estate developer who dabbles in Broadway promotion, “it was a yuge affair, you should’ve seen it in person.” The dramatic nature of the fight, which concluded with Ali still standing despite a swollen jaw and a number of sustained hits from Frasier, further perpetrated the reputation of the event, which lived up to the expectations to be, thus far, “the fight of the century.”
Tuesday, March 9th, 1971: An organization known as “the Citizen’s Committee to investigate the FBI” stages a successful break-in at an FBI office in Reading, Pennsylvania, in which several documents were taken. The militant burglars successfully timed the break-in with the Frazier-Ali fight, successfully deducing the night watch would be distracted.
Wednesday, March 10th, 1971: The Senate votes 94-1 to ratify the 26th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which would lower the voting age to 18. The amendment is sent to the states for ratification.

Nixon.

Thursday, March 11th, 1971:

The White House, Washington, DC.

JOHN EHRLICHMAN: Mr. President, Mr. Hunt and Officer Ulasewicz are here.

RICHARD NIXON: Ah good, (inaudible grumbling), so what uh, what do we have on the agenda today?

HOWARD HUNT: Mr. President, we have some good news to bring you-

RICHARD NIXON: Is that so?

ANTHONY ULASEWICZ: It is so, Mr. President. Your Kennedy problem has gone away?

RICHARD NIXON: Somebody whacked Ted?

(laughter)

HOWARD HUNT: He won’t be a candidate sir.

RICHARD NIXON: Ted is staying out, huh? The son of a bitch isn’t stupid. Hell, I’d be afraid to face him more but then again I’m not running in ’76. So he’s out?

HOWARD HUNT: He’s going to announce it any day now. Absolutely no way, no how. His people aren’t doing anything conducive towards a U-turn either. He’s not running for President in 1972.

RICHARD NIXON: What about Mankiewicz?

JOHN EHRLICHMAN: Actually I’ve heard McGovern’s snatched him up?

RICHARD NIXON: McGovern?! These guys think their sh[inks] doesn’t stink. They think everyone else either thinks like them or doesn’t think at all. Well, trust me, stupid people vote. And they’ll vote for McGovern, not me.

Sunday, August 23rd, 2009:

   

BRIAN LAMB: When did you join the McGovern campaign?

FRANK MANKIEWICZ: After Kennedy decided not to make a go at it.

BRIAN LAMB: What kept him out of the race that year?

FRANK MANKIEWICZ: He had to face the Chappaquiddick obstacle. It was easier to skip that one out, and the party needed a reliable opponent of the war in order to win. Only McGovern was reliable.

BRIAN LAMB: Did you know you were being tailed by Nixon men?

FRANK MANKIEWICZ: No idea. None of us knew for sure, but some suspected. I didn’t think I was important enough, but then again maybe I gave Richard Nixon too much credit.

BRIAN LAMB: Hunter Thompson said, I quote, “the very thought of Kennedy made Nixon’s skin crawl.” What about Kennedy was Nixon afraid of?

FRANK MANKIEWICZ: Aside from the fact that Senator Kennedy was, uh, extremely…extremely agile as a Senator and well versed in policy, and aside from the fact that he was probably the most principled man in the Senate along with Senator McGovern, I think it was the name. The name alone. Nixon hated the Kennedy family after all-

BRIAN LAMB: Loathed them.

FRANK MANKIEWICZ: Loathed them passionately. He was terrified of them too. In 1971, he had nothing to show the people. There was no peace in Vietnam. There was terrorism at home and abroad, at Fort Dix, in Northern Ireland, in Canada, in Jordan, in the skies. The economy was stalling, there were the wage and price controls that had to be implemented, the Nixon shock, there was…there was a lot going on that year. And none of it good.
Monday, April 5th, 1971: Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) announces he will not seek the Presidency “under any circumstance,” removing the presumed frontrunner permanently from the contest.

Wednesday, April 7th, 1971: Kennedy decision shifts polling.

   
Gallup: 1,000 Registered Voters (Nationwide).
(R) Richard Nixon: 39%
(D) Generic Democrat: 35%
Independent/Other: 5%
Undecided: 21%

Gallup: 1,000 Democratic Voters (Nationwide).
Hubert Humphrey: 25%
George McGovern: 17%
Edmund Muskie: 16%*
George Wallace: 12%*
John McKeithen: 7%
Henry Jackson: 6%*
Shirley Chisholm: 5%*
Birch Bayh: 4%
Eugene McCarthy: 4%
Harold Hughes: 3%*
Wilbur Mills: 1%
Ken Helcher: 1%
*Not a declared candidate.
Sunday, April 11th, 1971: East Pakistan’s rebel insurgents declare the independence of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman being installed as interim President. Pakistan does not recognize the declaration, and refuses to release Rahman, imprisoned since the Dhaka Race Track speech, from detention.
Tuesday, April 13th, 1971: Fox McKeithen, the 29 year old son of John McKeithen, is arrested in Sioux City, Iowa for drunk and disorderly conduct after he and a Muskie campaign staffer confronted each other in a bar.

Monday, April 17th, 1971: Proxmire says “maybe” to ‘72.

   

MADISON, WI: Senator William Proxmire told a reporter from The Capital Times that he is considering forming an exploratory committee to weigh the feasibility of a presidential campaign. The Senator, who has developed a reputation as being somewhat of a budget hawk, also expressed concerns that the Democratic Party was ignoring the issue of federal spending and contributing to “a moral crisis in the Congress.”

“We’re making a big mistake” Proxmire warned fellow Democrats, adding “this is an issue that Nixon can’t weasel his way out of.” The Senator from Wisconsin, who has largely been supportive of the Great Society and a consistent opponent of the war in Vietnam, would have the credentials to run a serious campaign though his national name recognition would likely be the biggest hurdle. Conceding this, Proxmire is still hopeful that his mere expression of interest might change the debate. “I’d really rather not do this” admitted the Senator, “though I’m willing to do what’s necessary for this country’s future.”
Wednesday, April 21st, 1971: Jean-Claude Duvalier, the Haitian dictator better known as “Papa Doc,” dies at 64. He is succeeded as President by his 19 year old son Jean-Claude Duvalier, who relies on the greatly feared “Tonton Macote” to maintain his rule.
Monday, May 3rd, 1971: Walter Ulbricht is “retired” from office in East Germany, being stripped of his position of General Secretary of the ruling Socialist Unity Party. Though he remains the county’s ceremonial head of state, real power lies in the hands of his successor Erich Honecker.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Saturday, May 15th, 1971: New polls show Muskie, McGovern in lead.

   

Gallup: 1,000 Registered Voters (Nationwide).
(R) Richard Nixon: 38%
(D) Generic Democrat: 37%
Independent/Other: 3%
Undecided: 22%

Gallup: 1,000 Democratic Voters (Nationwide).
Edmund Muskie: 22%
George McGovern:  20%
George Wallace: 18%
Hubert Humphrey: 15%
John McKeithen: 9%
Birch Bayh: 6%
Henry Jackson: 3%
William Proxmire: 2%
Shirley Chisholm: 1%
Wilbur Mills: 1%
Eugene McCarthy: 1%
Harold Hughes: 1%
Ken Helcher: 1%

Gallup: Richard Nixon vs. Edmund Muskie
(D) Edmund Muskie: 49%
(R) Richard Nixon: 46%
Undecided/Other: 5%

Gallup: Richard Nixon vs. George McGovern vs. Wallace
(R) Richard Nixon: 41%
(AIP) George Wallace: 28%
(D) George McGovern: 23%
Undecided/Other: 8%

Gallup: Richard Nixon vs. George McGovern (one on one)
(R) Richard Nixon: 55%
(D) George McGovern: 39%
Undecided/Other: 6%

Gallup: Richard Nixon vs. George Wallace
(R) Richard Nixon: 42%
(D) George Wallace: 40%
Undecided/Other: 18%

Gallup: Richard Nixon vs. Hubert Humphrey
(R) Richard Nixon: 46%
(D) Hubert Humphrey: 43%
Undecided/Other: 11%

Gallup: Richard Nixon vs. John McKeithen
(R) Richard Nixon: 41%
Undecided/Other: 30%
(D) John McKeithen: 29%
Tuesday, June 1st, 1971: “Vietnam Veterans for a Just Peace” lead anti-war demonstrations in Washington DC, where the list of headlining speakers includes Senators Birch Bayh (D-IN) and George McGovern (D-SD), Congressmen Ron Dellums (D-CA), Robert Drinan (D-MA), Pete McCloskey (R-CA), actress Jane Fonda and activist John Kerry. The event, which does not draw the larger crowds of past demonstrators, still manages to shut down large portions of downtown Washington
Sunday, June 13th, 1971: As President Nixon celebrates the wedding of his daughter Tricia to lawyer Edward Cox, the New York Times publishes the “Pentagon Papers,” a classified history of American involvement in Vietnam. The leak greatly rattles the administration. Seeking an injunction to prevent the full publication, the case quickly gets tangled in the court system.
Monday, June 14th, 1971: Senator Mike Gravel (D-AK) enters portions of the “Pentagon Papers” into the Congressional Record, drawing the ire of his pro-war colleagues in the Senate.
Wednesday, June 30th, 1971: The Supreme Court rules in favor of the New York Times, allowing for the publication of the “Pentagon Papers” to go forward. With Justices Black, Brennan, Douglas, Marshall, Stewart, and White constituting the majority opinion, the Court ruled that the government failed to present a credible argument validating their concerns about national security.
Monday, July 5th, 1971: After North Carolina becomes the 38th state to ratify the 26th Amendment, the President formally completes the ratification process at a ceremony at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. President Nixon’s final certification confirms the ratification, extending voting rights to 18 year olds.
Tuesday, July 6th, 1971: Louis Armstrong dies at the age of 69 in New York, hours after completing a concert at the Waldorf-Astoria.
Thursday, July 15th, 1971: Senator Harold Hughes (D-IA) declines to enter the 1972 presidential race, despite a strong draft effort in his home state of Iowa.
Friday, July 16th, 1971: President Nixon announces in a televised speech from the Oval Office that he has accepted an invitation from the government of the People’s Republic of China to tour the secretive communist nation.
Wednesday, August 4th, 1971: The House and Senate pass a joint resolution calling on President Nixon to devalue the dollar. The Congressional resolution cites a report which contends a devaluation would prevent a recession as America’s gold reserves dwindle.
Monday, August 9th, 1971: John McKeithen resigns early as Governor of Louisiana in order to focus on his presidential bid. With his term set to expire, Lt. Governor Clarence “Taddy” Aycock assumes the office as Governor of Louisiana.
Wednesday, August 11th, 1971: New York’s Mayor John Lindsey leaves the Republican Party and registers as a Democrat, sparking rumors that he’ll announce a presidential campaign.

Friday, August 13th, 1971: Nixon shock.

   

WASHINGTON, DC: President Nixon announced plans for the American withdrawal from the Bretton-Woods System and for the implantation of wage and price controls in a primetime address from the Oval Office on Sunday night. On President Nixon’s order, Treasury Secretary Connally closed the so called “gold window” which allows foreign governments to convert US dollars for gold, and ordered the implementation of a number of other wage and price controls.

The latter’s aim is to reduce inflation and keep prices in check. The wage and price freezes implemented will remain in effect for only ninety days, and the news is expected to send stocks soaring on Monday when the market reopens forty-eight hours after Nixon’s announcement. President Nixon insisted that the American dollar remained strong, noting only that the effects would be felt “if you buy a foreign card or take a trip abroad.” Nixon implored citizens to “buy Americans and hire Americans” in his speech, which unlike most of his addresses on economic issues, was delivered in primetime on national television.
Saturday, August 21st, 1971: George Jackson, a Black Panther and inmate who had been imprisoned at Soledad Prison in California since 1961 for armed robbery successfully escapes after using a gun smuggled in by his lawyer Stephen Bingham to take a guard hostage and free several inmates. Capitalizing on the small riot caused by his actions, Jackson finds a blind spot on the fence-line and jumps over it unnoticed. When guards retake the cell block, they discover Jackson’s absence and a statewide manhunt begins. Jackson’s notoriety as both a writer and leader of the Black Guerrilla Family.
Thursday, September 9th, 1971: Rioting in New York’s infamous Attica prison breaks out, with the prisoners quickly seizing control of a cellblock and taking 42 civilian and prison employees hostage. Led by 21 year old “LD Barkley,” the riot quickly forces New York’s Governor Nelson Rockefeller to deploy the National Guard.
Friday, September 10th, 1971: Senator Winston Prouty (R-VT) loses his battle with cancer, forcing Governor Deane Davis to name Congressman Robert Stafford to the seat. Congressman Stafford is among the most outspoken liberal Republicans.
Saturday, September 11th, 1971: Former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev dies at a Moscow hospital at the age of 73. News of his death is largely buried, with only a small blurb in Pravda appearing in the obituary section.
Monday, September 13th, 1971: The National Guard storm Attica, where the prisoners resist violently. 11 hostages and 33 inmates are killed in the ensuing crossfire, which was clouded in tear gas released during the storming of the prison.

Sunday, September 12th, 1971: Strange events in Red China.

   

PEKING, PRC: An apparent attempted coup aimed at the overthrow of Mao Zedong occurred on the afternoon of September 12th, though Chinese media have remained mum on the mysterious events that transpired across China. In the early afternoon, Chinese troops shut down all roads leading into Hong Kong, while in the capital of Peking, western embassies also reported the presence of soldiers. A brief announcement on state radio confirmed that Mao’s right hand man, Lin Biao, apparently died in a plane crash near the Mongolian border, though further details are sparse.

According to the consensus among most China-watchers and the sparse tidbits of unconfirmed information reaching western embassies, the main rumor spreading through Peking involves Biao, reportedly dissatisfied with Mao’s leadership and the course of the so-called “Cultural Revolution,” attempted to assassinate Mao by bombing a bridge as his private train crossed. Mao, however, changed routes at the last minute and the plot was exposed. Biao and his family (aside from his daughter, who allegedly told Mao of the plot at the last minute) were killed as they attempted to flee to the Soviet Union. The People’s Republic of China has not issued an official statement on the events that took place.
Friday, September 17th, 1971: Justice Hugo Black dies at the age of 87 at Walter Reed Hospital in DC, where he was recovering from a stroke. The Justice, who had served on the Supreme Court from 1937, gives President Nixon another opportunity to shape the court.

Friday, September 24th, 1971: Harris enters race.

   

Senator Fred Harris (D-OK) speaks with the press after announcing his candidacy for President.

“My father is a small farmer in southwest Oklahoma. My wife, LaDonna, is a militant woman and an activist member of the Comanche Indian Tribe. Our daughter, Kathryn, is a college senior.
 
My father has less than a high school education. He works twice as hard as most Americans. He knows he pays more than his fair share of taxes, while a lot of rich people do not. He is a proud man. He has always been able to take care of his own, through hard work. Now, as is true of most small farmers and working men and women, he is worse off economically than he has been since the Depression. Everything he buys costs more, but his own real income is less.
 
My mother suffered a stroke three years ago and has been in a coma since then. My father cannot pay my mother's medical bills. And he's hurt and angry about that. He knows it doesn’t have to be that way.
 
My wife grew up in a home where Comanche was the first language. She resents the fact that maximum security prisons are mostly peopled by blacks, chicanos, American Indians, Puerto Ricans and poor people. She never believed that George Jackson was shot in the top of the head from a guard tower. Something told her that the Attica hostages didn't die at the hands of the prisoners. She was right.
 
My daughter wonders why a government that can trace Angela Davis to a motel room can’t stop the heroin traffic. She says aloud what a lot of older people haven’t yet put into words: human values are the most important, and America needs something to believe in.
 
I have listened to black people in San Francisco, old people in Miami, students in Des Moines, small farmers in Oklahoma, working men and women in Akron, activist women in New York and Vietnam veterans in Albuquerque.
 
Two strong impressions emerge: A considerable amount of people can't believe America has ever been to the moon. That's because they doubt the credibility of government. And because it seems so illogical to them that our nation could spend so much money on space when so many of our people here on earth can't buy medical care. Most people don’t believe that it makes much difference what politician is elected. They don't really believe things are going to change.
 
1972 is a crucial year. America won’t be the same in 1976. I intend to try to turn this country around before it's too late. I have called this press conference for that reason, today. I am a candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States.
 
People have a right to believe that if they get interested in a presidential campaign things will change. I believe that a President can call this country back to the greatness that is in us. I mean to try.
 
I mean to give people a voice through the campaign itself. I intend to hold hearings on the problems of the elderly. I mean to visit the hospital wards with Vietnam veterans. I mean to go into the prisons and to walk the streets where working men and women live. A campaign itself can give power to the powerless. I mean to do that.
 
We can have a better distribution of income. We can have a better distribution of power. We can have a return to idealism in foreign policy. Now is the time, and I’m happy to speak up and speak out. Any questions?”
Saturday, September 25th, 1971: Justice John Marshall Harlan II announces his decision to retire from the Supreme Court, giving President Nixon yet another opportunity to shape the Federal Bench. The President tasks his White House Counsel John Dean with selecting a suitable replacement.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Nixon.

Sunday, September 26th, 1971:

The White House, Washington, DC.

RICHARD NIXON: What about Howard Baker?

JOHN MITCHELL: I’ll add him to the list.

RICHARD NIXON: Definitely want to consider him. He’s a smart man, and he’s going to be friendly to us.

JOHN MITCHELL: Well, I talked to Jaworski-

RICHARD NIXON: Jaworski?

JOHN MITCHELL: Of the American Bar Association.

RICHARD NIXON: Right, right. What did he have to say?

JOHN MITCHELL: Well, he really wants us to nominate Lewis Powell.

RICHARD NIXON: That’s ludicrous. The mans 65 years old, that’s too old. I mean, not to me, but to the rest of them.

[Both men laugh]

RICHARD NIXON: Haldeman’s laughing in the background here.

JOHN MITCHELL: What about a woman?

RICHARD NIXON: I’d really like to appoint Mildred Lillie if we’re going to appoint a woman. Pat really wants me to appoint a woman. But I don’t think Jaworski is going to approve.

JOHN MITCHELL: He doesn’t. I already brought her name up.

RICHARD NIXON: Why?

JOHN MITCHELL: He says she is unqualified.

RICHARD NIXON: Well, he supported us in 1968. I don’t want to alienate him. But I really, really think we should go with Lillie.

JOHN MITCHELL: Are you still interested in Cornelia Kennedy?

RICHARD NIXON: I like her, I like her a lot. But I just appointed her last year. I think if Lillie is not qualified, Kennedy isn’t going to be either, you know?

JOHN MITCHELL: But it’s a bold pick.

RICHARD NIXON: It’s a rushed pick. Bold is going with Lillie. To hell with Jaworski! Unqualified my ass, they just don’t want me making history!

Wednesday, September 29th, 1971: Polls show tightening Democratic race.

   

Gallup: 1,000 Registered Voters (Nationwide).
(R) Richard Nixon: 37%
(D) Generic Democrat: 35%
Undecided: 24%
Independent/Other: 4%

Gallup: 1,000 Democratic Voters (Nationwide).
Edmund Muskie: 18%
George McGovern: 16%
George Wallace: 15%
Hubert Humphrey: 14%
John McKeithen: 12%
Birch Bayh: 10%
John Lindsay: 7%
Henry Jackson: 2%
Wilbur Mills: 1%
William Proxmire: 1%
Eugene McCarthy: 1%
Fred Harris: 1%
Ken Hechler: 1%
*Italics indicate undeclared candidate.
Saturday, October 9th, 1971: Operation “Commando Hunt IV” is successfully executed in Indochina, where the South Vietnamese military destroys over 15,000 enemy vehicles and achieves the destruction of over a thousand tons of Viet Cong supplies and munitions. The mission still falls well short of his goal of clearing out the Ho Chi Minh trail.
Tuesday, October 12th, 1971: Senator Birch Bayh (D-IN) withdrawals from the presidential contest following the diagnosis of his wife Marvella with cancer.
Wednesday, October 13th, 1971: President Nixon nominates Professor Alexander Bickel and California Judge Mildred Lillie to the two vacant seats on the Supreme Court. The American Bar Association immediately comes out against both nominees.
Monday, October 25th, 1971: The People’s Republic of China replaces the Republic of China (Taiwan) as the representative of mainland China in the United Nations. The passage of Resolution 2758 is strongly condemned by UN Ambassador George Bush.
Tuesday, October 26th, 1971: Former Senator Eugene McCarthy (D-MN) announces his presidential candidacy in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Thursday, October 28th, 1971: Senator Edmund Muskie (D-ME) introduces the Clean Water Act to the Senate; the bill would create a variety of new ecological protections and environmental regulations that greatly empower the Environmental Protection Agency.
Friday, October 29th, 1971: Duane Allman is severely injured in a motorcycle accident, forcing the Allman Brothers to take a year off touring as a result.
Tuesday, November 2nd, 1971: Gubernatorial elections in Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi are conducted.

1971 Kentucky Gubernatorial Election
(D) Wendell Ford: 51.35%
(R) Thomas Emberton: 42.66%
(I) Happy Chandler: 5.50%
(A) William Smith: 0.49%

1971 Louisiana Gubernatorial Election
(D) Edwin Edwards: 57.83%
(R) David Treen: 42.17%

1971 Mississippi Gubernatorial Election
(D) Charles Sullivan: 75.22%
(I) Charles Evers: 24.78%
Saturday, November 6th, 1971: Senator William Proxmire (D-WI) confirms he won’t be a candidate for President in 1972 despite expressing an interest in mounting a campaign earlier on in the year.
Wednesday, November 10th, 1971: Senator Fred Harris (D-OK) suspends his presidential campaign due to a lack of fundraising and support among Democratic voters.
Tuesday, November 16th, 1971: At a press conference in Washington, DC, Senator Henry “Scoop” Jackson (D-WA) announces his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Thursday, November 18th, 1971: President Nixon selects archconservative Earl Butz to serve as his Secretary of Agriculture. Senator Milton Young (R-ND) is the first to speak out against Butz’s nomination, warning that the nomination was “an assault on the family farm,” while Senator Bob Dole (R-KS) expresses his concerns about Butz’s opposition to farm subsidies.

Saturday, November 20th, 1971: New polling from Gallup.

   

Gallup: 1,000 Registered Voters (Nationwide).
(R) Richard Nixon: 40%
(D) Generic Democrat: 34%
Undecided: 25%
Independent/Other: 1%

Gallup: 1,000 Democratic Voters (Nationwide).
Edmund Muskie: 20%
George McGovern: 18%
George Wallace: 16%
Hubert Humphrey: 14%
John Lindsay: 13%
John McKeithen: 13%
Henry Jackson: 2%
Eugene McCarthy: 2%
Wilbur Mills: 1%
Ken Hechler: 1%
*Italics indicate undeclared candidate.

Monday, November 22nd, 1971: Lillie, Bickel hearings get tense.

   

WASHINGTON, DC: A Senate hearing for Mildred Lillie, the first woman ever nominated to the Supreme Court by President Nixon, became testy following a tense exchange between the nominee and Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA). The exchange has divided the woman’s movement, with some women rushing to defend Judge Mildrid Lillie while other prominent feminist leaders have condemned her silence on the issues propounded by the growing feminist movement in America.

Senator Kennedy (D-MA): Judge Lillie, I have yet to hear a rebuttal from you on the American Bar Association’s claims that you are not qualified to sit on the bench?

Judge Lilie: Define “unqualified.”

Senator Kennedy: It’s their word, not mine. Will you answer their criticisms though?

Judge Lillie: Does my answer really need to be stated? I think we all know what they mean by “unqualified.” Do you agree that their criticism is relevant Senator Kennedy?

Senator Eastland (D-MS): Judge Lillie, as Chair of this Committee I’d like to politely remind you that we are the ones who ask the questions today.

Senator Kennedy: To answer Judge Lillie’s question, yes, yes I do think the American Bar Association’s opinions on this matter are relevant. And I do think that if Judge Lillie ought to know that our role here, ‘er-uh, constitutionally speaking, regarding who asks the questions. I have a real problem with that, Judge Lillie. I have a real problem with a woman-with any Judge, man or woman-who comes in here and doesn’t realize who does the questioning and who does the answering. We have business to accomplish here.

Judge Lillie: Senator Kennedy, as you know, we're not chartered to have a broader sense of vision, but rather, we are charged with the correct interpretation of the constitution. There is no goal other than to protect it, to preserve it, and to apply it as intended by our forefathers.

Wednesday, November 24th, 1971: DB Cooper incident.

   

PORTLAND, OR: A flight from Portland, Oregon to Seattle, Washington was hijacked by a man who identified himself only as “Dan Cooper” for a ransom of $200,000 before parachuting out of the plane over the Washington wilderness. The hijacking incident has sparked an FBI investigation into the fate of the jumper and his motivations, which they do not believe was related to domestic terrorism at the present time.

The incident began when the unknown hijacker, believed to have been operating under a pseudonym, told a flight attendant that he had a bomb in a briefcase on board the flight. The plane was landed in Seattle, where the passengers were released unharmed in exchange for the ransom. The plane was then ordered to fly by Cooper, who retained the crew on board, over a wooded, mountainous part of Washington State. Cooper parachuted from the back of the plane into the darkness below, with the fate of the money and the hijacker remaining presently a mystery.
Saturday, November 27th, 1971: The People’s Party holds its national convention in Saint Louis, Missouri, where the nascent umbrella of leftist parties nominates pediatrician Ben Spock for President and activist Julius Hobson for Vice President.

Nixon.

Sunday, November 28th, 1971:

The White House, Washington, DC.

RICHARD NIXON: So what are we going to do about Agnew?

JOHN EHRLICHMAN: I have been thinking about this for some in the last week. And I think in the uptime of this general announcement thing, being ahead of the power curve, as you are at the moment, it’s the time for him to resign. I don't know how you do it. I don't know what the inducement to him is or how you engineer it, but I just see him as a liability from here forward, and so-

RICHARD NIXON: Particularly if we are fortunate on Vietnam, and it's going to be fortunate one way or the other, you understand. We're either going to get negotiations, which I would hope, or we're going to announce our own completed plan. Agnew is too damn lazy to handle this type of stuff. We can’t have him unravel the peace in 1978 if he succeeds me. I never saw a guy that is so God damn lazy. He really does it in a more leisurely way. You know? I didn't realize this, but Bob tells me he plays golf every goddamn day on these trips. That's utter stupidity.

JOHN EHRLICHMAN: Not every day, I don’t think.

RICHARD NIXON: He shouldn’t be playing at all. Not while representing the United States overseas. It’s not hard work, after all. You know what I mean. That's really the truth: you've got to make it appear that the trip's for work, at least. He’s not over there on a God damn vacation. I feel that way, anyway. I don't mean a guy's got to be a grind. This golfing around, spending four hours on the golf course, and not having enough time to go out and shake hands with the people in the street. Jesus Christ, you know, when I went on these trips with my wife, we worked our asses off, and it made an impression. Vice President. One of the reasons that it was impressive, because I had nothing substantive. He had far more of substance than I had. But our trips really had a better effect, because, by God, we were out there talking to the people, visiting hospitals, and going through plants and so on.

H.R. HALDEMAN: I agree with John, sir. He has to go.

JOHN EHRLICHMAN: But how do we get him to go?

RICHARD NIXON: There’s gotta be something. We don’t want to go to Hoover in case it gets out of control. This might be a job for-

H.R. HALDEMAN: I think I have an idea.

RICHARD NIXON: What is it?

H.R. HALDEMAN: Spiro’s going to Hollywood.

RICHARD NIXON: Hollywood?

H.R. HALDEMAN: Or New York. Wherever. We’ll put him on TV.

JOHN EHRLICHMAN: What network will take him?

H.R. HALDEMAN: We’ll start our own.

RICHARD NIXON: Hughes has the money?

H.R. HALDEMAN: But isn’t he crazy?

RICHARD NIXON: Crazy like a fox. He’s crazy enough to do this, and this is so crazy an idea that it just might work. Think about it, he’d be good at it. All he does is give prewritten speeches. He could tape them, he could golf all day, and he could air them in the evenings and cash in. He can even run for President if he likes, he’ll only split votes with Reagan. It’s the perfect solution.

H.R. HALDEMAN: This might not be able to get off the ground in time, sir. That is the one problem and it’s the biggest problem.

RICHARD NIXON: We’ll find a way, even if we have to drag Agnew into ’73 with us. Bob, get some people on the phone and float the idea. Try and put some feelers out there. We’ll come back to this next year. I want a full report on the feasibility by then, Bob. Put someone on it.

Friday, December 3rd, 1971: Pakistani forces attack five Indian military outposts across the border, sparking war between the two rivals. The Pakistani attack was ordered in retaliation for Indian support for the rebellious Pakistani breakaway province of Bangladesh.
Monday, December 6th, 1971: The Senate Judiciary Committee completes hearings for the nominations of Alexander Bickel and Mildred Lillie for the Supreme Court. The committee votes 12-4 for Bickel and 10-6 for Lillie. Lillie, whose confirmation hearings were potentially tense, failed to win the support of Senators Bayh (D-IN), Eastland (D-MS), Ervin (D-NC), Hart (D-MI), and Kennedy (D-MA) all of whom voted against recommending her nomination to the full Senate.
Saturday, December 11th, 1971: A gaggle of activists gathered in the living room of David Nolan at his home in Denver, Colorado. This meeting marks the founding of the Libertarian Party of the United States; the activist resolve to organize state chapters across the country in anticipation of the 1972 presidential election, with plans to hold a national convention and field a presidential ticket being floated by the more optimistic activists.
Monday, December 13th, 1971: The Senate confirms Mildred Lillie 83-10, and Alexander Bickel 90-3. The successful nominations give Nixon four appointees to the federal bench; Mildred Lillie makes history as the first woman to ever serve on the Supreme Court, a victory that none the less draws a mixed and muted reaction from the Woman’s Liberation movement.
Tuesday, December 14th, 1971: The Clean Water Act passes the Senate by a vote of 85-0. It is introduced to the House of Representatives by Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm (D-NY), who in an elegant speech to the House floor decries the pollution of the Hudson River and the Chesapeake Bay. The speech garners her a standing ovation from fellow Democrats in the House.
Wednesday, December 15th, 1971: Mayor John Lindsey of New York City files paperwork to run for the Democratic nomination; Lindsey follows this action with the launch of a “listening tour” through New Hampshire.
Thursday, December 16th, 1971: The Senate votes 54-46 to clear Earl Butz’s nomination to serve as Secretary of Agriculture, despite the efforts of Senator Bob Dole (R-KS) to resist the Butz nomination.

Monday, December 20th, 1971: Smithsonian Agreement reached by G-10.

   

NEW YORK, NY: Representatives of the “Group of 10” (G-10) met in Washington over the weekend, where the “Smithsonian Agreement” was reached as a suitable replacement for the Bretton Woods system. The US dollar will be pegged at $38 an ounce rather than $35, representing a nearly 8% increase in value. Secretary of the Treasury Connally praised the agreement as “a step towards stability” as he extolled the virtues of the agreement to reporters.

Yet Nixon, as always, still has vocal critics to contend with. “What is the President ‘tryin to do?” asked Governor McKeithen while campaigning in Florida, noting “we in Louisiana don’t think he’s got a policy at all!” to a charmed crowd. Other candidates, like Vice President Humphrey, were quick to note that the President has taken steps that the preceding Kennedy and Johnson administration were not forced to take-“President Kennedy never devalued the dollar, and he never devalued the lives of our soldiers overseas either.”
Note: Nixon and Connally masterfully spun the “Nixon shock” in OTL as being a bold unilateral action instead of a national defeat. That is true in this timeline as well, as mentioned earlier. The growing unilateral streak in the Nixon administration’s foreign policy (Vietnam, Bretton Woods, etc) will have major effects going forward.

Wednesday, December 22nd, 1971: New polls for Democratic race.

   

Gallup: 1,000 Registered Voters (Nationwide).
(R) Richard Nixon: 39%
(D) Generic Democrat: 38%
Undecided: 21%
Independent/Other: 2%

Gallup: 1,000 Democratic Voters (Nationwide).
George McGovern: 23%
Edmund Muskie: 21%
George Wallace: 19%
John McKeithen: 16%
Hubert Humphrey: 9%
John Lindsay: 6%
Henry Jackson: 2%
Eugene McCarthy: 2%
Wilbur Mills: 1%
Ken Hechler: 1%
Thursday, December 23rd, 1971: Mayor Sam Yorty of Las Angeles declares his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination. Unusual among the Democrats is the fact that Yorty is a staunchly pro-law and order candidate matched only by Nixon and Wallace.

Friday, December 24th, 1971: Despite low polls, Hechler carrying on.

MORGANTOWN, WV: Several months into his quixotic presidential campaign, Congressman Ken Hechler (D-WV) has little money or traction to show for his efforts. Despite this, Hechler insists on carrying on with his presidential campaign, with a planned week-long tour of Iowa which will be funded on a shoe-string budget in the works, claiming that his efforts are not that of “a traditional campaign,” but rather “a crusade.”

The banner of the “New South” largely claimed by McKeithen, who has risen dramatically in the polls since his entry in the race, Hechler has had little room in the contest thus far. An outspoken critic of the war in Vietnam, he remains overshadowed by McGovern. A steadfast support of labor unions, it is Hubert Humphrey and not Hechler who has won their endorsements. Though Hechler campaign has suffered from a seeming inability to find a niche for their candidate, the Congressman is banking on a middling showing in Iowa to prove his metal as a candidate.
Wednesday, December 29th, 1971: Senator Max Rafferty (R-CA) files to enter the New Hampshire primary, where he intends to make a stand against the President from the right as a protest of the administration’s domestic policies. Rafferty does not rule out running in other primaries.