President Johnson is Dead: Turbulent Times in the New Frontier
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  President Johnson is Dead: Turbulent Times in the New Frontier
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Pyro
PyroTheFox
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« on: May 14, 2017, 01:00:18 PM »
« edited: July 18, 2017, 08:59:59 PM by Pyro »

President Johnson is Dead
Turbulent Times in the New Frontier


~Table of Contents~
Introduction: That's the Way It Was
Chapter One: American Guardsman
Chapter Two: Ask Not

~Completed Election Results~ (Spoilers!)
Election of 1960


Johnson with Vice President Kennedy and Sec. McNamara in Palm Beach, 1963

Prologue: Dallas, Texas

Local television service in Dallas had suddenly been interrupted.
Visibly shaken and out of breath, network director Jay Watson delivered the shocking report.

"About ten or fifteen minutes ago, a tragic thing from all indications at this point has happened in the city of Dallas. Let me quote to you this. A bulletin, this is from the United Press, from Dallas. President Johnson and Governor John Connolly have been cut down by assassin's bullets in downtown Dallas. They were riding an open automobile when the shots were fired."
Jay Watson, WFAA

When the news broke, millions of Americans stood paralyzed by their radio and television sets. Onlookers in Dallas, excited and eagerly awaiting sight of the presidential motorcade on this brief visit, panicked as the shots first rang out. Federal agents stormed the crowds, searching for the assailant. Dallas police tracked down and arrested an agitated schoolbook depository worker suspected of firing the shots. As this man was taken into custody, an all-together separate contingent of local officers found and arrested a second suspect nearer to the scene of the shooting.

Although medical professionals worked speedily and tirelessly, President Lyndon Johnson was pronounced dead at 12:45 CST. Press Secretary Bill Moyors announced this harrowing outcome to a sea of reporters and local journalists. The First Lady had been delivering her final lines to the Dallas Gold Star Mothers Organization when she was quietly informed of the events which had transpired. Ms. Johnson was rushed to the hospital where, upon arrival, she collapsed out of grief.

The news cycle ran for 72 hours straight following the initial announcement. Anchors breathlessly stumbled over their words as they struggled to convey the magnitude of the assassination. Walter Cronkite on CBS TV held a steady tone in bringing the news together, but even he had trouble comprehending, and more so putting into words, exactly how the nation ought to move forward. President Johnson, albeit a controversial figure throughout his tenure, was beloved by a great deal of the nation. His experience with Congress had become an insurmountable boost in accomplishing his multi-point plan for a greater society. Now, the torch was forcibly ripped from Johnson's grasp and handed to another. Though time seemed frozen, the clocks ticked forward.

"... so help me God."
36th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Air Force One, Dallas Love Field


7.18 Edit: Added Ch2
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Steak Mountain Steak Hill Snake Snake
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« Reply #1 on: May 14, 2017, 03:03:28 PM »

Interesting idea. I'll be following this.
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Jaguar4life
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« Reply #2 on: May 14, 2017, 03:52:05 PM »

Will there be backstory behind this?
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Kingpoleon
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« Reply #3 on: May 14, 2017, 04:08:07 PM »

A stain of America's history early washed away.

In all seriousness, this sounds very, very interesting. I will be paying close attention.
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President Punxsutawney Phil
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« Reply #4 on: May 16, 2017, 05:15:43 PM »

rest in peace Lyndon Baines. RIP. Cry
#allthewaywithlbj
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« Reply #5 on: May 17, 2017, 12:24:54 AM »

should've got him assassinated in Boston tbh
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Pyro
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« Reply #6 on: May 20, 2017, 11:26:08 AM »


Senator Lyndon Johnson (D-TX), 1950

Introduction: That's the Way It Was
 
  On the fifteenth memorial commemorating the tragic loss of President Lyndon Johnson, CBS aired a brief documentary program following its regular showing of WKRP in Cincinnati. Simply titled, L.B.J., the Robin Lehman piece touched on various high-profile moments in the life of the late president, starting with his ascendancy in Congress. The uncredited narrator bombastically explained, "Senator Lyndon Johnson attained the title of Majority Whip in 1951, serving for several years thereafter."

  In a hotly contested Senate election in 1948, Johnson defeated former Texan Governor Coke Stevenson. A muddled process through and through, this controversial and debatably unfair primary bout resulted in Johnson taking his first real steps into the swamp of party politics. He won favor with the Old Guard of Southern Democrats, notably Georgian Senator Richard Russell, and as the CBS narrator told true, this would propel him into national spotlight as the Majority Whip.

  Senator Johnson remarkably excelled at organizing his Democratic colleagues from this moment on, and did so without the slightest cause for concern. In mid-summer 1958, a reporter from the Washington Post exclaimed, "The influence of the Democratic wing of Congress is held less far less so by Senator McFarland, but the Majority Whip, Senator Johnson. McFarland sat observantly in this latest session as Johnson effectively passed the National Aeronautics and Space Act all his own. The influence of the senator from Texas may only be matched by that of Sam Rayburn in the House."

  As President Eisenhower neared the end of his final term, murmurs of the primary season made their way through Washington. Of this complex moment in political history, the CBS program only had this remark to say. "There was one clear choice for the Democrats: Lyndon Johnson. He conquered the Legislative Branch, and now he was on to the Executive to take the reigns in the White House. Before long, loyal Democrats rallied around Johnson straight to the fateful party convention in Los Angeles where he selected little-known junior Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts as his running mate."

  Ultimately, the conclusion reached in this segment does indeed match historical ends. However, those living from that era look soberly at 1960 sans rose-tinted glasses. LBJ supporter and Texas Governor to-be, John Connally, Jr., was present at the 1960 Convention and pieced the story together in an interview from "Johnson In Memoriam: The Power of Passage."

  Connally was recorded stating, "The convention in L.A. carried over the strain of the primary. Humphrey got washed by Jack in Wisconsin, and that Kennedy racked up the delegates from there on out. First New Jersey, the Pennsylvania, Indiana. Once Nebraska rolled around in May, that was the moment we finally managed to get through to him. [Johnson] started on the campaign trail just in time to pick up about 40 or 45% of that Nebraskan delegation. It was a shocker for the Kennedy-ites [laughter] to see a Southern Democrat leap forward like he did, but that's the way it was with Lyndon."

  
"Johnson has emerged as a close second in Nebraska, out-performing polls by an astounding figure."
ABC Radio Broadcast, May 11th, 1960
  
"Sen. Johnson wins Majority of Delegates in West Virginia. Sen. Kennedy narrowly takes Maryland."
Chicago Tribune, May 18th, 1960
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Pyro
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« Reply #7 on: May 27, 2017, 10:55:25 AM »


Day 1 of the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, July 1960

  John F. Kennedy's loss in West Virginia had been devastating to the morale of his campaign. A victory there was vital in ensuring the whole of the party that his candidacy was feasible in heavily protestant, though traditionally Democratic, states. Historians debate on how significant of an issue religion had been in this particular contest, but universally understood is how this crushing defeat on May 10th set the course for the remainder of the race. The loss not only adversely affected his confidence, but it dampened funding and narrowed demographic support.

  The Kennedy staff lost a great deal of financing to the Johnson Campaign following West Virginia, but retained a generous amount to march forth through to the remaining primary bouts. Typically, moderates, blue-collar workers, and voters over 40 years of age vastly preferred Senator Johnson in each of these primaries, while younger and more diverse constituencies favored Kennedy. Studies taken during this election process demonstrated a succinct fervor amongst Kennedy supporters who believed that the future of the party, as well as the country, hinged on their candidate's win over Johnson. As one Wyatt Miller of Maryland put it in an interview with the local Star Democrat publication, "There's this vibrancy and persona to Kennedy that you'd never feel with a Johnson-type."

  Oregon, with its primary taking place shortly following Maryland, ended in a narrow win for Johnson. His tight-knit team of seasoned politicos and staffers had played the national field with former candidate Adlai Stevenson, and some carried on with President Truman. The Johnson Campaign had an abundance of on-hand capital and did not hold back in aggressively capturing swing communities with media spots and stump speeches.

  LBJ's campaigning had not been anti-Kennedy in any remote regard, instead focusing on broad coalition-building. Senator Johnson proclaimed that, if elected, he would lay the groundwork for new domestic programs intended to provide a voice for those most disadvantaged in America: the poor, sick, and elderly. This combined with a promise to match the accelerating military might of the Soviet Union took much of the wind from his competitor's sails. Kennedy, much to the chagrin of his advisers, refused to turn bluntly negative against Johnson (the former's brother, Robert Kennedy, suggested highlighting LBJ's indifference to racial equality, but John Kennedy declined).

  Faced with dual losses, the candidate took a suggestion from his father. To an extent, Kennedy turned to localized Democratic leaders in states like New York and Minnesota. Spending sleepless nights on drawn-out calls with bosses, figureheads and legislators, both John and Robert Kennedy pushed until that last minute to rack up the delegate count as high as possible. He had likely hoped that these delegations would back his campaign instead of Johnson's. Party Strategist Robert F. Murphy, then-serving as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, reflected in 1962 on John Kennedy's Post-Oregon plan.

  "[Kennedy] had not known President Johnson the way we do now. Jack was a newcomer facing off against a giant. As Johnson built up the delegates from Tallahassee to Trenton, Kennedy understood he had one shot at keeping his ducks in line: that First Ballot. Should he have been awarded top place on the initial roll call, I believe the New York delegation would have followed suit - meaning an opening of the floodgates, so to speak. California was that last battleground, and in order to have a real chance at gathering the Western vote, he needed to either outright win or come close. Pat Brown ended up on the ballot, and the man refused have his name be removed, even though we all understood he had no intention of actively seeking the party nod. He won the majority of those votes, and let me tell you those were Kennedy votes."
 
  As Murphy explains, when the fate of the nomination is uncertain, the results of the first ballot could make all the difference in building momentum. Johnson, winning an easy victory in Florida and managing second in California, possessed enough bound delegates to cut heartily into Kennedy's total. As thus, even with his tallied score in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana, John Kennedy would ultimately fail to breakthrough the necessary threshold to secure the nomination. A majority of Western delegates lost any tepid confidence they felt for Kennedy and confirmed Johnson as the nominee on the second ballot.

DEMOCRATIC BALLOT: PRES1st Call2nd Call1,523 DELEGATES
Lyndon B. Johnson643985
John F. Kennedy620524
Adlai Stevenson806
Robert B. Meyner542
Stuart Symington521
Hubert Humphrey410
Others/Blank335

"Our party and our Nation must and shall extend the hand of compassion and the hand of affection and love to the old and the sick and the hungry. For who among us dares to betray the command, 'Thou shalt open thine hand--unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.'"
Excerpt from 1960 Democratic Nominee Lyndon B. Johnson's Acceptance Speech, July 13th, 1960
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Kingpoleon
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« Reply #8 on: May 27, 2017, 03:27:09 PM »

I expect Robert Meyner, Stuart Symington, Allan Shivers, or Coke Stevenson will be appointed Vice President. I would bet on Coke Stevenson if Robert F. Kennedy has a say in it.
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« Reply #9 on: June 02, 2017, 08:44:11 PM »


The Democratic and Republican Tickets for 1960

  Defeating his greatest political rival since Coke Stevenson, Senator Johnson finally won his presidential nomination. With the first step of the process complete, his eyes now turned to the general election. Taking down an unknown Massachusetts senator was one thing, but proving his worth to the American public to an extent great enough to win an electoral plurality was an entirely new matter to be dealt with. Johnson's team had its share of ideas in mind for how best to implement a straight New Deal-er campaign moving forward, however this strategy had ultimately proved unsuccessful when former Governor Adlai Stevenson utilized it in his 1952 and 1956 presidential campaigns.

  "The message [of a presidential campaign], if detached from the candidate, cannot alone garner votes," historian Theodore H. White wrote in The Making of the President. "Thomas Dewey certainly professed all of the correct talking points, yet Harry Truman won his second term. Adlai Stevenson had promoted an esteemed domestic policy, yet lost in adjoining landslides to President Eisenhower. Moving toward the 1960 election, general polling favored the Republican candidate. These seemingly frivolous things, likability and character, must not be disregarded in this context."

  As thus, even prior to his convention win, Johnson focused to a higher degree on the electoral map than his predecessors. Presenting a poor performance would most certainly bring about a repeat of the past two cycles, and the chance of locking himself in the South was indeed a possibility. Unlike in '52 or '56, Johnson possessed two critical advantages unobtainable by Stevenson. First, Dwight Eisenhower would not be eligible to run for president in 1960. Second, a general awareness that the nation was becoming complacent, in regards to the economic and scientific rise of the Soviet Union, turned incumbency a touch more toxic than prior years.

  Choosing the correct vice presidential candidate was of vital consequence, and had the potential to turn the electoral map in Johnson's favor. John Connally remarked that, in 1960, "Johnson absolutely required a guarantee for a regional advantage beyond the far South. Preferably, in the Midwest where July polls had been closer than in, say, New York. That was the thought process during the convention: a regional boost, not demographics."

  Close aids to the senator relented in ensuing years that Kennedy had not been on Johnson's short-list whatsoever. This list included friendlier, well-known Democratic figures like Senator Humphrey of Minnesota and Senator Gore from Tennessee. Gore could have secured votes from those hedging liberal Republicans while Humphrey seemed the perfect piece in attaining the Midwest. Aside from geographic assistance, Johnson too fancied a confidant at his side, even if the two were to disagree on issues of political circumstance.

  Kennedy had none of this. He was not a well-known figure moving beyond his primary supporters and, as one aid explained in a private interview, Johnson felt uneasy trusting Kennedy as a true companion. John Kennedy, the Johnson team would discover, also had not been in perfect health. Struggling with Addison's Disease, Kennedy took medicine constantly in order to alleviate his symptoms. With all of this in mind, however, Johnson's Campaign Manager, Walter Jenkins, insisted on him. Connally stated, "[Kennedy], in Walter's mind, was the key for winning in 1960. In theory, and if his charismatic style was advertised properly, he would win with Catholics, the under 30s, and the whole of New England. Humphrey did lose the Midwest to Kennedy, after all."

  At last, Johnson made the call, and, somewhat reluctantly, admitted that his primary opponent did have the potential to sway non-voters and assist in acquiring those high-value Northern states come November. Kennedy was thereby selected as the vice presidential nominee for the Democrats. Understanding the latter's personality and background, LBJ made it a point to keep Kennedy literally behind him at all times in order to avoid, as Johnson put it, "presidential conflation."

DEMOCRATIC BALLOT: VICE1st Call1,523 DELEGATES
John F. KennedyUnanimous, By Acclamation

  Days following the Democratic Convention, the Republican Party met in the Chicago International Amphitheater and selected their unopposed nominee, Vice President Richard M. Nixon. Ever-Statesman-like and eager to start his executive tenure, Nixon presented himself as a man already accustomed to administrative politicking. His acceptance speech lambasted the Democrats' platform as financially irresponsible and their focus on foreign policy transparent. He drove hard and fast at Soviet General Secretary Nikita Khrushchev, hardly taking a breath to chew apart his interpretation of Communism.

   Nixon exited the gate raring to get moving with the general campaign. Both Kennedy and Johnson observed Nixon's mannerisms in his major speech and, each having been familiar with the vice president for several years, they had strategies in mind from the get-go. Assistant Communications Aide, Samuel Forrest, recalled in an interview for a Johnson Presidential Biography that the Texan's attitude toward Nixon was not akin to Kennedy's. For, while, "Kennedy observed this articulate adversary," Johnson only saw, "an entitled, querulous brat." Forrest exclaimed, "Johnson smiled at one point in Nixon's speech during an unobtrusive stutter, one I hadn't caught at the time, and said to me, 'We're going to wipe the floor with this s**t stain."

"Senator Johnson, the Democratic nominee, plans to challenge Vice President Nixon to a televised debate on the issues of the campaign. The Vice President is reported to be inclined to reject the Johnson proposal on the ground that a personal debate would be unwise."
The Washington Post, July 25th, 1960
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« Reply #10 on: June 04, 2017, 12:19:34 PM »


Vice President Richard Nixon visited by Senator Johnson, Walter Reed Hospital, August 1960

  Storming into the '60 Campaign, the Johnson team presented its candidate as one fighting for a new, secure direction for the nation. Along with championing his proposed expansion of domestic programs and providing for labor protections, Johnson took advantage of Soviet scaremongering and profusely highlighted the need for a renewed "international prestige" for the United States. Johnson argued that the country had fallen behind in scientific and military technological investments, thereby setting the stage for a world dominated by Soviet industry.

  Nixon ignored much of the criticism deriving from the Johnson Campaign in the heat of the August-September season with intent on conglomerating his own narrative. The vice president embarked on his infamous 50-State Tour following the Republican Convention. Though it sounded a surefire means to double-down on the '52 and '56 landslide victories, in the end it proved disastrous. The vice president spent many weeks on this goodwill tour, speaking in deeply Democratic states like Georgia, while Johnson and Kennedy took this valuable time to captivate swing state voters. Nixon then injured his knee on a car door in North Carolina: ending him up in a local hospital, plaguing his posture for ensuing months and providing fodder to the Johnson Campaign which had already sought to paint Nixon as clumsy and irresponsible.

  Johnson's chief struggle was, as he and those close to him knew, connecting with Northern Democrats. The Texan senator had a plain manner of speaking invaluable with attracting moderates and a fair deal of traditional Democrats, yet lacked the spark embedded in those like Kennedy and, to an extent, Nixon. In no other location was this phenomenon clearer than at a late summer campaign stop in Monticello, Illinois. When walking from his car to a small auditorium to present a speech to local business leaders, a young man approached Senator Johnson and inquired, seven or eight times, as to the candidate's record on civil rights. Samuel Forrest recalled, "The right move would have been to calmly interact with the man, or even pivot to his support for the '57 Bill, but he instead lost his cool."

  The press dramatized the engagement in their coverage of the moment with headlines such as, "Tempers Flare in Monticello" and "Johnson Lashes Out at Illinois Youth." In all truth, the Democratic nominee did most certainly raise his voice at the young man to move aside, and Nixon reveled in this shift of focus. The reverberations of the event had been far less damaging to the candidate's character than it did shed light on Johnson's past objection to civil rights legislation. Right at this time it turned out, surely by coincidence, that Nixon finally accepted Johnson's offer for a televised debate. In the vice president's mind, Johnson was at his weakest and all he had to do was drill the point home to complete the score. For Johnson, this was an opportunity in the reverse.

  On September 26th, 1960, sitting before several hot stage lights appeared two figures, Richard Nixon and Lyndon Johnson. Motioned by the host to begin, the Democratic opponent first stood and presented his opening statement. Collected and confident, Johnson would articulate, "The question we must face in the 1960s is that of America's independence. Will the United States maintain its industrial independence and superiority as the productive power of the Soviet Union rises unchallenged as it stands today? Our struggle with Mr. Khrushchev is one of survival. This is a time when you must select the voice of leadership who had encountered the problems of bringing men together, bringing countries together. This is one of our most trying hours."

  Nixon then stood to put forward his statement. Appearing gaunt and grey on television, the Republican candidate seemed ill-prepared for the event. As would be the custom for the vice president in this debate, he would purposely dodge the accusations of industrial and military weakness asserted by his challenger and instead applaud the achievements of the Eisenhower administration whilst criticizing the Democratic platform. "Whether it's in the field of housing, or health, or medical care, or schools, or the development of electric power we have programs which we believe will move America, move her forward and build on the wonderful record that we have made over these past seven and a half years. I costed out the cost of the Democratic platform. It runs a minimum of $13.2 billion a year more than we are presently spending to a maximum of $18 billion more than we are presently spending."

    Prior to this first, of a total of four, debates, Johnson ran approximately four to five points behind Nixon in national polling of registered voters. Following this commanding initial performance, polling had Johnson tied with Nixon. Both television viewers and radio listeners of the debate professed to have vastly preferred the majority leader over the vice president. Even Nixon supporters shook their heads over the dreadful performance of their candidate. Nixon's unsettling perspiration alone would have tipped the debate, but Johnson had brought his A-Game. October now nearing its end, the race had turned from Republican-leaning to a definitive tossup.

"President Eisenhower Campaigns for Nixon in Manhattan. New Yorkers Line Madison Ave."
The New York Times, October 30th, 1960

"Senator Johnson is now reported to have contacted Governor Vandiver and Judge J. Oscar Mitchell. How this connects to the recent announcement of Reverend Martin Luther King's release from the Georgia State Prison on a $2,000 bond appeal is unclear at this time."
NBC News, October 31st, 1960
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« Reply #11 on: June 10, 2017, 06:16:35 PM »
« Edited: June 10, 2017, 07:36:18 PM by Pyro »


LBJ Casts His Vote, November 8th 1960

  In the final ten days prior to the election, each candidate sought to break new ground and move past the dreaded tossup vote forecast by national pollsters. President Eisenhower embarked on a long overdue campaigning tour with the vice president, solidifying those traditional Republican voters. Up to this point the president had not taken the opportunity to fight alongside his second-in-command as prior presidents had, but, by the last week of October, the immensely popular incumbent conducted a last-minute push to elect Mr. Nixon.

  Senator Johnson had opted to phoning two central figures in the recent Martin Luther King ordeal. The civil rights leader had been imprisoned for a brief span of time in Georgia without given the option of bail. Johnson, for discernment heavily disputed by historians and contemporaries alike, made the carefully crafted decision to call both Georgia Governor Ernest Vandiver and Judge J. Mitchell to inquire as to the details of the situation. Campaign aids argued for years thereafter that Johnson felt compassion for King and had been compelled to take action in his case. Critics point to the idea that LBJ's choice may have been directed by political astuteness (winning over black districts). For whatever the reason may be, King was released on bail the following morning. Johnson denied that he had played any substantial role in the case, but did state that Mitchell made the correct choice in changing his mind.

  For the sake of clarity, the Johnson Campaign had been thoroughly divided on the merits of this move. John Connally, among a fair amount of others within the team, believed that this act was in error, and Johnson should have let the situation play out on its own. Others, including Walter Jenkins and the Kennedys, commended the candidate's move. Moving forward, even if Johnson risked his security in the Southern states, what mattered most was that Nixon was now known as the candidate who sat on his hands. Johnson, alternatively, was the candidate who acted. As Jenkins would declare to the campaign staff, "This is the unlocking of the Midwest. Move Illinois to tossup." With the exception of those Democrats fiercely opposed to civil rights reform and the practices of Dr. King, this played well in nearly every single demographic.

  Election Day moved quickly. Polling stations from coast to coast witnessed an overcrowded unseen in years, with dozens reporting all-time record turnout. Each candidate was photographed casting their ballots, and then each returned to their campaign headquarters to begin the longest election night since 1948. When the vote-counting began, at last, the press reported state-by-state results.

  John Kennedy's home state of Massachusetts, as well as Rhode Island, were called for the Democrats early in the night, just as Maine and Vermont swung hard in favor of Nixon. Johnson carried Connecticut with an uncomfortably close margin, likely due in part to the incumbent U.S. Ambassador to Spain and former Connecticut governor, John D. Lodge, who actively endorsed and campaigned for Nixon. The Republicans won a minor victory in taking New Hampshire for the fourth consecutive presidential election.

  New York had been called fairly early in the night for Senator Johnson, as were Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia. Kentucky and Missouri were too won narrowly by the Democratic contender. The entire stretch of the Central-South United States, including the "Electoral Goldmine" of Texas, stuck with Johnson, regardless of the MLK affair. Virginia, a true battleground state going into this particular election, see-sawed back and forth for hours until its eventual call for Nixon with a margin of roughly 2.2%.

  The state of New Jersey, albeit uncalled until three hours following the poll closures, was won by Nixon by less than one percent of the vote. Michigan and Minnesota had been won by Senator Johnson, while Wisconsin, Indiana and Iowa were each won by Vice President Nixon. Ohio ended its count 53-46 in favor of Nixon. In Pennsylvania and Illinois, polling stations in dozens of districts recorded virtual ties, leading to the networks refusing to call these two states for either candidate. The total stood at 263-100 in favor of Johnson.



NBC Broadcasts the Election Results Live, November 8th, 1960

  At the moment the networks remarked on the closeness of those two uncalled Midwestern states, the tide turned somewhat as the Western Republican wave fueled Nixon's Electoral total up to 212. He had picked up all remaining states with thundering margins: with the exception of Nevada (called for Johnson). California, though its votes demonstrated a fair match by Johnson, was surprisingly called early for Nixon with a margin of over three percent. With the clocks on the East Coast ringing in at 12:00 AM, The Democratic candidate required one of those final states in order to be selected president. Nixon needed both of them.

  Illinois flipped back and forth between the candidates for several hours until it made its final flip to the Nixon column at 1:00 AM. Although Chicago  had come in dramatically for the Johnson/Kennedy ticket, the rural and suburban parts of the state were a landslide for the vice president. Illinois had been won by Nixon, 50.1% to 49.6%. 266-239. All eyes turned to Pennsylvania.

  In the Keystone State, as had occurred with Illinois, the cities had been moving in favor for the Democratic ticket while the rural districts went for Nixon (each about 65-35). Unlike in Illinois, however, suburbia was not so full-fledged in its support for Nixon. In towns on the outskirts of Philadelphia like Penn Wynne and Chesterbrook, Johnson held, on average, a steady 48% to Nixon's 52%. The Republican candidate required a far higher average for these smaller towns in order to take the state's 32 Electoral Votes. As Philadelphia and Pittsburgh sided commandingly with Johnson, the sheer numbers were just not there for Nixon. When the count had been finalized on the morning of November 9th, the State of Pennsylvania reported a Johnson victory: 49.5% to 49.1%.

"Lyndon Johnson has been elected. He will be the 35th President of the United States."
CBS Broadcast, November 9th, 1960
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« Reply #12 on: June 10, 2017, 06:25:42 PM »

The Election of 1960: Final Results



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« Reply #13 on: June 10, 2017, 10:12:30 PM »

Terrifying.
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« Reply #14 on: June 10, 2017, 10:13:29 PM »

I guess Florida is at least a bit more safe GOP ITTL?
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« Reply #15 on: June 10, 2017, 11:15:56 PM »

Good TL.  Keep it up.  I'm a big Johnson fan so I'm enjoying this
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« Reply #16 on: June 15, 2017, 11:30:47 PM »

Will this be continued?
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« Reply #17 on: June 16, 2017, 05:13:23 PM »
« Edited: July 06, 2017, 01:28:53 PM by Pyro »

Thank you everyone for the comments! Glad to see you seem to be enjoying it!


Yes! Will have the next part up tonight.
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« Reply #18 on: June 16, 2017, 05:57:10 PM »

1960 Congressional Elections  

Senate
Democratic: 63 (-2)
Republican: 37 (+2)

House
Democratic: 260 (-23)
Republican: 177 (+24)


 Senate Leadership

Majority Leader Mike Mansfield (D-MT)
Sen. Minority Leader Everett Dirksen (R-IL)


 House of Representatives Leadership

Speaker Sam Rayburn (D-TX)
Minority Leader Charles Halleck (R-IN)

  In spite of Lyndon Johnson's electoral victory, the Congressional wave of 1960 brought in far more Republicans than anticipated. Although the Democrats retained a majority in each house of Congress, their lead had waned down significantly. Republicans gained much of this lead from voters in the Midwest and West: including a 7-seat bump from Indiana. The Senate remained, for the most part, stable, with Republicans picking up two seats. As with the House election, the Democrats held tightly onto their existing seats.

  Senators McNamara (D-MI) and Metcalf (D-MT) succeeded in just barely in defending their seats from Republican opponents, and the same held true for the incumbent North Dakotan governor John Davis (R-ND) in his senatorial victory over Democratic lawyer Quentin Burdick. Senator J. Allen Frear, Jr. has lost his re-election campaign to popular Governor J. Caleb Boggs. Frear campaigned well in his mission to preserve his incumbency, but failed to connect the same dots as Johnson and Kennedy had on the national level. This left the door open for Governor Boggs, somewhat of a populist and certainly a liberal Republican, to storm onto the stage and exit with a 51% win.

  In one of the more embarrassing moments for the Democrats of 1960, the retiring Senator Joseph O'Mahoney (D-WY) witnessed his chosen successor, a young lawyer named Raymond Whitaker, lose in a disastrous race to a Republican challenger. O'Mahoney had worked in the U.S. Senate since the days of Franklin Roosevelt, and had played his due part in advocating for the passage of the 1957 Civil Rights Act. Upon suffering a stroke, O'Mahoney delegated the nomination to Mr. Whitaker. Whitaker ran as a moderate against WWII veteran Edwin Thomson, ending with a 57-42 win for the latter. As it turned out, Mr. Thomson would suffer a fatal heart attack prior to taking office, thereby leading to the (eventual) succession of one Milward Simpson from the Wyoming governorship to the Senate.

  
Senators Elected in 1960 (Class 2)
John Sparkman (D-AL): Democratic Hold w/ 70%
Bob Bartlett (D-AK): Democratic Hold w/ 62%
John L. McClellan (D-AR): Democratic Hold, Unopposed
Gordon Allott (R-CO): Republican Hold w/ 54%
J. Caleb Boggs (R-DE): Republican Gain w/ 50%
Richard Russell, Jr. (D-GA): Democratic Hold, Unopposed
Henry C. Dworshak (R-ID): Republican Hold w/ 52%
Paul Douglas (D-IL): Democratic Hold w/ 52%
Jack Miller (R-IA): Republican Hold w/ 52%
Andrew F. Schoeppel (R-KS): Republican Hold w/ 55%
John S. Cooper (R-KY): Republican Hold w/ 59%
Allen J. Ellender (D-LA): Democratic Hold, Unopposed
Margaret C. Smith (R-ME): Republican Hold w/ 62%
Leverett Saltonstall (R-MA): Republican Hold w/ 56%
Patric V. McNamara (D-MI): Democratic Hold w/ 50%
Hubert Humphrey (D-MN): Democratic Hold w/ 57%
James O. Eastland (D-MS): Democratic Hold, Unopposed
Edward V. Long (D-MO) SP: Democratic Hold w/ 53%
Lee Metcalf (D-MT): Democratic Hold w/ 50%
Carl T. Curtis (R-NE): Republican Hold w/ 59%
Styles Bridges (R-NH): Republican Hold w/ 60%
Clifford P. Case (R-NJ): Republican Hold w/ 56%
Clinton P. Anderson (D-NM): Democratic Hold w/ 60%
B. Everett Jordan (D-NC): Democratic Hold w/ 61%
John E. Davis (R-ND): Republican Hold w/ 50%
Robert S. Kerr (D-OK): Democratic Hold w/ 53%
Maurine B. Neuberger (D-OR): Democratic Hold w/ 54%
Claiborne Pell (D-RI): Democratic Hold w/ 68%
Strom Thurmond (D-SC): Democratic Hold, Unopposed
Karl E. Mundt (R-SD): Republican Hold w/ 52%
Estes Kefauver (D-TN): Democratic Hold w/ 70%
Lyndon B. Johnson (D-TX): Democratic Hold w/ 58%
A. Willis Robertson (D-VA): Democratic Hold w/ 80%
Jennings Randolph (D-WV): Democratic Hold w/ 55%
Edwin Keith Thomson (R-WY): Republican Gain w/ 57%
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PyroTheFox
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« Reply #19 on: June 24, 2017, 11:46:23 AM »


Johnson and Kennedy: First Public Appearance Post-Election

  With the votes counted, it was now clear by all accounts that the Democratic ticket won out the day. 289 to 239: the Electoral Vote was clear. Johnson, Kennedy and the Democrats' overall appeal turned out to be the decisive factor with this tossup race, along with an unmistakable lackluster enthusiasm for Nixon in Pennsylvania.

  Vice President Nixon conceded when Pennsylvania had finally been called on November 9th. He had refused to consider the idea of initiating a recount in the Quaker State nor elsewhere. A handful of key Republican senators, including one Barry Goldwater (R-AZ) insisted that under the terms of "fair play", Nixon would and should have walked away with this contest. Goldwater and others put forth that Catholic precincts were generally over-represented, and that this factor had greatly assisted the Johnson/Kennedy ticket. However, with few reported counts of voter fraud in these "tossup" states to boost this claim, Nixon refused the advice of Goldwater and that of his campaign staff, officially bowing out sans scruples.

  President-elect Johnson took a commanding hold on the direction of his staff in the interregnum period inter-spliced between the election and January's inauguration. He opted to significantly downsize his regional staff following Election Day, declining to offer permanent employment to the majority of these campaign workers. His closest aids, in addition to a key selection of the national Johnson Campaign leaders, were privately offered positions in the Johnson Administration. Though critical historians may point to this phenomena as a sign of Johnson enclosing himself within an "Executive Bubble", as Theodore White stated, one may also attribute this as a precautionary measure in response to the closeness of the election. Taking into consideration the slim majority in the presidential race and the even-tempered upsurge of Republicans in Congress, the new president could not in fair terms deem this a mandate worthy of employing his entire volunteer staff.

  In those weeks approaching Inauguration Day, as Johnson carefully reviewed his cabinet options and the language of his inaugural speech, President Eisenhower announced that the United States would sever diplomatic relations with Cuba. This tepid relationship between the Eisenhower Administration and that of Fidel Castro broke down amidst the latter's moves to nationalize U.S.-owned private industry. Eisenhower gradually pushed tougher trade restrictions on the island throughout the second half of 1959 and 1960. More so, the president ceased all Cuban imports and secretly authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to train Cuban refugees as a force to overthrow the Castro government.

  These countermeasures from the American government resulted in late 1960 with Cuba's consolidation of trade relations with the USSR. With that, Eisenhower ordered the Havana embassy closed. This new tension in Cuba was in place to play out in the first months of the incoming Johnson Administration. He hardly desired any major foreign policy dilemma this early in his tenure, yet Eisenhower's policy forced this upon him. Johnson, appropriating Kennedy's line from the primary race, professed unease that the Cuban people were forced into this situation due to the U.S.-supported Batista regime.

  As mentioned for a brief moment in Robin Lehman's L.B.J., "As Ike issued the embargo on Communist Cuba, the next president would seek to set a novel tone. No, President Johnson had no intention on going soft on Communism, but unlike his retiring predecessor, took responsibility for setting the stage for the Cuban Revolution. Taking a page from the Marshall Plan, he declared, America must lend its hand, not a fist, if it sought to convince the people of Cuba that the side of freedom is just." President Johnson, shortly after taking office, authorized the import and export of food stuffs and medicine to the island, though kept in place all existing trade stoppages as to reprimand Fidel Castro's seizing of private land and business. "Yes, we must speak softy," the film goes on, "but never forget that stick."

"For the inaugural ceremony, the forecast appears to be party cloudy with a slight chance of showers."
D.C. Radio Weather Broadcast, January 18th, 1961
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PyroTheFox
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« Reply #20 on: June 25, 2017, 11:46:28 AM »


Lyndon Baines Johnson, 35th President of the United States  

Chapter One: American Guardsman: The Master of Washington

  Lyndon Johnson took his Oath of Office as planned on January 20th before Chief Justice Earl Warren and a crowd of millions. He oversaw the grand festivities which had attracted men and women from administration's past, including former presidents Truman and Eisenhower, former vice presidents John Garner and Richard Nixon, and near all sitting and surviving Congresspersons. Artists, actors and other varied celebrities attended the event as well, from Author John Steinbeck to Businessman George Kara.

  In the much-anticipated inaugural address, Johnson spoke at length to the virtues of the 'American Ideal.' He offered a plea for the success of "liberty atop tyranny" and professed admiration for those Constitutional rights granting such liberties. The new president assured the international community that the United States would continue to play its part in preserving the prestige of democratic governments opposed to those which seek to unravel human rights - clearly a nod at the United Nations and a side-swipe at Cuba and the Soviet Union. "We seek no dominion over our fellow man, but man's dominion over tyranny and misery."

  In seeking to unite the country behind his message, Johnson exclaimed that all must work hand-in-hand for the "increased bounty of all". This served to pivot to the core of his speech, in which the president declared that, "In a land of great wealth, families must not live in hopeless poverty. In a land rich in harvest, children just must not go hungry." He brought to the table what would become known as the "Great Society", a series of domestic programs which sought to advance upon the gains made in Theodore Roosevelt's "Fair Deal" and F.D.R.'s "New Deal" packages. For the present time, in the present speech, the president remarked on the injustices of homelessness, illiteracy and food shortages, stating his intent to work toward the end of these obstacles.

  In its entirety, the event had been received well, and experienced higher attendance than either of Eisenhower's inaugural ceremonies. A nor'easter fell just before January 20th, leading to temperatures dipping well below freezing. Wet surfaces had interrupted some of the grandeur and fanfare of typical inaugurations. The main White House parade took place as intended, although Johnson elected to be driven straight to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave that evening and thus avoided much of the traffic conglomerating around D.C. It was here where the new president, accompanied by Walter Jenkins and John Connally, constructed his presidential cabinet and upper administration. The Kennedys attended the glamorous and glitzy ballroom dances on behalf of the president as Johnson finalized the plan for his Hundred Days.

The Johnson Cabinet
OfficeName
PresidentLyndon B. Johnson
Vice PresidentJohn F. Kennedy
Sec. of StateJ. William Fulbright
Sec. of TreasuryHenry H. Fowler
Sec. of DefenseStuart Symington
Attorney GeneralRobert W. Hemphill
Postmaster GeneralLawrence F. O'Brien
Sec. of InteriorStewart Udall
Sec. of AgricultureJoseph A. Califano
Sec. of CommerceRobert McNamara
Sec. of LaborW. Willard Wirtz
Sec. of Health, Edu., WelfareS. Douglass Cater


Eisenhower Final State of the Union Address Warns of "Military-Industrial Complex"
The Washington Post, January 18th, 1961

President Johnson Sworn In As President, Calls for an End to Poverty
The New York Times, January 21st, 1961
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Cathcon
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« Reply #21 on: June 25, 2017, 12:02:09 PM »

So is Connally elected Governor of Texas in 1960 instead of 1962, or...?
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PyroTheFox
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« Reply #22 on: June 25, 2017, 12:59:14 PM »

So is Connally elected Governor of Texas in 1960 instead of 1962, or...?

In 1961, Connally is not yet governor just as OTL. ITTL he has worked within the Johnson Campaign from its outset and encompasses sort of an advisory role to now-President Johnson.
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Cathcon
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« Reply #23 on: June 25, 2017, 03:07:53 PM »

So is Connally elected Governor of Texas in 1960 instead of 1962, or...?

In 1961, Connally is not yet governor just as OTL. ITTL he has worked within the Johnson Campaign from its outset and encompasses sort of an advisory role to now-President Johnson.


Ah. One of your updates used the phrase "Governor to be" and I was curious if he had entered the race for Governor two years early. Is he Chief of Staff, or a less formal title (presumably something like "Adviser to the President")? It would also be interesting if being more directly involved in an administration might delay or defer Connally's OTL switch to the GOP.
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PyroTheFox
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« Reply #24 on: June 25, 2017, 05:57:25 PM »

So is Connally elected Governor of Texas in 1960 instead of 1962, or...?

In 1961, Connally is not yet governor just as OTL. ITTL he has worked within the Johnson Campaign from its outset and encompasses sort of an advisory role to now-President Johnson.


Ah. One of your updates used the phrase "Governor to be" and I was curious if he had entered the race for Governor two years early. Is he Chief of Staff, or a less formal title (presumably something like "Adviser to the President")? It would also be interesting if being more directly involved in an administration might delay or defer Connally's OTL switch to the GOP.

So John Connally is going to be running for and winning the Texas governorship in '62, meaning by 1963 he will be the Texas Governor. As of this point in the timeline, in 1961, he holds no elected office, and his title would be along the lines of "Senior Advisor". The reason for the transition to the gubernatorial race will be made clearer as we move further ahead. Chief of Staff is going to Walter Jenkins =)
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