Rocky in 1968

[Historico]

I'm hoping 3rd times the charm for Barry in 92!!!

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

Thanks for the comments guys!

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

The First Term of James Earl Carter, Jr.



The Cabinet of James Earl Carter
Vice President: Geraldine Ferraro
Secretary of State: Walter Mondale
Secretary of Treasury: Lloyd Bentsen
Secretary of Defense: Harold Brown
Attorney General: Bill Clinton
Secretary of Interior: Gary Hart
Secretary of Labor: Elizabeth Dole
Secretary of Agriculture: Robert Bergland
Secretary of Commerce: Philip Klutzknick
Secretary of Health and Welfare:  Patricia Harris
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Moon Landrieu
Secretary of Transportation: Neil Goldschmidt
Secretary of Education: Shirley Chisholm
Secretary of Energy: Hazel O’Leary
Secretary of Veteran’s Affairs: Colin Powell

While Carter had won the 1988 Presidential Election, Conservatives had the momentum: they had won the popular vote, and America was quickly turning toward the right. Even if Carter governed decently for his first term, the Republican momentum was so strong that he would have to put up a fight to stay in office. Carter’s term would be anything but easy.

President Carter would have a hard time cooperating with the Republican Senate, or for that matter, even the Democratic House. Carter would decry a Democratic bill in the house for being too "wasteful, corrupt, and inflationary," which left a bad taste in the mouths of many Democrats in Congress, creating an interparty rift between Carter and the Democrats in Congress. Carter would end up becoming politically weakened when he ended up signing the bill. Meanwhile, Republicans would attempt to derail Carter's agenda at every step of the way, and Carter was unable to expand upon CHIP, which was, ironically, a Republican idea. Liberals would oppose Carter’s proposed policies for being too moderate, while conservatives would oppose Carter’s proposed policies for being too liberal.

In a move similar to Harry Truman’s desegregating the armed forces, President Carter signed an executive order that allowed open gays to serve in the United States military. Liberals lauded Carter for his actions, but conservatives were enraged.

The Cold War during Carter’s Presidency was uneventful. Carter would continue to implement Jerry Brown’s plan of “peaceful co-existence” with the USSR, much to the ire of anticommunists in both parties. He would make no attempts to “win” the Cold War, and instead, attempted to maintain current détente policies that Nelson Rockefeller had begun. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union continued to survive, and the Warsaw Pact did not disband. Carter would cut defense spending by six billion dollars, to the ire of conservatives.

One of Carter’s goals was to not get into any wars, during his Presidency. He acted accordingly, and stayed out of the Gulf War conflict that started when Saddam Hussein invaded its oil rich neighbor, Kuwait. While many clamored for war, Carter remained steadfast in his opposition to the Gulf War. On January 10 1991, he wrote the leaders of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Syria: "I am distressed by the inability of either the international community or the Arab world to find a diplomatic solution to the Gulf crisis. I urge you to call publicly for a delay in the use of force while Arab leaders seek a peaceful solution to the crisis. You will find the White House, the French, Soviets, and others fully supportive." The urging didn’t work, and on January 17, a coalition of Allied United Nations Forces invaded Iraq to stop the invasion of Kuwait, without the help of the United States military. Carter’s refusal to participate in the Gulf War undermined the United States’ reputation overseas, and made many see him as incompetent.

Additionally, Chief Justice William J. Brennan, whom Nelson Rockefeller had appointed as Chief Justice back in the 1970s, announced his retirement. Wanting to set a precedent, President Carter nominated Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whom Nelson Rockefeller had appointed as Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit during his Presidency. Despite objections from conservatives, no major problems with Ginsburg were found, and Ginsburg began service as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on October 3, 1990. While Jerry Brown had already appointed a woman to the Supreme Court, Rose Elizabeth Bird, Carter’s appointment of Ginsburg was signification for two reasons: one, because Ginsburg was the first Jewish female ever to serve on the court; and two, because Ginsburg was the first ever female Chief Justice in the United States of America.



What hurt Carter’s popularity the most, however, was the souring of the economy. Unemployment numbers were beginning to rise. The Savings and Loan industry collapsed. The number of Americans below the poverty line increased.

Some successes of the Carter administration however, would include the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Immigration Act of 1990.

Meanwhile, conservative media personalities like Rush Limbaugh, Jerry Falwell, and Pat Robertson would do everything in their influence to derail the Carter agenda. They harshly criticized everything Carter did, and energized conservatives to oppose the Carter administration. With their help, a movement to reduce government, cut spending, slash taxes, enact socially conservative policies, ban abortion, restore “family values,” and more, began to emerge. Jerry Falwell formed the Moral Majority, and Pat Robertson formed the Christian Coalition, both of which supported conservative Republicans and opposed Carter.  



In some ways, Carter can be considered one of the unluckiest Presidents in the twentieth century, largely due to the fact that conservatives were energized against Carter and had strong momentum. Overall, the conservative movement continued to flourish. The conservative movement should have really started in 1968, had Nixon or Reagan won the Republican Nomination and the election, but with Nelson Rockefeller’s victory, conservatism was stifled, but was in full flow now. Carter was very unlucky to be President during the conservative resurgence.

The 1990 Congressional Elections
As expected during a midterm election, the incumbent party lost seats, as the Republicans would increase their Senate majority to a 56-44 balance, largely due to grassroots efforts by conservatives and due to the poor economy. As if that wasn’t enough, House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich won election as Governor of Georgia: Jimmy Carter’s home state. Also, Barry Goldwater Jr. won election as the Governor of California, replacing Republican George Deukmejian.

Republican Gains:
Christine Todd Whitman (R-NJ)
Phil Gramm (R-TX)
John Warner (R-VA)

Democratic Gains:
None

Senate: 56 R (+3), 44 D (-3)
House: 260 D (-11), 175 R (+11)

[Historico]

Did Douglas Wilder still win the VA Gubernatorial election in '89? And how will Poor Jimmy handle the Gulf War Crisis...Things may get pretty nasty before the 1992 Presidential Elections lol...Keep it comming!!!

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

Did Douglas Wilder still win the VA Gubernatorial election in '89? And how will Poor Jimmy handle the Gulf War Crisis...Things may get pretty nasty before the 1992 Presidential Elections lol...Keep it comming!!!

No, Marshall Coleman won the election ITTL. Hm, I thought I already mentioned the Gulf War in my first term. Anyway, here's a summary of what happened: Iraq invades Kuwait, but Carter stays out of the conflict, despite international and national urging for him to intervene. Carter urges for peace and diplomacy. Nevertheless, the UN permits a coalition force made out of UN countries (not from the US) and they invade Iraq just like OTL. However, due to lack of United States support, the war is much more messier and longer with much more casualties than ITTL, but eventually the Gulf War is won (but the coalition force doesn't depose Saddam). Conservatives decry Carter for not helping out with the crisis, and the U.S. is viewed as weak.

The next updates are coming soon, so stay tuned!

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

On January 17, an international UN coalition force, called the Coalition of the Gulf War, attacked Iraq (without United States support), for the purpose of stopping the invasion of Kuwait. Carter would continue to stay out of the Gulf War conflict, refusing to give help to either side, and refusing to give arms or supplies to the UN. The Gulf War would prove to be long and messy, with heavy casualties on both sides. Videos and photos of dead soldiers would show up in the international news, and many Americans believed that the United States should’ve gotten involved. International relations between the United States and other countries (specifically those in the Coalition Force) would sour. Additionally, oil prices shot up sky high due to the Gulf War crisis, and many Americans blamed Carter for the high gas prices. High gas prices used to be a thing of the past, but now, the unmissed relic from the 1970s was back again. Carter pushed for peace talks between the two sides, but nothing came out of them, and Carter was seen as a joke, and a weak one at that. He would also freeze Iraqi assets, and passed economic sanctions. The Gulf War Crisis would send Carter’s approval ratings down the tubes.


The Coalition of the Gulf War: Without US Support

The first black Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall, announced his retirement in 1991. Marshall was reportedly glad that his position would be filled by a Democrat, and mused about how disappointing it would have been if a Republican had nominated Marshall’s successor. President Carter would nominate his Secretary of Health and Human Services and former Attorney General Patricia Roberts Harris, the first black woman to be nominated to the Supreme Court. The Senate voted to confirm Harris, and Harris would begin service on October 18, 1991. In his Cabinet, Carter would replace Harris with fellow Georgian Louis Wade Sullivan.


Patricia Roberts Harris

Despite the setbacks President Carter suffered in Congress, he decided to push for Gun Control. He urged Congressmen to create bills increasing gun control. The two bills that Congress proposed were the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, and the Federal Assault Weapons Ban.

“None of us wants to own an assault weapon, because we have no desire to kill policemen or go to a school or workplace to see how many victims we can accumulate before we are finally shot or take our own lives…Heavily influenced and supported by the firearms industry, N.R.A. leaders have misled many gullible people into believing that our weapons are going to be taken away from us, and that homeowners will be deprived of the right to protect ourselves and our families. The N.R.A. is defending criminals’ access to assault weapons and use of ammunition that can penetrate protective clothing worn by police officers on duty,” said Carter, in a special message to Congress.


Ron Paul Campaigning Against The Proposed Gun Legislation

In response to Carter's address, former Texas congressman Ron Paul would say: “On one level I agree whole-heartily with the anti-gun activists. We desperately need gun control: we need to control the bureaucrats, disarm them, and then abolish their agencies...Force and intimidation are the preferred tools of tyrants, though not just intimidation with government guns. The threat of imprisonment and fear of harassment by government agents strikes terror into the hearts of millions of Americans. The Constitution's Second Amendment is the most important. Without the ability to protect themselves and their property, discussion of any other rights is only so much talk.” With the activism of Paul, the NRA, and GOA, public opinion was set against Carter’s proposed gun control policies. The NRA and GOA would write newsletters to members, urging them to oppose Jimmy Carter in the upcoming 1992 Presidential Election, and to oppose the passage of the Brady Bill and the Assault Weapons Ban.

Carter’s proposed Gun Control policies proved to be very controversial and unpopular among a majority of the public. While the Democratic House passed both the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act and the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, Republicans in the Senate managed to kill both of the bills. Carter’s approval ratings would go down further, and he was seen as an incompetent man trying to “take people’s guns away.” Even Southerners began to oppose Carter’s presidency.

Meanwhile, the economy continued to worsen, as unemployment, poverty, and deficits increased tremendously. The sunny days of the Jerry Brown presidency were over, and a new, unstable epoch of time had replaced them. A riot in Los Angeles sparked in April 1992, after black rage when four L.A. police officers were acquitted, even though they had been videotaped beating up a black motorist. This sparked anger, left people dead, and left a lot of property damage. Due to the economy worsening, public school budgets began to face huge problems also. All of these problems only served to increase President Carter’s unpopularity. To make matters worse, Jerry Brown was out of the country and did nothing to help Carter with his problems as President.

If there was one thing that Carter enjoyed bipartisan support for, it was for NAFTA. President Carter, Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Mexican President Carlos Salinas, negotiated for the North American Free Trade Agreement, which would reduce tariffs on products traded between the three countries, encouraging free trade. Nevertheless, protectionist Democrats and Republicans sneered at the proposed idea, especially since unemployment was already high at the time, and protectionists believed that more jobs would be lost due to NAFTA.

In response to Carter’s Presidency, Republican Congressmen began to formulate “The Contract With America.”  If, in 1992, the Republicans won the House of Representatives and the Presidency, the Republicans would hold votes on a number of reforms and bills.

The Contract With America
“(Excerpt) On the first day of the 103rd Congress, the new Republican majority will immediately pass the following major reforms, aimed at restoring the faith and trust of the American people in their government:  

    * FIRST, require all laws that apply to the rest of the country also apply equally to the Congress;
    * SECOND, select a major, independent auditing firm to conduct a comprehensive audit of Congress for waste, fraud or abuse;
    * THIRD, cut the number of House committees, and cut committee staff by one-third;
    * FOURTH, limit the terms of all committee chairs;
    * FIFTH, ban the casting of proxy votes in committee;
    * SIXTH, require committee meetings to be open to the public;
    * SEVENTH, require a three-fifths majority vote to pass a tax increase;
    * EIGHTH, guarantee an honest accounting of our Federal Budget by implementing zero base-line budgeting.“

President Carter and the Democrats would derisively refer to the Contract With America as the “Contract On America.” Nevertheless, the Contract With America proved popular with the American people, and more and more Americans began to support it. Both the Moral Majority and the Christian Coalition supported the Contract With America, and both religious groups would register more and more voters to vote Republican in the upcoming election.

All in all, President Carter’s approval ratings were at an all time low of 28%, but there was still another task he had to accomplish: re-election.

[GLPman]

Wow, Carter's presidency sounds like a mess...even ITTL the guy couldn't do things right.

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

Thanks for the comment! Every comment counts, and every comment encourages me to keep on going!

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

The 1992 Presidential Election

The Democratic Nomination

Jimmy Carter would have a primary challenge from the left of the party, as Jesse Jackson (D-DC) announced that he would run for President, getting the support of minorities and liberals. Jackson promised to end the Brown tax cuts “aimed at the rich,” increase federal welfare spending, increase federal funding for education, and support the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Due to heavy black turnout, Jackson would do quite well in the South. Nevertheless, it was clear that Carter was going to win the nomination, and Jackson dropped out on April 14. Although he had won the Virginia Primary, he lost the important New York primary. Jackson was allowed however, to make the keynote speech.


Red: Carter
Blue: Jackson

The Democratic National Convention was lukewarm, and President Carter gave a lackluster and boring speech. It was clear that the Democrats needed a morale booster that they simply weren’t getting, due to Democratic fatigue and Carter’s troubles.

The Republican Nomination
Given Jimmy Carter’s unpopularity, many Republicans were eager to step up to the plate. While many thought that Barry Goldwater Jr. would run for President again, he said that he had gubernatorial duties as the Governor of California to fulfill, and would not run. The Republicans who competed for the Republican nomination were:  

George H.W. Bush (R-TX)
Newt Gingrich (R-GA)
Bob Dole (R-KS)
Pat Buchanan (R-VA)
Arlen Specter (R-PA)

Texas Senator George H.W. Bush scored a win with his victory in the Iowa Caucus. However, Georgia Governor Gingrich, determined to see the Contract With America (which he had helped write) put into action, reorganized his campaign, and won a great victory in the New Hampshire Primary. Dole, Buchanan, and Specter all dropped out before they had the chance to win any primaries, as it was clear that either Gingrich or Bush would win. Thus, the race was between Gingrich and Bush. Gingrich campaigned as a conservative, while Bush campaigned as a moderate. Gingrich advertised an economic plan that was described by many as “supply-side economics.” Tax revenues would go up as tax rates came down, and the economy would be better off with tax cuts. Bush derisively referred to this economic plan as “voodoo economics,” and focused more on deficit reduction. Given the conservative resurgence, Gingrich generally trounced Bush in the primaries. After doing badly on Super Tuesday (where a great deal of primaries were in the South, where the Texan Bush should have done well), Bush dropped out and endorsed Gingrich, who became the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party. Gingrich won the rest of the primaries easily.



Blue: Gingrich
Red: Bush

In a move that surprised political pundits, Gingrich would choose failed 1988 Republican nominee and congressman Jack Kemp as his running mate. Pundits were expecting Gingrich to choose a moderate Republican as opposed to the “bleeding heart conservative” that Kemp was. Nevertheless, Kemp was still viewed very favorably by the Republicans and the electorate: given Carter’s troubles, many wished that they had voted for Kemp in 1988. Republicans also highly sympathized with Kemp for winning a majority of the popular vote but losing the election by 525 votes in Ohio, and many Republicans wanted Kemp to run for the Presidency in 1992, though Kemp refused to run. Overall, Gingrich’s choice of Kemp was considered a home run, albeit an unexpected one. The Republicans were energized and ready to send the Gingrich/Kemp ticket to victory.


Newt Gingrich (R-GA)


Jack Kemp (R-NY)

The General Election
With the help of the Christian Coalition and the Moral Majority, the Gingrich campaign was pumped, and many new evangelical voters had registered to vote for Gingrich. Gingrich was warm and sunny, while Carter seemed downtrodden and introspective. More and more Americans began to support the conservative Gingrich/Kemp ticket, and Carter lost the support of socially conservative hawkish Democrats in the South, who would be called “Gingrich Democrats.” Gingrich promised to enact the Contract With America, promised to reduce government and spending, and promised to restore “family values” to the nation’s culture. Additionally, Gingrich would criticize Jimmy Carter for his inaction in the Gulf War, as many soldiers were dying, the war was messy, and the war might have been easier to win if the United States had jumped in. Additionally, gas prices had been jacked up, which was additional fodder for Gingrich's criticisms of Carter.

Gingrich was considered to have won the Presidential Debates, as he successfully attacked Carter on all fronts, while Carter looked inept. Carter would, however, attack Gingrich for his limited executive experience, as Gingrich had only served as Georgia’s governor for two years before running for President. Gingrich surprisingly made himself look like Jerry Brown, as he advertised the same limited government values that Jerry Brown enacted (and Gingrich mentioned this), while Carter did not emphasize Jerry Brown as much as he should have. "Jerry Brown Democrats" took note of this and actually decided to vote for Gingrich instead of Brown's Vice President, Carter. To make matters worse for Jimmy Carter, Jerry Brown was still out of the country doing humanitarian work and taking a voyage of self discovery, so Brown was never there to defend or campaign for Carter.

On November 3, 1992, Newt Gingrich defeated Jimmy Carter in a landslide. Nobody really thought that Carter was an abysmal President, but he was simply a victim to the conservative momentum that had swept the nation away. Overall, the bad economy, conservative resurgence, inaction in the Gulf War crisis, and Carter’s push for gun control landed Gingrich in the White House, and pushed Carter out. Carter did so badly that he lost his home state to his fellow Georgian. Liberalism had suffered a death knell, at least for the time being. The New Deal Coalition was in smithereens.

As if that wasn’t enough for the Democrats, the Republicans gained 54 seats in the House of Representatives, gaining control of the House and had gained even more seats in the Senate. The Republican Revolution had begun.



Newt Gingrich (R-GA)/Jack Kemp (R-NY): 57.4% PV, 457 EV
Jimmy Carter (D-GA)/ Geraldine Ferraro (D-NY): 41% PV, 81 EV

[Historico]

Well, It looks like Jimmy got his ass kicked in that battle of the Georgia Bull Dogs. Allthough I don't agree with his policies, Newt is atleast a very intelligent and competent man for the Presidency, but im not sure how he will handle the changing foriegn policy landscape of the 90's...Keep it comming

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

Keep in mind that the USSR is still in existence ITTL, so Gingrich has a lot on his plate for foreign policy (and domestic policy as well).

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

Bump

I'm kinda busy with The Biggest Damned-Fool Mistake I Ever Made: by Dallasfan65 and hantheguitarman and White House? More Like The WET House!: An Alternate History combined with school, so you probably won't see an update on this at least until school's done (and even then, I may do a brief summary instead).