Stolengood
Banned
On January 6th, 1853, a train derailed and rolled down an embankment on its way from Boston to Andover, Massachusetts. This train carried President-elect Franklin Pierce, his wife Jane, and their 11-year-old son, Benjamin. In the event, Benjamin was crushed to death in the accident, and left gruesomely nearly decapitated -- his death plunged the Pierces into grief for most of the President's term of office.
What if the accident had been more fatal, however? What if the entire family, nearly two months before Pierce was due to be inaugurated as President, had perished in the train crash?
America had never had a President die before his inauguration; in the event, the office would presumably devolve onto the Vice President-elect, William R. King. But King was gravely ill with tuberculosis at the time; IOTL, he had to be sworn into office in Cuba, where he was attempting to regain his health, 20 days after Pierce had been inaugurated, and he (King) died weeks later, at his home in Alabama. How could he possibly serve -- and what possible contingency could be made in the event of his death, for a Presidency?
There's also the matter of the Electoral College to factor in; how would they react if they met after Pierce's death? Would they agree to vote King in, go for a completely different candidate (who actually has a chance of living out his term), or would the vote scatter, giving the Presidency to Pierce's opponent, Winfield Scott, who had lost considerably in the popular vote? What happens?
All these factors are for you to consider -- and I leave them to you. Have a good discussion!
What if the accident had been more fatal, however? What if the entire family, nearly two months before Pierce was due to be inaugurated as President, had perished in the train crash?
America had never had a President die before his inauguration; in the event, the office would presumably devolve onto the Vice President-elect, William R. King. But King was gravely ill with tuberculosis at the time; IOTL, he had to be sworn into office in Cuba, where he was attempting to regain his health, 20 days after Pierce had been inaugurated, and he (King) died weeks later, at his home in Alabama. How could he possibly serve -- and what possible contingency could be made in the event of his death, for a Presidency?
There's also the matter of the Electoral College to factor in; how would they react if they met after Pierce's death? Would they agree to vote King in, go for a completely different candidate (who actually has a chance of living out his term), or would the vote scatter, giving the Presidency to Pierce's opponent, Winfield Scott, who had lost considerably in the popular vote? What happens?
All these factors are for you to consider -- and I leave them to you. Have a good discussion!