Who would Nixon pick?

[Paul V McNutt]

The POD is the US Attorney in Maryland findinout about Agnew bribary and tax evasion two year earlier. Agnew resigns on October 10, 1971. Who does Nixon pick to replace him. How does he ( I am assuming it would be a he.) do as president? Does he or she do anything differently than Ford? How does the replacement do in 1976.

[Republican Jim]

There is still a great chance that Ford is picked. He was on Nixon's short list in both '60 and '68 and was about the only one that didn't piss Congress off. Not sure when Connally's party jump happened, but Nixon ultimately wanted Connally to be the VP in OTL. He thought the sun rose and set in John Connally. Because of his party jump, he lost the support of the Democrats, who held the majority and wouldn't have passed him. That brings us to the possibiity of Bob Dole and George H.W. Bush. Both were moderates, both had a decent relationship with Congress.

[tiggerfan]

How about Senator Brooke of Massachusetts ?

[Paul V McNutt]

I think it would be Conally. He has not lead Drmocrats for Nixon yet so he is not controversial. As president he continues the policy of detente and keeps Kissinger on as Secretary of State. So I think Reagan still runs against him. In the gener election Conally's past as a Nixon loyalist gets him in deep trouble. -

[hcallega]

Originally Posted by Paul V McNutt

I think it would be Conally. He has not lead Drmocrats for Nixon yet so he is not controversial. As president he continues the policy of detente and keeps Kissinger on as Secretary of State. So I think Reagan still runs against him. In the gener election Conally's past as a Nixon loyalist gets him in deep trouble. -

Connally was still supporting the Humphrey campaign and was actually on the Vice-Presidential short-list for the Democrats. The most likely alternative to Agnew is Senator Howard Baker from Tennessee. A southerner, moderate, and charismatic. Quite a strong candidate.

[Paul V McNutt]

By 1971, Conally was Nixon's Secretary of the Treasury and Nixon's pick to be his successor.

[BigWillyG]

Is Rockefeller a possibility?

[Japhy]

Originally Posted by Paul V McNutt

By 1971, Conally was Nixon's Secretary of the Treasury and Nixon's pick to be his successor.

He's also still a Democrat. IOTL Nixon couldn't get Congress to pick Conally after he'd cross the isle, there's no chance they would do it before or the instant he did. Nixon wants to create a new Conservative Party centered on the Old GOP, Blue Collar Unions, the Upper South (Conceding the Lower South to folks like Wallace until they start to see reason, but still breaking the Democratic hold) Middle Class Whites (The Silent Majority) and a Black Middle Class he wanted to construct. Its not like the man from Texas is the only possibility for being the heir to that.

Howard Baker is a good pick, So is Brooke, there's also H.W. Bush, John Lindsey (eek), Elliot Richardson, John Tower, Rogers CB Morton and William Scranton, all viable picks as the men to follow Nixon up and finish the job of out doing the New Deal Coalition.

[Republican Jim]

Originally Posted by Japhy

Nixon wants to create a new Conservative Party centered on the Old GOP, Blue Collar Unions, the Upper South (Conceding the Lower South to folks like Wallace until they start to see reason, but still breaking the Democratic hold) Middle Class Whites (The Silent Majority) and a Black Middle Class he wanted to construct. .

Could you elaborate on this a little more? I totally find this facsinating and seem to have overlooked this in my research of Nixon. More so, how was he going to go about it? Would it have been like the Progressive Republican's of the early 20th Century?

[Japhy]

Originally Posted by Republican Jim

Could you elaborate on this a little more? I totally find this facsinating and seem to have overlooked this in my research of Nixon. More so, how was he going to go about it? Would it have been like the Progressive Republican's of the early 20th Century?

Well if you read Halderman's journal he lays the case out pretty well.

Nixon's goal was to replace the New Deal Coalition with a Republican focused body of those groups, programs like Nixon's Federalism II, CHIP, and the National Minimum Income were supposed to replace New Deal/Fair Deal/Great Society Programs that helped promote loyalty to the Democrats, while appeasing Low Spending Conservatives. John Connolly was supposed to cement this new alliance, as a old Kennedy Democrat who turned against the "Crazed Party of McGovern", that was the point of having him as a follow up.

What I'm saying though is bringing those groups together does not cause Nixon to only have one option for an heir.

[Paul V McNutt]

I think that ITTL just as in OTL House Dpeaker Carl Albert advises Nixon to pick Gerald Ford but this time he is able to go withhis heart and pick John Conally.

[Japhy]

Originally Posted by Paul V McNutt

I think that ITTL just as in OTL House Dpeaker Carl Albert advises Nixon to pick Gerald Ford but this time he is able to go withhis heart and pick John Conally.

But how does he get the Republicans to accept a Democrat? Even a cabinet-crossing one.

[Orville_third]

Originally Posted by Japhy

But how does he get the Republicans to accept a Democrat? Even a cabinet-crossing one.

While I admit he made more political decisions than Conally and served a longer time, FDR got the Democrats to accept ex-Republican Henry A. Wallace in 1940.

[Japhy]

Originally Posted by Orville_third

While I admit he made more political decisions than Conally and served a longer time, FDR got the Democrats to accept ex-Republican Henry A. Wallace in 1940.

Wallace had already crossed over by the time FDR's second term started, and there was the whole second term after that. Conally would be crossing over literally, the moment Nixon proposes him becoming VP. He's still a Democrat in 1971.

Its not impossible for a cross-over to get on a ticket, Wendell Wilkie and Reagan were both Ex-Democrats, but considering all the strains the GOP was facing under Nixon, there's no way they'd accept the LBJ allied Democrat ex-Governor.

[1940LaSalle]

Hold it: you're forgetting that John Volpe of RI was vetted as Nixon's first alternate to Agnew. Volpe got a cabinet post IOTL, but losing out to Agnew was (IIRC) a bit of a near thing. Had he gotten the second slot, Gerald Ford would not have been VP. Still, after Nixon resigned (assuming all else with respect to Watergate played out as it did IOTL), Rockefeller as Volpe's choice for VP is not unlikely on the short term. Not sure if Volpe would have gone with Dole as a running mate in '76, though. By then Connally was well established enough with the GOP to be viable as a running mate--and to ensure the emerging Sun Belt went Republican. Thus, I could smell a GOP win in '76 and none of the low farce of the Carter years.

[Arachnid]

A post Watergate GOP win is really pushing the boundaries, though if the Democrats pick an awful candidate like Carter anything is possible.

[Thande]

Originally Posted by Arachnid

A post Watergate GOP win is really pushing the boundaries, though if the Democrats pick an awful candidate like Carter anything is possible.

Carter was a pretty decent candidate, he just wasn't a very good president.

[Paul V McNutt]

Getting back to a previous topic, I think Nixon would have no trouble getting Conally approved in 1971. r Republicans would recognize him as a turn coat.Most members of Congress would respect the president's wishes.

[Japhy]

Originally Posted by Paul V McNutt

Getting back to a previous topic, I think Nixon would have no trouble getting Conally approved in 1971. r Republicans would recognize him as a turn coat.Most members of Congress would respect the president's wishes.

But why would they do that if they refused to accept it when Nixon tried? You keep skipping over that part Paul. He's not a turncoat yet as he hasn't even joined the Democrats! How do they accept that? Give us more then a handwave excuse of "Because"

[hcallega]

Yeah Connally getting selected any year besides 1972 (an election year, doesn't need Congressional approval, etc.) is unlikely. He was a major player within the Democratic Party during the 1960s and the Republicans in Congress won't just let him become their "next man up." Nixon would need to make a concerted lobbying effort that would cost a great deal of political capital for...what exactly? Connally being his VP makes little difference in the grand scheme of things in Nixon's mind. If Watergate goes down as it did in OTL than Connally becomes President and gets challenged from both the left and the right of the party (think Reagan, then add either Elliot Richardson, Mac Mathias, or Nelson Rockefeller). In that scenario he probably loses the nomination. Even if Watergate somehow gets butterflied away than Connally will still be rigorously challenged by the Republicans. You might see Howard Baker or Bob Dole make the jump, as '76 would be a much better year for the Republicans without Nixon's ghost hovering over them. Regardless, there is little benefit for Connally or for Nixon if he gets the number 2 spot on the ticket.

As a side note, Nixon's plan to develop a conservative party is not particularly unique. Many Presidents, most prominently TR, FDR, and Wilson, sought to realign the American political system. They mostly failed.