Draft TL: RFK Renewed

For all interested, this is the TL from "1976 scenarios".

June 4, 1968- Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles. 2357 EDT: The networks have just called the California primary for Senator Robert Kennedy. He is now addressing the throng in the lobby: "Thank you all for your support. Now let's go on to Chicago and win there!" He goes through the crowd towards the elevators and returns to his suite. New York is looking good so far, polls say he'll win 56-60% of the vote.

June 5- New York City: Richard Nixon is reading the morning Times when he notices a small item: "Ambassador employee arrested on weapons charges." Thinking nothing of it, he convenes a staff meeting to discuss pre-convention planning. Nixon tells Haldeman and John Mitchell that "Looks like it's Bobby. We have to plan around him being our opponent. Just in case, we should have contingency plans for Daley installing Humphrey."

June 6: Times headline: "AMBASSADOR EMPLOYEE CHARGED WITH PLOT TO ASSASSINATE SEN KENNEDY" is seen all around the world and the U.S.

June 18: Unlike two weeks earlier, the networks are quick to call an end to the last Democratic primary. PROJECTION: KENNEDY WINS N.Y. PRIMARY. "We can now declare that Senator Robert Kennedy has won the New York primary. As of 8:30 p.m. Eastern time he is leading with 56% of the vote. And there's the 1968 primary season for you."

July 1: "M'CARTHY TO WITHDRAW, REFUSES ENDORSEMENT" . This could have unforeseen consequences in Chicago...

July 3, Chicago City Hall. Mayor Richard Daley confers with his advisers. Today, instead of Housing Commissioner Richard Wade, Council Speaker Tom Keane is the mayor's 2:00 appointment. The Mayor is worried about the New Left. Their leader, Abbie Hoffman has openly threatened to cause civil disturbance requiring federal intervention. If Chicago has riots like Newark in 1967, or the riots following the death of Dr. King in April, the Democrats will lose all hope of beating Nixon in November. On top of keeping the city safe, he has to make a decision regarding the Democratic nomination. Jesse Unruh is the sole boss openly supporting Kennedy, but Governor Hughes and the South prefer Vice President Humphrey. Now that McCarthy is no longer a candidate, it looks like his delegates will split between Kennedy and Humphrey, with no majority for either. Daley believes that Kennedy is more likely to win than Humphrey, but he was violently opposed to the regicide of President Johnson. The fact that RFK had entered in March, avoiding the early primaries and media scrutiny over the winter, made his blood boil. As did the "darker impulses" speech, which he felt crossed the line of acceptable rhetoric. The violent antagonism of the South, which seemed likely to defect to Nixon due to civil rights and the events of the previous four years, was another negative. But Hubert had negatives too. Recently liberal, but now the darling of the South due to the lack of alternatives, he had once declared he could lead "a mighty good revolt". Then in February, he had enraged liberals by embracing Georgia Gov. Maddox, an arch-segregationist. Daley knew that Humphrey was seen as a mouthpiece, not to mention tool, of the despised Lyndon Johnson. Kennedy, for all his faults, could reinvigorate a tired Democratic organization with his own. The Mayor knew that Nixon would relish a fight with Kennedy, in revenge for 1960, and would be a good bet to try and hold the New Deal Coalition, formed by FDR in the 1930's. Therefore, he told his secretary to call a meeting of all major party bosses without the press knowing...

July 15, 1968, New York: Robert Kennedy convenes a meeting of his top campaign aides; Fred Dutton, Arthur Schlesinger, Ted Kennedy and Joe Califano. So far they estimate they have 700 delegates, to 800 for HHH and McCarthy unknown. Between them this is only 58% of the delegates. There is still more headhunting to do. The key bosses are Daley, Hughes, and Jesse Unruh. Unruh is their California chairman, and is accepted as the chief Western power broker. Hughes is known to be an Administration supporter, but there is a great strain on the New Jersey delegation to support Kennedy. Perhaps he can be convinced that Bobby is the best shot to beat Nixon. The Humphrey camp, in the event of RFK's nomination, will have a say in the VP selection. It is far too early to discuss that, but it will have to be a moderate Southerner or Midwesterner to reconcile the factions. Daley is believed to be conflicted. While a supporter of the President, he believes that the most important thing is electing a Democratic President in November. Also, he is growing weary of the ongoing Vietnam War, the son of his closest friend having been recently killed in action. Both Bobby and Ted know that putting too much pressure on Daley will lead to rejection. Richard Wade, their man in Illinois and a confidant of the mayor, says that he appeared pleased by the victories in California and South Dakota. California, being Nixon's home state and a battleground state, will depend on organization to win it, because of the divide between the suburban, middle-class, Republican north and the urban centers of Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Francisco. South Dakota will be an important lever in Chicago. How could they support Humphrey when he lost his own state 60-40? Both brothers know the Nixon vs. Kennedy match will not be the same as 1960. Nixon has the formidable Republican apparatus behind him, being prepared since 1966. The Democratic machine is slowly rusting, so he will have to supplant it with his own highly efficient organization. Fundraising will also be a concern, but Stephen Smith is in charge of that area. They eventually decide on promoting RFK's ability to create a highly efficient organization, reconcile the factions, independence from the Administration, and ability to beat Nixon. Also, Bobby will personally meet with the Ohio and Pennsylvania delegations on the 25th. Lastly, he will call "Da Mare" at the earliest possible moment. As Bobby wryly notes: "This time he'll look decent on TV. We can't count on that, can we?"

Meanwhile, on Park Avenue, Richard Nixon is reviewing a shortlist of possible running mates. The choices are: House Minority Leader Gerald Ford, a moderate and a favourite of Nixon's, his longtime friend and protege, California Lt. Gov. Robert Finch, New York Mayor John Lindsay, and Maryland Gov. Spiro Agnew. He quickly tells Mitchell and Haldeman that Finch is too inexperienced, would irritate Reagan to no end, impossible given his Southern credentials, and would be criticized for cronyism. Lindsay, in Nixon's view, is a RINO, far too liberal, and would lose Dixie to Wallace. His deal with Sen. Thurmond requires a running mate acceptable to the South. Ford and Agnew are the finalists. He calls Ford, and asks him to join the ticket. Ford declines, saying that he would rather remain Minority Leader, but pledges to support the ticket in the House GOP caucus and in Michigan. He then calls Agnew, who though one of Rocky's biggest fans, is intrigued and says he will consider the offer. His appointment with Thurmond is scheduled for the 28th of July, a week before the Convention in Miami Beach. There will be nearly a month's campaigning time before the Democratic ticket is chosen, nearly impossible to predict at the moment. If Thurmond signs off on Agnew, all that will be left are formalities. Also, Mitchell accepts the offer of one Karl Rove to join the campaign as an apprentice under the dirty-tricks specialist Don Segretti...

July 25, Cincinatti, Ohio: Robert Kennedy arrives to meet the Ohio delegation. The senior senator, Frank Lausche, is a conservative Democrat who supports Humphrey. Stephen Young, the 79 year old junior senator, was an initial supporter who withdrew his endorsement upon the entry of HHH into the race. Many are pleased with the pitch, that only he could beat Nixon, unify the party, etc. Lausche is still unconvinced, but Young agrees to support him. Therefore, they will change from supporting Humphrey to remaining uncommitted, freeing 110 votes from the Vice President. Bobby feels that 65 to 70 delegates will support him on the first ballot. Worse case scenario, 50-50. The unit-rule states are key, for they will vote en bloc.

Now for Pennsylvania. Senator Joe Clark is a longtime member of ADA, the liberal Democratic think-tank. Prominent members are Hubert Humphrey and Joe Rauh, a JFK supporter in 1960. They withdrew support for the President over Vietnam, which caused a major breach between the liberal-hawks like Humphrey and doves like Arthur Schlesinger. Clark is also a longtime colleague and friend of Bobby's, and promises to help deliver the delegation for him. Mayor Jim Tate of Philadelphia is a diehard Humphrey supporter. Ex-Governor David Lawrence is a longtime Kennedy ally, and also pledges his support. After heated debate, they agree to support Kennedy at the convention. To mollify the Humphrey men, they promise a say in federal patronage down the road...

July 26th- The White House

President Johnson is quite worried, for intelligence reports show RFK gaining, with 850 delegates and 900 for Humphrey. He has already declared that he might not campaign for the nominee. Given his record unpopularity, that is a blessing. An endorsement will be necessary, but no word has come from Chicago yet. All he can do is wait and see.

July 28th- Atlanta, Georgia

Richard Nixon meets Senators Strom Thurmond and John Tower. He informs them that Governor Agnew of Maryland is his choice of a running mate. Thurmond says that Agnew will be acceptable to the South, and will have a great impact there. Tower says that he and Thurmond will hold the South against the charms of Reagan. Nixon also promises that the South will be consulted on all decisions regarding civil rights, and no action will be taken without a judicial order. To placate Thurmond, and going against his free-trade instincts, he agrees to raise tariffs on Japanese cotton, "if we notify them first." Next, the Republican Convention...

Nice start

1968 in the US in OTL was pretty dystopic. It would be nice to see it end on something other than a tragic note.

Yeah, I lived through it...

I'm out of time so I'll comment later, but make sure you read the old RFK threads. We did a lot of work hashing things out, although nobody really wrote a timeline on it—so good work!

RFK Coverage

I take it from your other thread that in this "Bobby lives" TL US presidents are not limited to 2 terms. If so, are you anticipating that RFK will be president from 1969-1986?

AMBASSADOR EMPLOYEE CHARGED WITH PLOT TO ASSASSINATE SEN KENNEDY"

Click to expand...

?Will Your Timeline answer the question of how Sirhan Sirhan, managed to fire 8 Shots from his 22 cal. 6 Shot Revolver, with the last two shots being .38's.?

It is believed that Nixon would have won If He had followed his Aides advise to go Visit King, in Jail. Nixon replied that the Blacks know which Party was the party of Lincoln.
A few differences in His Speeches in 1968 May be able to bring the Blacks back to the Republicans and ensure his election.

Assume no 22nd, but Nixon will not seek a third term because of Watergate in 1976. Ambitious yes, suicidal no. The Southern Strategy is key, and no changes will be made. The Confederacy is worth 157 ECV, but we can soften the tone to get 10-15% of the black vote. Against Bobby, that is near ASB anyways. Remember, in Time he had written proposals for economic development quite similar to Bobby's, but focusing on pure economic mobility (like Thatcher) rather than the race issue. Here's the link.
P.S. I do not believe conspiracy theories and will not address them, FYI.
P.P.S. Without revealing too much, that is highly unlikely, but never say never. The main problem in many Bobby-lives scenarios is that they are Demowank and quite ASB on Vietnam. Like Freedman for example. I am not using his ideas at all.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,841235,00

Interesting story so far.

Can't wait for more!

Pre-Democratic Convention

August 1: RFK 950 delegates, HHH 900, McCarthy 130. Nixon-Agnew to be formalized at Miami Beach.

August 5, Miami Beach, FL: Richard Nixon awaits the results of the first ballot. He is not disappointed as the numbers roll in: Nixon 750, 220 for Rocky, 160 for Reagan and the rest for favourite sons. Graciously, they move to make it unanimous. After switches: Nixon 1250, and die-hard liberals vote for Rocky to the end. In the end, Thurmond's warning of "dire consequences" for Reagan votes had pulled him throughout. As is well known, deviation from the party line in Dixie spells political termination with extreme prejudice.

August 18th, New York: Richard Nixon is planning the campaign in earnest. There will be swings through the Old Confederacy, except Alabama, and Agnew will do Southern campaigning for the most part. Texas, California, Ohio will be the major battlegrounds, with 85 ECV between them. So far, all calculations are based on the assumption of Robert Kennedy as the Democratic nominee. Debates are to be avoided at all costs. The reasons are: that Wallace would have to be included, and neither he, Kennedy or Humphrey wishes to give legitimacy to the man who can play havoc with the blue-collar vote throughout the country, and possibly deny Nixon an electoral majority if he wins enough votes in Dixie. Secondly, if somehow a debate is arranged, there will have to be a fine line between white gloves and "rock em, sock em". In 1960, the former, along with the famous five-o-clock shadow, had fatally damaged him in the debates.

At UN Plaza, Robert Kennedy and his aides are going over the final pre-convention checklists. Mayor Daley is still uncommitted, but it appears as if New Jersey will break open for him. This will put him within 150 votes of victory, but that requires the Illinois delegation on his side. Unbeknownst to him, the "Syndicate" had convened in the Blackstone Hotel earlier.

On August 10, the bosses hadn't come to a consensus. If the Syndicate cracks open, the party will disintegrate. Daley remained silent while the others argued it out. He is privately for Kennedy, since Lyndon Johnson is no longer an option. Eventually, he tells them that Humphrey isn't a winner, was too easily tied to the Administration by Nixon, and freshness was needed. How could they claim the mantle of change if they nominate the representative of the most unpopular President since Truman abdicated in 1952? If RFK is chosen, a moderate Southern or Midwestern VP will be needed to offset his lack of middle-class rapport. That is Nixon's base and will be vital in California and Northern states. The Mayor says: "Loyalty to the President is less important than winning. None of us are happy, but the alternative is Nixon in the White House!" Hughes remains silent, but the South is outraged, and is only slightly mollified by the promise of Southern Cabinet members and possibly a Southern VP. Georgia Sen. Richard Russell, Dixie's Senate leader says: "First we got a Judas, and now THAT MAN." In the South, if LBJ was a Judas, RFK was regarded as a civilian Reconstruction viceroy, with full emergency, and in their view, extrajudicial powers. Daley wants the Syndicate to survive, but Nixon and Kennedy have different plans. Little did they know what Nixon had in mind...

Chicago 1968

August 26, Conrad Hilton Hotel, Chicago.

The DNC is underway, and no one is sure of the Democratic nominee. There are sporadic anti-Vietnam protests outside the hall, but nothing too serious. Hubert Humphrey is confident of the nomination, thinking that if it gets too close, Daley and Hughes will broker a deal. What he doesn't know is that the bosses have decided that there will be no more than four ballots. Meanwhile, Sen. Robert Kennedy is checking the first ballot tally, and meeting up with Richard Wade. Wade informs him that there is possibly a split among the bosses (Syndicate), which might lead to deadlock. He tells Wade to await the second ballot. Meanwhile, Daley is sitting at the head of the Illinois delegation, as are Hughes and Unruh for New Jersey and California respectively.

1st ballot: Humphrey 950, Kennedy 975, McCarthy 130.
There appears to be deadlock, but a joint ticket has been categorically ruled out by both men, as well as Mayor Daley.
2nd ballot: Kennedy 1065, Humphrey 980. RFK is 250 votes shy, and both men need Hughes and Daley to put them over the top. Hughes announces: Mr. Chairman, the New Jersey delegation votes for... Just as he is about to say "Hubert Humphrey", a young congressman shouts: Senator Kennedy! All but 40 votes are for Kennedy, and Hughes is humiliated in front of the entire Convention. Nothing like this has happened before in recent memory.
3rd ballot: Kennedy 1185, Humphrey 990. Daley mutters: "That does it" and when the chairman recognizes him, he announces: "Mr. Chairman, the Illinois delegation votes for Senator Kennedy."
4th ballot: RFK 1430, HHH 890, 300 scattered. After switches: RFK 1730, HHH 896.

BREAKING NEWS: KENNEDY NOMINATED AT CHICAGO.

RN, Memoirs, 1979: "To be honest, I was quite shocked, for this hadn't happened in recent memory. Although I always knew they would nominate him in the end."

Now for the VP selection. It has to be a moderate Midwesterner or Southerner, someone with proven middle class vote-getting ability. After consultations with his staff and Mayor Daley, he proposes...

Ex-Governor Carl Sanders of Georgia. A moderate spokesman for the New South, who had campaigned for Johnson-Humphrey in 1964, he was also a moderate Democrat who was well liked by urban Southerners. The roll call went: Sanders: 2350, McCarthy 150, and 126 for George McGovern.

P.S. The general will go at a quicker pace. Also after Jan.20, one post per year, including world events, will become the norm. Only in Presidential election years will it be different.

DuQuense said:

?Will Your Timeline answer the question of how Sirhan Sirhan, managed to fire 8 Shots from his 22 cal. 6 Shot Revolver, with the last two shots being .38's.?

It is believed that Nixon would have won If He had followed his Aides advise to go Visit King, in Jail. Nixon replied that the Blacks know which Party was the party of Lincoln.
A few differences in His Speeches in 1968 May be able to bring the Blacks back to the Republicans and ensure his election.

Click to expand...

Goldwater screwed over that puppy totally IMO. The reason many blacks left the Republican party (well, those that remained after FDR shifted them toward supporting the Liberal Democrats when the Conservatives took power in the GOP during the 20's and 30's) was because they saw with Goldwater a shift to a "reactionary" and "Conservative" ideology which turned its back on the tradition of Progressivism that there was in the GOP. Nixon is likewise not all too Liberal himself. While he may have gained some large black support OTL, I would attribute that to more of a vacuum left by the loss of RFK rather than an inherent fact that they'd always go to Nixon. If RFK lives, even if Nixon cleans up a little, I think the black support he had in the OTL would take a large hit with most of the black community going wherever RFK went and many of the OTL black Nixon supporters going for RFK.

The Emperor is correct, most of Nixon's black vote, 12% in OTL, will go to RFK. There are also Republican blacks, although minority group Republicans are quite rare. Like James Farmer for example. There will also be a focus on economic development, and deregulation of housing , for minority groups. If the press spins it as "Bipartisan consensus on race" it will go to Congress because of the Dixie reaction. In my opinion his view was, to paraphrase one of my favourite Canucks: "Civil rights if necessary, but not necessarily civil rights."

1968 General Election

Sept 2: The campaign has started in earnest. The key battleground states are Texas, California, Ohio and New Jersey for a total of 107 ECV. Ohio has two Democratic Senators and a Republican Governor, and is too close to call. New Jersey will need outside assistance following the implosion of the Jersey City machine at the Convention. California has Republican Senators and Reagan in the statehouse, but is divided between the Republican, middle-class north and Democratic urban centres. Whoever has the higher turnout will win. In Texas, Democratic fortunes rest on the state's two retiring chief executives, President Johnson and Gov. Connally, though quite reluctantly. As the President privately put it: "We can't have Nixon in the White House, so there's no choice. If Rocky was our opponent I wouldn't lift a damn finger for Bobby in Texas."

Sept. 5: Nixon is planning a tour of the Old Confederacy from 5-19 Sept, then on to California and Ohio from Sept. 21-Oct. 5. Kennedy will send Sanders to the South, but spend time in California, Ohio, New Jersey and Missouri.

Sept 20: In Birmingham, George Wallace denounces both parties for civil rights. He says: "There's no difference between the parties. Bobby Kennedy the blood giver, and Dick Nixon who helped Ike put *negroes* (n-word) in our schools! Keep them out of your home! Meanwhile, Kennedy wants to debate Nixon, but he refuses, as legitimizing Wallace will play havoc with the blue-collar vote nationwide. Also, there's a fine line to tread on civil rights, and Nixon doesn't want to be squeezed from left and right by his two opponents. Instead, he calls on Kennedy to hold a joint press conference "at a mutually convenient time and location", like in 1962. Kennedy refuses, because "we have answered the questions from the press. We haven't shared a stage to debate our views, and this is theatrics from Mr. Nixon."

Oct. 5: Unbeknownst to the candidates, President Johnson is planning a bombing halt for month's end, but they are tentative pending the approval of the Joint Chiefs.

Oct 12: Mid-October polling data shows Nixon leading 41-37-12, with California and Ohio too close to call. New Jersey and Texas have moved into the "soft Democratic" column for now.

Oct 18: In Kansas City, Robert Kennedy calls for "a just peace" in Vietnam. Richard Nixon calls for "peace with honor" during a major address in Pittsburgh.

Oct 24: Kennedy and Nixon are tied 41-39-15 at the moment. At this rate, it's a toss-up.

Oct 26: Anna Chennault contacts President Thieu of South Vietnam. She tells him to expect a better deal from Nixon after January 20, but doesn't dissuade him from attending the Paris peace talks. Little does she know the phone is bugged...

Oct 27: FBI Director Hoover informs President Johnson of the call. While the President is outraged that Mme. Chennault possibly violated the Logan Act, it isn't criminal per se. Johnson then calls Robert Kennedy, who though incensed, and not expecting better from Nixon, agrees that in the interests of national security, it will not be leaked.

Oct 31: President Johnson announces a bombing halt "for an honorable and just peace." Kennedy surges in the polls, and it's now 43-42-13 Nixon.

Nov 2: Kennedy and Nixon campaign in California, Texas and Missouri in the last two days of the election campaign.

Nov 5: Election Day. Record turnout, map below. The results weren't known until the next morning, when North Carolina was finally confirmed in the Republican column. If there had been 3,500 more Wallace votes, it would have gone to the House, which had Democratic majorities, including Dixiecrats.






Richard M. Nixon/Spiro T. Agnew: 281 ECV, 44.2% PV
Robert F. Kennedy/Carl Sanders: 240 ECV, 43.1% PV
George C. Wallace/Curtis Lemay: 17 ECV, 13.7% PV

Incumbent President: Lyndon Johnson (Democratic)
President-elect: Richard Nixon (Republican)

Graciously, President-elect Nixon calls Robert Kennedy on Election Night: "You did a hell of a good job, considering the 800-pound elephant in the room. I know how it feels to lose a close one. Presumably you don't want a job?" "Only the job of loyal leader of the opposition." "Well you and your views on the war are always welcome if you so desire. Good luck Bobby, and there's still time." "Thanks Mr. Nixon." Later Bobby tells Ted "Nixon treated me better than Johnson did in four years, and he was my Republican opponent."

P.S. I won't be able to post updates for a couple of weeks. Restoration will come, soon.

Bump. Comments, suggestions, anyone?

I like the TL a lot. One note, back at the beginning, I think you mentioned SD as HHH's home state; it was actually next door MN. I always have believed Bobby would have beaten Tricky Dick. The five o'clock shadow comment amused me, I once heard Sam Donaldson say that Nixon always loked like he needed a shave.

You're correct, MN was HHH's home state, and that's where he was Minneapolis mayor and Senator. But he was born and raised in SD. Like Gene McCarthy, his junior colleague, he was considered "an honorary South Dakotan." We all have our views on the '68 race, and the TL reflects mine. What made Nixon so formidable was unlimited maneuvering room on civil rights. He also had no problem with dirty tricks. I couldn't imagine Bobby hiring Karl Rove, but Nixon did. Although in many ways Daley is worse, for rigging a state vote is much more blatant than push polling. An interesting thing to watch is the RFK-Reagan debate, where they were loaded curveball questions by anti-American European students (hardly a first, even pre-Bush), and they both defended the US against them. Some of the students looked like those people who waved NV flags in the Vietnam protests. It was universally acknowledged that Reagan did better than RFK there. A Nixon-RFK debate, moderated by the press, would be far more interesting, as I've mentioned in other threads. Imagine Tim Russert doing it. I'd pay whatever it cost to see that...

Good update!

It will be interesting to see where this TL goes from here.

Toryanna68 said:

Sept 2: The campaign has started in earnest. The key battleground states are Texas, California, Ohio and New Jersey for a total of 107 ECV. Ohio has two Democratic Senators and a Republican Governor, and is too close to call. New Jersey will need outside assistance following the implosion of the Jersey City machine at the Convention. California has Republican Senators and Reagan in the statehouse, but is divided between the Republican, middle-class north and Democratic urban centres. Whoever has the higher turnout will win. In Texas, Democratic fortunes rest on the state's two retiring chief executives, President Johnson and Gov. Connally, though quite reluctantly. As the President privately put it: "We can't have Nixon in the White House, so there's no choice. If Rocky was our opponent I wouldn't lift a damn finger for Bobby in Texas."

Sept. 5: Nixon is planning a tour of the Old Confederacy from 5-19 Sept, then on to California and Ohio from Sept. 21-Oct. 5. Kennedy will send Sanders to the South, but spend time in California, Ohio, New Jersey and Missouri.

Sept 20: In Birmingham, George Wallace denounces both parties for civil rights. He says: "There's no difference between the parties. Bobby Kennedy the blood giver, and Dick Nixon who helped Ike put *negroes* (n-word) in our schools! Keep them out of your home! Meanwhile, Kennedy wants to debate Nixon, but he refuses, as legitimizing Wallace will play havoc with the blue-collar vote nationwide. Also, there's a fine line to tread on civil rights, and Nixon doesn't want to be squeezed from left and right by his two opponents. Instead, he calls on Kennedy to hold a joint press conference "at a mutually convenient time and location", like in 1962. Kennedy refuses, because "we have answered the questions from the press. We haven't shared a stage to debate our views, and this is theatrics from Mr. Nixon."

Oct. 5: Unbeknownst to the candidates, President Johnson is planning a bombing halt for month's end, but they are tentative pending the approval of the Joint Chiefs.

Oct 12: Mid-October polling data shows Nixon leading 41-37-12, with California and Ohio too close to call. New Jersey and Texas have moved into the "soft Democratic" column for now.

Oct 18: In Kansas City, Robert Kennedy calls for "a just peace" in Vietnam. Richard Nixon calls for "peace with honor" during a major address in Pittsburgh.

Oct 24: Kennedy and Nixon are tied 41-39-15 at the moment. At this rate, it's a toss-up.

Oct 26: Anna Chennault contacts President Thieu of South Vietnam. She tells him to expect a better deal from Nixon after January 20, but doesn't dissuade him from attending the Paris peace talks. Little does she know the phone is bugged...

Oct 27: FBI Director Hoover informs President Johnson of the call. While the President is outraged that Mme. Chennault possibly violated the Logan Act, it isn't criminal per se. Johnson then calls Robert Kennedy, who though incensed, and not expecting better from Nixon, agrees that in the interests of national security, it will not be leaked.

Oct 31: President Johnson announces a bombing halt "for an honorable and just peace." Kennedy surges in the polls, and it's now 43-42-13 Nixon.

Nov 2: Kennedy and Nixon campaign in California, Texas and Missouri in the last two days of the election campaign.

Nov 5: Election Day. Record turnout, map below. The results weren't known until the next morning, when North Carolina was finally confirmed in the Republican column. If there had been 3,500 more Wallace votes, it would have gone to the House, which had Democratic majorities, including Dixiecrats.

Richard M. Nixon/Spiro T. Agnew: 281 ECV, 44.2% PV
Robert F. Kennedy/Carl Sanders: 240 ECV, 43.1% PV
George C. Wallace/Curtis Lemay: 17 ECV, 13.7% PV

Incumbent President: Lyndon Johnson (Democratic)
President-elect: Richard Nixon (Republican)

Graciously, President-elect Nixon calls Robert Kennedy on Election Night: "You did a hell of a good job, considering the 800-pound elephant in the room. I know how it feels to lose a close one. Presumably you don't want a job?" "Only the job of loyal leader of the opposition." "Well you and your views on the war are always welcome if you so desire. Good luck Bobby, and there's still time." "Thanks Mr. Nixon." Later Bobby tells Ted "Nixon treated me better than Johnson did in four years, and he was my Republican opponent."

P.S. I won't be able to post updates for a couple of weeks. Restoration will come, soon.

Click to expand...

My thoughts? I would suggest trade California for Illinois, add Connecticutt ( there was no way Nixon was going to get the Nutmeg state), subtract Maine -Muskie carried the state which would have normally gone Rebublican. Add one more state to George Wallace; say Louisiana. Therefore RFK gets 230 Electoral votes, Wallace 27, and Nixon 281 and the outcome is stays the same.

Thanks, I'll take that into account for 1976. What were your thoughts on realism, etc?