WTF- the Confederates gave 20 EVs to a Latin state that's non-Anglo? They were okay with Cuba having that much power?
TL-191 WI/AHC: Featherston not elected President
- Thread starter Techdread
- Start date
Cuba was heavily populate and they would keep that bigger density and sum that both white and black colonist from the continent, plus sugarcane and other cash crop make cuba heavily profitable.
Plus the rule of counting slave/black as part of the census even if they can't vote who they try to use to give more power in the union, backfired them in that regard
bguy
Donor
It's an interesting dilemma for Churchill. Given that in TL-191 the British still lost the First Great War despite having a solid blockade clamped down on Germany, Churchill knows a blockade isn't a guaranteed war winner, so I would think he would err more on the side of not provoking the US into fighting. Still, he probably knows that Smith doesn't really want to fight, so that does give Churchill some room to broker a deal.
Maybe something like Britain won't interfere with the US trade to other neutrals (so no continuous voyage doctrine), and will allow the US to ship non-contraband items (e.g. metal ores, fertilizers, paper, fibers, and foodstuffs) to the Central Powers nations, in exchange for the US respecting the British blockade as to absolute contraband (i.e. arms, munitions, and military equipment) and to conditional contraband (i.e. fuels, railway equipment, clothing suitable for military use, and precious metals.) Smith might be willing to accept a deal on such terms.
Interesting proposal and it would probably work for a few years as a sort of gentlemen's agreement. The sticking point would be fuels. The Central Powers' main source of oil is the Ottoman Empire and the USA. If the British can shut down any pipe line running from Iraq the supply from the USA becomes critical.
There is also another pay off for a neutral USA. War loans to the Central Powers. Handled right the USA could buy some of the Central Powers new technology off the shelf although not the nuclear stuff.
Unless the Entete doing something stupid(like german otl ww1 like) would be pretty hard to do, i think the americans would have bigger gripes with the japanese for the pacific and china and without featherson make rumble south of the border, they would spend all their energies with japan
(that is a butterfly we ignored, the american-japanese war, that and if 1936 olympics game where will be)
So unless Japan joins entente, entete do something stupid in high seas or canada, american will keep neutral but heavilt friendly to CP.
And i think americans would fight harder against any blockade and churchill and other bregundly acepting that, because without americans they still have a chance of victory.
Last edited:
I agree with this, which means that St Petersburg is going to get superbombed as per the books.
You could also have a mirror arrangement working out between the Entente and the CSA as well in terms of supplies in exchanges for technological advancement. It'd also be a strange kind of quasi-proxy war with the USA supplying and aiding the Central Powers without being directly involved and the CSA doing the same with the Entente.
I suspect we'd see little change in terms of the Pacific War; the Richmond Putsch and resulting Freedomite Insurrection might see a change in the US focus away from the CSA, now seen as still weak and riven with instability, and back onto the Pacific against Japan post-war, but nothing to affect the endgame.
With that though, you might see the USA putting more of energies and focus into its air force and navy over the army; Japan is the greater threat rather than their southern neighbour, especially as an inconclusive war has just ended. That would probably take a different turn by the time of 1940 though after Long was revitalised his country and is beginning to make calls for self-determination for Kentucky, Sequoyah and Houston.
bguy
Donor
Would the US even be a major oil exporter in TL-191? It probably has enough oil for domestic purposes what with the deposits in Sequoyah, Houston, Wyoming, and California, but without the oil from Texas and Louisiana would it produce enough oil to export?
Techdread said:
Agreed, though its possible the war might break out later than 1932. IIRC the US found out that the Japanese were shipping arms to Canadian rebels due to a car accident. Butterflies should keep that accident from occurring, so it's possible the US doesn't discover what the Japanese are up to until much later (and maybe not until Canada actually rises up in rebellion, probably sometime in 1933 or 1934.) A later war shouldn't affect the outcome (after all Japan couldn't conquer the Sandwich Islands even when the US was also fighting the Royal Navy in the Atlantic, and had Confederate forces occupying Ohio, so it's very unlikely they'll be able to take them here), but yeah a US that has to not only fight Japan but also put down a major uprising the Japanese inspired will probably be much more leery of Japan thereafter.
Also if the Pacific War doesn't break out until after 1932 then Blackford probably does a little better in the election that year. He'll still lose, but Coolidge's coattails may not be quite as long. That could change things when Smith takes power because if there are a few more Socialists in the Senate then Smith might be able to get Old Age Pensions and Unemployment Insurance enacted in his first term.