There was some chatter about ending the EC in the late 60s so maybe! I don’t think gerrymandering was quite the issue it is today in the 70s, or at least not something broadly discussed (and it generally redounded to the benefit of Southern Democrats where it existed)
Bicentennial Man: Ford '76 and Beyond
- Thread starter KingSweden24
- Start date
There was some chatter about ending the EC in the late 60s so maybe! I don’t think gerrymandering was quite the issue it is today in the 70s, or at least not something broadly discussed (and it generally redounded to the benefit of Southern Democrats where it existed)
For those wondering what our exact POD is - Ford doesn’t say “there is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe” during the debate
Ficboy
Banned
Wow, For a Want of a Nail. Also if the Electoral College is abolished and the National Popular Vote replaces it then every election will be very different.
The Democratic Recriminations
"...you lose with Humph, okay, sure. Fine. Vietnam, MLK and RFK are killed, the Chicago riots during the convention, LBJ was unpopular, Nixon ran on law and order, Wallace poached the South... though let's be real, Humph wasn't winning the f**king South. McGovern, the less said the better. Great guy, smarter than he gets credit for, but too easy to paint as the hippie candidate, the scion of the New Left. But after Nixon, after Watergate, the pardon and the economy going in the crapper in '75? Sure, it recovered a *bit*, but come on? Jerry Ford's a nice guy but how do you lose that race? How do you win the popular vote by 300,000 votes but drop the ball in Ohio like that? Why are you telling f**king Playboy you've lusted after other women when the entire basis of your campaign is that you're this decent Southern Sunday school teacher, a genuine saint personally and politically, going up against the ugliness of the Nixon years? I just don't get it. Still don't. Still don't get to this day how Carter blew that race."
- James Carville Interview 1994
"...the Democratic civil war during Ford's full term in the late 70s was ugly but it was better to hash out those rivalries then, while we had both Houses of Congress, than during the 80s once we actually wielded genuine power again. I think the frustration of the McGovern-Carter one-two punch, of getting the doors blown off by the crook then it being so heartbreakingly close, the disaster in Ohio and all, against the hapless stooge who came after him, yeah, I really think that was what the party needed. I think that helped eliminate the do-gooder, managerial, New Left idealism for a lot of people. Twelve years out of the White House, I mean, that was unheard of since Hoover. It really was. People couldn't believe it. I really think we needed that time to reassess."
- Excerpt from "My American Life" by Gary Hart
"...with everything that happened in the late 70s, even as early as inauguration, some people were rolling out "Carter 80" signs, pushing for a rematch. Jimmy went back to Plains and I don't think he ever publicly indulged that speculation. For a long time it seemed like he was leaving politics forever, to go be a hermit in south Georgia and just be a footnote in history, a modern day Sam Tilden, coming oh-so-close but no cigar then fading into obscurity. Of course, thankfully for Georgia and the American body politic, he found a path where he could contribute and use his fame and cachet within the Democratic party for some good. That said, a lot of the more progressive actors in the party who never warmed up to Jimmy really cringed when talk of a rematch swirled around in the early days. He had his shot, was their stance, and honestly I think they were right. I sometimes wonder if he would have wanted to have made the leap. I don't think he loved the spotlight or what that campaign was like, personally."
- Former Georgia Governor George Busbee Interview, "Remembering '76 - A Historical Symposium on the 1976 Presidential Election"
"...there was talk about drafting me to run for President again in four years but I never really looked into it. I didn't feel the fire a second time. I had been an obscure Southern governor nearly vaulted to the White House but there were so many talented Democrats who wanted to lead us into the 1980s, after what would have been 12 years of Republican administrations. I have a few "Carter 80" items in my home, actually, but I would have actual "Carter 80" memorabilia from a very different but very important race that year anyways."
- Georgia Senator James Earl Carter Interview with The Washington Post, 1989
- James Carville Interview 1994
"...the Democratic civil war during Ford's full term in the late 70s was ugly but it was better to hash out those rivalries then, while we had both Houses of Congress, than during the 80s once we actually wielded genuine power again. I think the frustration of the McGovern-Carter one-two punch, of getting the doors blown off by the crook then it being so heartbreakingly close, the disaster in Ohio and all, against the hapless stooge who came after him, yeah, I really think that was what the party needed. I think that helped eliminate the do-gooder, managerial, New Left idealism for a lot of people. Twelve years out of the White House, I mean, that was unheard of since Hoover. It really was. People couldn't believe it. I really think we needed that time to reassess."
- Excerpt from "My American Life" by Gary Hart
"...with everything that happened in the late 70s, even as early as inauguration, some people were rolling out "Carter 80" signs, pushing for a rematch. Jimmy went back to Plains and I don't think he ever publicly indulged that speculation. For a long time it seemed like he was leaving politics forever, to go be a hermit in south Georgia and just be a footnote in history, a modern day Sam Tilden, coming oh-so-close but no cigar then fading into obscurity. Of course, thankfully for Georgia and the American body politic, he found a path where he could contribute and use his fame and cachet within the Democratic party for some good. That said, a lot of the more progressive actors in the party who never warmed up to Jimmy really cringed when talk of a rematch swirled around in the early days. He had his shot, was their stance, and honestly I think they were right. I sometimes wonder if he would have wanted to have made the leap. I don't think he loved the spotlight or what that campaign was like, personally."
- Former Georgia Governor George Busbee Interview, "Remembering '76 - A Historical Symposium on the 1976 Presidential Election"
"...there was talk about drafting me to run for President again in four years but I never really looked into it. I didn't feel the fire a second time. I had been an obscure Southern governor nearly vaulted to the White House but there were so many talented Democrats who wanted to lead us into the 1980s, after what would have been 12 years of Republican administrations. I have a few "Carter 80" items in my home, actually, but I would have actual "Carter 80" memorabilia from a very different but very important race that year anyways."
- Georgia Senator James Earl Carter Interview with The Washington Post, 1989
Kissinger Out
KISSINGER OUT!
- New York Times Headline
- New York Times Headline
"...unlike the "Halloween Massacre" last year that overhauled the entire Cabinet, this year the President elected only to give one of his Cabinet officials the pink slip as he heads into his first full term as President of the United States - Henry Kissinger, Secretary of State since 1969 and also concurrent holder of the National Security Advisor portfolio for much of that time, has been relieved of his duties. Though the move was expected, the announcement over the weekend caught even some administration insiders off guard..."
- The Washington Post, November 1976
"...canning Henry over Thanksgiving had Don [Rumsfeld] written all over it. The knives had been out for a long time and it was well known that Jerry didn't particularly like him either. Still, it was a sudden and harsh move. Don's hope had been that Dick Cheney would get the job and that both him and his protege would then act as "co-architects" of American foreign policy. Whatever hope there was of that was dashed by the end of the week when Ford announced he was tapping George Bush from the CIA to do it. It was the right move, honestly, both from practical experience - George had done really well in China, at the UN, and as CIA Director - and in terms of Jerry being a little leery of the Don and Dick Show, as it came to be known, having full control over his foreign policy decisions. One factor that became really important in the second term was how much power Jerry distributed to his Cabinet secretaries, too - personnel decisions were routed through them first. That's how Charles Robinson got dismissed and Bush tapped Jim Baker to be his Number Two at Foggy Bottom. Baker had earned that spot, that's for sure, and Dick had initially been eyeing State because he was worried Baker was being lined up to replace him as Chief of Staff. In the end though, he joined his friend at State, and the cliquishness at the White House only intensified..."
- Former Vice President Robert Dole
December 3, 1976
"...the assassination of Bob Marley and his manager, Don Taylor, and Marley's wife Rita, at their home in Jamaica on December 3, was an event that shocked not only Jamaica but the entire world. The killing was thought to immediately have political implications - Michael Manley, the Prime Minister, was suspected to have been using Marley's scheduled concert for that night as a fulcrum for his reelection campaign and conspiracy theorists have long surmised that Edward Seaga, Manley's right-wing opponent, ordered the killing. Mass vigils spread around the world in places where Marley's reggae music was popular, and the singer received a state funeral in Jamaica. Manley, of course, won in a landslide."
- "Assassinations in the 1970s"
"...I have always wondered about if Seaga had help from foreign countries. I'm not saying he did, or that the CIA was involved in Bob's death, I just wonder, sometimes. Some people do more than wonder, that's been the case for almost twenty years. It's an article of faith for some that the CIA killed Bob Marley. Me, I just wonder."
- Michael Manley, 1995
- "Assassinations in the 1970s"
"...I have always wondered about if Seaga had help from foreign countries. I'm not saying he did, or that the CIA was involved in Bob's death, I just wonder, sometimes. Some people do more than wonder, that's been the case for almost twenty years. It's an article of faith for some that the CIA killed Bob Marley. Me, I just wonder."
- Michael Manley, 1995
1976 NFL Playoffs
"...incomplete on 3rd and 18! Stabler throws incomplete! Now 4th and long, they need a touchdown to win it, or the NFL-best Raiders go home... INTERCEPTED! Patriots intercept in the endzone, McCray with the interception! [1] That's it, the game's over! Less than a minute left, the Patriots have the ball! Wow! 21-17, one of the biggest upsets I have seen in years!"
- Don Meredith, Raiders-Patriots on NBC
"...Minnesota here in its 4th Super Bowl, Pittsburgh aiming to make it three championships in a row here at the Rose Bowl this afternoon..."
"...Tarkenton with the score! Minnesota up 7 to start us off..."
"Bradshaw throws another interception! Wow, he is not having his day today! That injury he picked up against New England is still really nagging him out there on the field, and boy are they missing not having Franco Harris on the field today either [2]..."
"And that's it, folks! The Vikings get the monkey off their back, take Super Bowl XI 21-10 over the Pittsburgh Steelers! The two-time world champion Steelers miss out on making it three straight, and the Vikings finally get to the promised land! Fourth time's the charm, eh Scully?"
- Don Meredith, Super Bowl XI on NBC
[1] IOTL Stabler got a key roughing the passer call on 3rd and then McCray got a pass interference call. No call, and no McCray is the hero of the game.
[2] Franco Harris missing with injury was a big reason the Steelers lost to the Raiders in the '77 AFC title game instead of making it three straight. Here, this comes back to bite them against the Vikings
- Don Meredith, Raiders-Patriots on NBC
"...Minnesota here in its 4th Super Bowl, Pittsburgh aiming to make it three championships in a row here at the Rose Bowl this afternoon..."
"...Tarkenton with the score! Minnesota up 7 to start us off..."
"Bradshaw throws another interception! Wow, he is not having his day today! That injury he picked up against New England is still really nagging him out there on the field, and boy are they missing not having Franco Harris on the field today either [2]..."
"And that's it, folks! The Vikings get the monkey off their back, take Super Bowl XI 21-10 over the Pittsburgh Steelers! The two-time world champion Steelers miss out on making it three straight, and the Vikings finally get to the promised land! Fourth time's the charm, eh Scully?"
- Don Meredith, Super Bowl XI on NBC
FOURTH TIME'S THE CHARM: VIKINGS BEAT STEELERS 21-10 IN SUPER BOWL
- Star Tribune Headline, January 10, 1977
- Star Tribune Headline, January 10, 1977
[1] IOTL Stabler got a key roughing the passer call on 3rd and then McCray got a pass interference call. No call, and no McCray is the hero of the game.
[2] Franco Harris missing with injury was a big reason the Steelers lost to the Raiders in the '77 AFC title game instead of making it three straight. Here, this comes back to bite them against the Vikings
Yugoslavia
"...Bijedic himself was generally skeptical of the rotating Vice Presidency and, well aware that the country would need a strong leader in the mold of Tito once the Marshal passed. All through 1977 he began aligning himself as closely with Petar Stambolic as he could, nudging him and positioning him to be groomed as a successor to Tito..."[1]
- "Yugoslavia and Communism"
[1] The butterfly here is Djemal Bijedic not dying in January of 1977 in a plane crash and becoming ever-more influential in Belgrade
- "Yugoslavia and Communism"
[1] The butterfly here is Djemal Bijedic not dying in January of 1977 in a plane crash and becoming ever-more influential in Belgrade
Whoa I'd never even heard of this! Hell yeah this is the kind of random but impactful/chaotic butterfly I love to throw into my TLs. Thank you!
If i can contribute several idea then here goes:
1.have the central african empire stay independent because maybe this could change african geopollitics (since i think bekkosa was being friendly to the french and he declare the empire in 1977)
2.maybe have the malari incident in indonesia be the downfall of suharto and perhaps taking oppurtunity make aceh an independent states from indonesia (this could be interesting as aceh was a super religious state and indonesia is a moderate state)
3.maybe make spain get ruled by the hapsburg since france first offered the throne to the hapsburg
1.have the central african empire stay independent because maybe this could change african geopollitics (since i think bekkosa was being friendly to the french and he declare the empire in 1977)
2.maybe have the malari incident in indonesia be the downfall of suharto and perhaps taking oppurtunity make aceh an independent states from indonesia (this could be interesting as aceh was a super religious state and indonesia is a moderate state)
3.maybe make spain get ruled by the hapsburg since france first offered the throne to the hapsburg
I’ll have to look into those first two events! Why would France offer Spain’s throne to anyone though? They already had Juan Carlos
He did offer it to the hapsburg first for some reason and for indonesia the aceh insurgency really kicks off in the 70s,80s and 90s it also during this time the 70s that indonesia invaded east timor due to timor being viewed as a commie indonesia got the backing of both aus and us i think and for africa? The 70s is an interesting year with the rise of people like idi amin in uganda and nguema in equotorial guinea (e guinea got the nickname the dachau of africa under nguema and also fun fact e guinea is a former spanish colony perhaps you can do something interesting here)
Bush as secretary of state? Oh man that's a kickass coup right there.
That's the man's playground.
It really was the ideal Job for his personality, temperament and skillset