Red Spies in the White House: An Alternate Cold War

The Baruch Plan and MacArthurghazi
THE ASSASSINATION OF DOUGLAS MACARTHUR

Despite the controversy over the sudden abolition of the monarchy and the collapse of the Japanese Constitutional Committee, Douglas MacArthur retained a certain respect among the Japanese population. Letters of admiration poured into his office from the Japanese people, including by women who proposed that the General father their children. Despite the reputation he gained as a reactionary from his suppression of the Bonus Army, MacArthur was surprisingly progressive as an imperial administrator, administering land reform and abolishing feudal privileges. Under MacArthur’s administration, there was full freedom of speech, assembly, and dissent. Despite concerns over the subversive potential of the Japanese Communist Party; MacArthur made no effort to restrict or suppress it. MacArthur gave the go-ahead for a massive Communist demonstration to occur on May Day in downtown Tokyo, right in front of his headquarters in the Dai Ichi building.

On May 1st, 1946, hundreds of thousands of Communists assembled for the May Day demonstrations in Tokyo. MacArthur did not address or acknowledge the protests, but observed them from a distance. Crowds gathered near the Dai Ichi, which was guarded by American military police. As MacArthur walked towards the entrance of the Dai Ichi, Hideo Tokayama, leading a band of anti-American extremists, tussled with the military police and launched a grenade at MacArthur. MacArthur was gravely injured by the explosion and was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he would die from internal injuries. The May Day demonstration was rapidly dispersed, with hundreds of Communist protesters arrested as potential suspects on the attack on the Dai Ichi.

All the Allied members of the Far Eastern Commission, including Soviet Commissioner Kislenko, quickly denounced the assassination. President White ordered that all American flags be flown at half-staff in mourning of MacArthur’s death. MacArthur’s body was returned to the United States, and President White spoke at MacArthur’s funeral. Tokayama, a former Japanese Army officer, was tried and executed for MacArthur’s murder. Despite the assassination occurring during a Communist rally, Tokayama seems to have been a right-wing Japanese ultranationalist opposed to the dissolution of the Japanese Empire. Journalists speculated that Tokayama was motivated by MacArthur’s disposing of Hirohito.

There was some initial confusion as to the perpetrators of the plot. The attack on MacArthur occurred on May Day, which led many to assume members of the Japanese Communist Party had killed MacArthur. Initial news reports falsely blamed the Communists for the attack. The Japanese Communist Party fiercely denied any complicity with the plot, denouncing Tokayama as a reactionary monarchist dead-ender. The Japanese Communist Party approved of the abolition of the monarchy, they had no quarrel with MacArthur. Charles Willoughby, MacArthur’s chief of military intelligence, however ordered the arrest of Kyuichi Tokada and thousands of other Communists. Willoughby, who briefly replaced MacArthur as acting Supreme Commander, denounced MacArthur’s assassination as a Communist plot. He only reluctantly released Tokada and the other Communists from custody on orders from Washington. Even after Tokayama and his accomplices were interrogated, Willoughby continued to insist the Communists were behind MacArthur’s death. The White Administration decided to take the opposite line, deciding to use the assassination of MacArthur as a pretext to crackdown on reactionaries and Hirohito apologists. Secretary of War James Forrestal appointed General Robert Eichelberger as the new Supreme Commander in Japan. Eichelberger, acting on orders from Washington, banned the Japan Progressive Party and arrested several prominent Japanese politicians. All organizations professing to belief in Kokutai were also banned, preventing the Japan Progressive Party from reforming into a legal organization. The Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal indicted ten thousand more suspected war criminals. President White charged that Japanese conservatives had openly subverted the occupation, first by torching the Japanese constitutional reform process, and secondly by agitating against the abolition of the monarchy. White blamed pro-monarchy rhetoric for MacArthur’s death, claiming that Tokayama had been incited by the reactionaries. There were scattered incidents of reprisals against Japanese civilians by American troops.

If there were any lingering doubts in the White administration as to whether the prosecution of Hirohito should continue, they were swept away following MacArthur’s death. Ironically MacArthur himself had advised the War Department that prosecuting the Emperor would undermine Japanese political stability. Even Republican opponents of the White administration, however, came to support Hirohito’s prosecution in retaliation for the assassination. The Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal’s eventual decision to sentence Hirohito to death in the fall of 1946 was influenced by the notion that Japanese ultranationalists needed to be punished for Tokayama’s actions. Elections for a new Japanese government scheduled for May were postponed by the Supreme Command of the Allied Powers, leaving Eichelberger in total control over Japan until elections were rescheduled in September. Right-wing, pro-Hirohito, pro-Kokutai candidates were explicitly banned by the Allies from running for office. While the Liberal Party gained votes from those who supported Kokutai due to the absence of right-wing competitors, the performance of the left-wing parties exceeded expectations. The Socialist Parties received 25% of the seats in the Japanese Diet, while the Communists won 10% of the seats. The Liberal Party was further hampered by the Allies banning several of their candidates from serving in government due to their suspected complicity with the Japanese Imperial government. Shigeru Yoshida, the leader of the Liberal Party, was forced to ask the Socialist Party to join his coalition in order to receive the majority necessary to win the premiership. General Eichelberger approved the coalition and recognized Yoshida as Prime Minister. Eichelberger was mainly interested in preventing the Communists from joining the governing coalition, particularly given that the strong communist performance in the legislative elections of the recently established French Fourth Republic dominated the international headlines.

Charles Willoughby continued to insist that the Communists were responsible for MacArthur’s murder, and that Tokayama was a Communist dupe. Willoughby attempted to undermine the Allied Command’s crackdown on Hirohito loyalists, and instead ordered his subordinates to target Japanese leftists. Willoughby, perhaps influenced by increased criticism in the American Press that President White was soft on communism, claimed that President White had covered up the Tokayama’s communist ties in order to preserve relations with the Soviet Union. Willoughby made such comments to a visiting reporter for Life Magazine. James Forrestal quickly ordered Willoughby be dismissed from the Army entirely. Willoughby returned to the United States in August of 1946, joining George Patton on his anti-White “Go to Hell, Harry!” speaking tour. Willoughby called President White a Communist, and even insinuated that White was complicit in MacArthur’s death. Given Willoughby’s close relation with MacArthur, his conspiracy theory was reported on in all the national newspapers, making him a hero to Republicans campaigning in the 1946 congressional elections. President White decided to personally respond to Willoughby’s allegations, harshly but accurately pointing out that Willoughby was in fact a German-born fascist originally named Adolf, and that Willoughby’s popularity among conservative Republicans indicated latent Nazi sympathies. (Willoughby was an open admirer of Francisco Franco, and had received a medal from Mussolini.) “Adolph Wiedelbach [Willoughby’s birth name] is an almost perfect copy of Hitler, all he needs is the mustache,” President White remarked to a gaggle of reporters in front of the White House. White further attacked Willoughby as an anti-Semite, and said that he had fought on the wrong side of the war. “We already have one raving-mad anti-Semite named Adolf on the loose, do we really need another?” quipped Freda Kirchwey of The Nation. Republicans nevertheless used Willoughby to turn MacArthur’s death into a campaign issue, suggesting that White was obscuring the true details of the assassination. House Minority Leader Joseph Martin promised to open a congressional investigation into the matter should the Republicans win control of Congress.


THE BARUCH PLAN: NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT

Despite Republican criticism of President White’s continued cooperation with the Soviet Union following the invasion of Iran, the President remained optimistic that the United States and the Soviet Union could cooperate to maintain world peace. Iran, argued White, was an unusual situation unlikely to be repeated- the Shah, after all, had started the conflict by infringing upon Kurdish national sovereignty. While the Soviets had acted excessively in seizing Tehran, they had only done so because they had been provoked. The Soviets would not launch an unprovoked invasion. President White chose to ignore Soviet actions at the start of World War II, when Stalin launched wars of aggression and conquest against Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland- although this was pointed out by Robert McCormick of the Chicago Tribune. The Nation magazine replied to McCormick that the Soviets had acted to establish a secure frontier in Eastern Europe and that the Soviets did not wish to expand beyond Russia’s traditional sphere of influence.

The White Administration decided to move forward with proposed agreements with the Soviet Union. In June of 1946, President White announced his support for the Baruch Plan. The idea had been presented by Bernard Baruch, former advisor to President Wilson, before the U.N Atomic Energy Commission. Baruch called for all the countries of the United Nations to agree to abandon any efforts to use nuclear technology for offensive purposes- in particular the development of nuclear weapons. In practice, this meant that the United Nations would enforce a global ban on nuclear weapons, and that the United States would dismantle its’ nuclear weapons program. Not only did Baruch’s proposal call for the United States to eliminate all of its’ nuclear arsenal, it meant the United States would shut down its nuclear laboratory in Los Alamos. The Baruch Plan allowed for the continued development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. Under the Baruch Plan, United Nations weapons inspectors would visit and investigate the major powers for evidence of nuclear weapons development in compliance with the compact.

At the time the Baruch Plan was proposed, the United States was the only country publicly known to possess nuclear weapons. The only other country suspected of harboring nuclear ambitions was the Soviet Union. President White announced he would only support the Baruch Plan if it was agreed to by the Soviet Union. Surprisingly, the Soviets quickly agreed to President White’s demands. Duggan and Molotov, meeting in London, committed to a bilateral agreement under which both the United States and the Soviet Union would eliminate their nuclear weapons programs. President White signed an executive order disbanding the Manhattan Project after Stalin declared the Soviet Union would abide by the terms of the Baruch Plan. The Soviet Union agreed to receive visits from Atomic Energy Commission weapons inspectors personally chosen by U.N Secretary General Alger Hiss. France and the United Kingdom announced their support for the Baruch Plan, and the United Nations Security Council passed a modified version of the Baruch Plan, instituting an international ban on nuclear weapons.

President White boasted to the American media that he had achieved world peace. The rapid Soviet concession to the Baruch Plan was touted by the Democrats as a major diplomatic victory and a sign of the President’s foreign policy acumen. Senate Republicans, including Robert Taft, criticized the President not submitting the Baruch Plan as a treaty before Congress, which would have required a two-thirds majority approval. The initial establishment of the Manhattan Project had been entirely under the purview of the executive branch and without the approval of Congress. Control over America’s nuclear weapons program was thus entirely at the President’s discretion, allowing White to dismantle the Manhattan Project without the consent of Congress. A proposed bill by Senator John Bricker called for the United States to withdraw from the Baruch Plan and resume building nuclear weapons, but this bill languished in congressional committee and never came to a floor vote. Internationally, Winston Churchill denounced the Baruch Plan and the Attlee government’s ratification of the Plan in the United Nations Security Council. Churchill said that the Western Allies needed nuclear weapons for defensive purposes, and that the Soviet Union could not be trusted to abide by the agreement. Churchill denounced the Baruch Plan as appeasement, declaring the U.N adoption of the plan a “Second Munich.” This caused a rift with Bernard Baruch, who was Churchill’s close personal friend. In correspondence with Baruch, Churchill said that the Communists were axiomatically opposed to a permanent alliance with capitalist nations, and that Baruch was being deceived by the Soviet Union. Churchill further denounced President White’s closeness with the Soviet Union, calling him a patsy for Stalin. Baruch was shocked by his friend’s vehement opposition against his diplomatic efforts. Baruch was a registered Democrat and supporter of the President. He had visited the White House and appeared publicly with White to announce the Baruch Plan. In letters responding to Churchill, Baruch defended White and called Churchill hysterical and irrational. The use of the atomic bomb had been a terrible necessity to defeat the Axis. The use and development of atomic weapons should remain an aberration isolated to a single war. President Winant was so horrified by the effects of the weapon that he had taken his own life. Churchill’s friend Winant would still be alive if he had never used the atom bomb on Hiroshima, wrote Baruch. To this claim, Churchill chose not to respond. While he told Baruch he bore him no personal animus their friendship nevertheless grew more distant.

The most extreme response came from Senator Theodore Bilbo. Bilbo pointed out that White, Baruch and J. Robert Oppenheimer (who supported the dismantling of the weapons he had developed) were all Jewish. The Baruch Plan, reasoned Bilbo, was a Jewish plot to dismantle America’s national defense and leave it vulnerable to attack from the Soviet Union, which Bilbo claimed was also under Jewish control. Bilbo’s anti-Semitic criticisms of the Baruch Plan would later gain traction in certain circles.

The critics of the Baruch Plan were in the minority, however. Baruch was an esteemed elder statesman, and his name lent legitimacy to President White’s foreign policy, shielding the President from attacks that he was a naïve novice. The only living man to have ordered the use of the atomic bomb had also guaranteed their global disposal.


OPPENHEIMER IN THE OVAL OFFICE

J. Robert Oppenheimer shook hands with the President. “It’s an honor, sir. Nobody is more pleased than myself with the United Nations ratifying the Baruch Plan. I’m glad the U.N agreed with my recommendations- it is an enormous relief. If the great powers were allowed to build atomic weapons without restriction, it would be the end of civilization. I feared becoming some dark Prometheus. But now, you have saved us. I will not be the man who brought about the ruin of the human race.”

The President smiled. “You know, we two share a special burden. You built the weapon that won us the war, and I was the one who used it. There is a weight upon our shoulders that no other men will know- and nor should they. I feel no guilt for my actions- we did what had to be done, for the forward progress of history. But though I have no regrets, I was never comfortable with the whole affair. I never asked for this responsibility, it came to me by accident. I was thrust into the most stressful job in the country, in the most consequential period in our history. The generals, they explained to me what I needed to do, and I did it. I used to be an academic you know, before I entered the Roosevelt administration- writing papers, doing research, proposing plans- that was my line of work. But once I became President, nobody cared about that. I became the man who destroyed Nagasaki. And if that is to be my mark on history, then so be it. But that should not be my only mark on history. Let me be remembered for something better. The horrors we unleashed should never be repeated. Together, we will be remembered not as bringers of death but as bringers of peace.”

Oppenheimer spoke. “It may seem rotten to say so, but I think we owe a debt to John Winant. He was wracked with guilt over the destruction of Hiroshima. I saw pictures of the celebrations in New York City on V-Day, our countrymen were right to be jubilant. But I feared we might suffer from an arrogant and dangerous triumphalism- that we would relish not just our victory, but the death of the millions needed to achieve that victory. Winant recognized the devastation unleashed on Hiroshima- he understood the full implications of what he had done, more than either of us. And he could not live with that understanding. His death tempered American pride, helped the United States understand that the atomic bomb should not be taken lightly- that we should mourn the people of Hiroshima, and Nagasaki, and Tokyo, and all the other cities we bombed. Because of Winant, the American people learned to treat our actions in Japan properly- with somberness, with sadness. Without Winant’s guilt, there would be no Baruch Plan. People say that Roosevelt chose the wrong man for the job, but I say he chose the right man entirely. Winant’s humanity, his decency may have saved us all.”

The President paused. “That’s one way to look at it. I don’t like thinking about Winant- his life was strange and sad. He could not handle the weight given to him by Roosevelt. People say that I can’t handle that weight either, that the accidental President is not fit to be President. The circumstances of his death- they make me uneasy, ashamed that I benefited from his melancholy, his instability. Let’s not dwell on it. I do have instructions for you, Robert. I want the Manhattan Project destroyed in its entirety. All the manufacturing facilities, all the laboratories, the equipment, the material- all of it should be eliminated, disposed of. I don’t want there to even be the possibility that the United States builds another weapon. Burn your notes, if there’s any information not relevant to the peaceful development of atomic energy. There will be no covert continuation of the Manhattan Project- let us adhere to the Baruch Plan completely.” The President took a bottle of wine off his desk. “Let us drink, friend- to being the last men to ever use an atomic weapon. L’Chaim!”



A SECRET WAR DEPARTMENT MEMO

Dear Mr. Edgar Sengier:

You recently requested an update regarding the War Department’s recent purchase of uranium from Katanga. We ordered and received this shipment before the Baruch Plan was ratified by the United Nations. Per War Department policy, we are not at liberty to reveal the whereabouts or use of dangerous fissile material. This information is classified; as a foreign citizen you are not eligible for the proper security clearances to access this information. Unfortunately, we must deny your request for the return of the uranium. Rest assured, the United States will uphold her obligations to the United Nations and pursue a policy of peace and non-belligerence.

The contents and existence of this letter are classified; and you should discuss it with no one.

Sincerely,

Victor Perlo



KAZAKHSTAN: JUNE 15, 1946

Igor Kurchatov gazed at the other occupants of the plane. In addition to his fellow Soviet scientists, Werner Von Heisenberg and Otto Han were present. Both men had reluctantly cooperated with their project, and today they appeared quiet and apprehensive. All of the men were wearing goggles. There was someone else on the plane, someone without any scientific credentials- Beria. Beria, too, was wearing goggles, with a maniacal grin plastered over his face. “This shall be the hour of our triumph!” Beria cried. “The Americans, fools that they are, will be left in the dust. Stalin will reward us greatly!” Beria laughed hysterically.

Kurchatov looked out of the plane, staring at the enormous cloud of dust and ash rising over the plains of Kazakhstan.
 
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That plus everyone from the United Nations that also joined the Baruch Plan and therefore wont even get the chance to develope their own nukes
 
In fact, there could be even more nuclear proliferation after the communist plot is exposed.
With the US not providing a massive nuclear umbrella (and an overwhelmingly superior number of weapons until the late 60's), just about every country wealthy enough, or almost wealthy enough, is going to try to build their own bomb. It could be much like For All Time where 30 or so countries all have active nuclear stockpiles. Even if the US does get back in the Bomb business they are going to have to play catchup instead of simply increasing their lead. With the USSR in control of missile technology in the 50's and 60's they may have an advantage. ABM systems would be more prevalent in this TL and there would be no treaty limiting the development and deployment of ABMs. Moscow may have 10 ABMs to protect it's capitol. Better economic and industrial conditions (maybe by a man like Kaganovich) would lead to a stronger nuclear and air force while slimming down the army from something like 5 million to 3.5 million, cutting down on the massive amount of outdated equipment pressed into service to keep the numbers up.

Edit: and request for Ulysses: Kill Beria please, fuck that guy. Thank you for your consideration
 
Excuse my English, it's not as good as it should be.

Stalin's original plan was to start the same with de-Stalinization and after his death to be succeeded by a collective command, in fact he had proposed that they increase the participation of young party members to replace the old guard both for reasons of age and also bring experience to the new and new ideas to the old, at the same time he also intended to maintain the increase in the size of the presidium of the central committee from 11 to 25 to strengthen this collective command (no, he was not planning a purge as Khrushchev claimed nor was he thinking of eliminate Molotov and Kaganovich) so in this timeline, with much less international pressure, he could very well get away with it and leave behind a USSR of collective command... which would be fun because it would be a greater Soviet democracy while the Neo-Nazism grows in the West.
 
Do a 'The North Star is Red'
>gets into power
>is a reformist
>is such a terrible person he makes things go to hell anyway
> He also dies in the most painful way possible and his successors are basically the Russian version of Pol Pot.

George Patton
Charles Willoughby
Ah Christ, we are getting a presidential ticket with these two, aren't we? Being a minority in the US isn't going to be fun,
At least the Japanese Liberal Party doesn't exist anymore in this TL
 
I never understood that rule. How would someone who immigrated when they were two or three be any more swayed by their parent's nation than any child of immigrants born in the US?
 
After the Commies in the United states are exposed the Baruch plan is dead as a doorknob
But how long will it take them to catch up with a stronger USSR that has a much better economy? And who says that they would want a massive arsenal capable of flattening the world 100x over when they really just want a national deterrent.
 
I quite like this ironic fate that keeps happening to White's enemies, their surprisingly correct accusations should be investigated but their racism and far right nature makes them dismissed by everyone who does not want to believe them.

By the way will the Philippines be given freedom sooner? You know cause White is a anti colonist.
 
With the US not providing a massive nuclear umbrella (and an overwhelmingly superior number of weapons until the late 60's), just about every country wealthy enough, or almost wealthy enough, is going to try to build their own bomb. It could be much like For All Time where 30 or so countries all have active nuclear stockpiles. Even if the US does get back in the Bomb business they are going to have to play catchup instead of simply increasing their lead. With the USSR in control of missile technology in the 50's and 60's they may have an advantage. ABM systems would be more prevalent in this TL and there would be no treaty limiting the development and deployment of ABMs. Moscow may have 10 ABMs to protect it's capitol. Better economic and industrial conditions (maybe by a man like Kaganovich) would lead to a stronger nuclear and air force while slimming down the army from something like 5 million to 3.5 million, cutting down on the massive amount of outdated equipment pressed into service to keep the numbers up.

Edit: and request for Ulysses: Kill Beria please, fuck that guy. Thank you for your consideration
This is a dystopia, so sadly I dont think Beria is going to die anytime soon
 
I quite like this ironic fate that keeps happening to White's enemies, their surprisingly correct accusations should be investigated but their racism and far-right nature makes them dismissed by everyone who does not want to believe them.
White's enemies are far-right lunatics while White himself is a naive idiot. It's hard to know how to root for. Going by the late-show foreshadowing with an open live T.V Nazi apologist sketch, we already have an idea where this is going to go.
 
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