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Chapter 35: The Priest Presidency, 1955-1960, Part 2
MCCORKER ANNOUNCES CANDIDACY
SAVANNAH, GA - In a fiery speech given to a hospitable hometown crowd, Senator Leonard McCorker of the Nationalist Party announced that he was running for the presidency. “We must take our party back, and we must ensure that the moral course set out by President Nolan is maintained. The current administration has strayed too far. But as bad as Priest has been, allowing a Liberal or, God forbid, a Communalist, to take control of Washington House would be far worse.” McCorker appeals to the social conservative wing of the Nationalist Party, but those more focused on business and state’s rights are less enthused by his candidacy, and there is expected to be a strong primary fight between the Senator from Georgia and at least two or three other contenders.
“McCorker Announces Candidacy,” New Orleans Star, December 10, 1959.
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LINCOLN PROMISES “NEW AMERICA” IN CANDIDACY ANNOUNCEMENT
INDIANAPOLIS - Senator Georgina Lincoln, formerly the governor of Indiana who was the vice presidential candidate for the CPUS during the 1954 election, has announced that she hopes to be her party’s nominee for the presidency this November. Making the announcement at the site of her childhood home in the Indianapolis suburb of New Owensville, Lincoln told those gathered in the local Community Hall that “We need a new America! One that takes care of the workers and common folk, one that does not put the needs of captains of industry before the needs of the laborers in their factories. An America that accepts every citizen just as they are and does not expect them to conform to some idealized version of humanity that does not exist. We need an America that will not discriminate against people because of who they love. We need an America that looks to its future for inspiration, not its past.”
As our readers are aware CPUS does not conduct primary elections like the Liberals or the Nationalists, instead conducting local, state, and finally national level party congresses to decide on candidates and platform, so we will not know until the May party congress just who pulls ahead as the likley candidate, but Mrs. Lincoln has a strong following and seems to be the early frontrunner.
“Lincoln Promises “New America” in Candidacy Announcement,” The American Worker, January 2, 1960.
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MCCORKER LEADS ORTON IN PRIMARIES
FRANKLIN - Senator Leonard McCorker leads Representative Sean Orton of Ohio in the first three rounds of Nationalist Party primaries, currently having taken place in about half of the states. Orton, a moderate, is campaigning hard on being the “next generation” of the Nationalist Party. At 37, he’s one of the youngest candidates to ever seek the presidency, and nearly thirty years younger than McCorker. Orton claims that “for the Nationalist Party to remain relevant in the second half of the twentieth century, it has to let go of some of the social morality issues that Nolan and now McCorker and their supporters have been harping on.”
Despite early returns in favor of McCorker, it is still too early to make any predictions. Several populous states that lean Nationalist, such as Oregon or Missouri, have yet to vote, and in those states McCorker is not as popular. Also, regardless of how the primary elections go, a third of the delegates at the summer party convention are “free will delegates,” mostly state and federal office holders within the party, who act as sort of a guiding hand, and McCorker has not won over many friends from that group.
“McCorker Leads Orton in Primaries,” Boston Eagle, March 4, 1960.
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POTTER CONCEDES TO SIMPSON AND ANDREWS
ASTORIA - Katherine Potter, who had been the vice presidential Liberal Party nominee for the 1954 election before the tragedy of the Phillips assassination propelled her into the top spot on the ticket, has conceded to Elijah Simpson, the Governor of Pennsylvania, and Sherri Andrews, Representative from Louisiana, after losing all of the primary races held in this most recent round of voting by the Liberal party. After a strong start in the January primaries, coming in first in three states and second in three more, she came in last place in all but two states in February, and bottomed out in every race this month. “It is clear to me that Liberal Party voters are focused on either Governor Simpson or Representative Andrews, and so it is time for me to bow out and let the party decide which of these two candidates deserves to be our nominee in November.” Potter is refusing to back either remaining candidate, but says she will support whoever wins the final nomination at this summer’s party convention.
“Potter Concedes to Simpson,” Astoria Dispatch, March 23, 1960.
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TELECINEMA IN COLOR? TEST BROADCAST A SUCCESS IN CALIFORNIA
SAN FRANCISCO - Almost since the outset of commercially viable telecinema broadcasts, the public and industry insiders alike have clamored for the day when such transmissions would appear on our TC screens in “living color.” Now, it looks like that day has arrived, with successful tests made in the Californian city of San Francisco. Jose Milton, director of TeleCine de California Uno, or TCC-1, the republic’s biggest private telecinema broadcaster, announced that a month-long test of color transmissions in the San Francisco Bay area had been a success. “The technology works. We have been working with companies here in California and in Texas, and hope to make this a regular thing in the near future.”
Companies such as Cine America out of California and FuturTechnik out of Texas were involved in this project, and they both say that the technology is now feasible, and it is only a matter of making affordable TC sets that can be purchased by the general public, and helping broadcasters adapt their transmission capabilities. FuturTechnik CEO Ferdinand Meyer thinks that color telecinema broadcasts are likely to become common place by the end of the decade.
“Telecinema in Color? Test Broadcast a Success in California,” St. Louis Courier, April 18, 1960.
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LINCOLN CONFIRMED BY CPUS ANNUAL CONGRESS
PHILADELPHIA - The Communalist Party of the United States has officially voted to make Georgina Lincoln, Senator and former Governor of Indiana, their party’s candidate for the upcoming presidential election this November. This will be the seventh time that a CPUS candidate will be on the national presidential ballot, and the first time for a woman to be the party’s nominee. In a bold move, the CPUS nominated Alexandra Clayborn, a representative from Mississippi, as Lincoln’s running mate. This is the first time in American history that any political party has nominated only women for their national ticket, and if they win the duo will make history in several ways: first woman president; first communalist president; first black woman vice president. The popularity of the communalist party has been gaining in recent years, and most political observers believe that the nation will either choose the CPUS or the Liberals, after twelve years of Nationalist control of Washington House.
“Lincoln Confirmed by CPUS Annual Congress,” Brooklyn Standard, May 4, 1960.
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NATIONALIST CONVENTION DEADLOCK
FORT CALHOUN - As the Nationalists gather in the capital and largest city of Platte, their party seems divided and in deadlock as to who their nominee for the presidency should be. The primaries have ended in a dead heat between ultra-conservative Leonard McCorker and moderate Sean Orton, representing not just two different ideologies but also two different generations. When the Global War ended in 1938, Orton was just finishing secondary school. McCorker was leading men in the fight to keep Choson from being overrun. Orton thinks that the party should give up it’s anti-homophilia stance. McCorker believes they should double-down in their defense of “God’s moral order.”
In the end, it will come down to the “free-will delegates,” members of Congress and state legislatures who are supposed to serve as a “guiding hand” to the party. Among those men (and a few women), McCorker is not as popular, and that may be what breaks the deadlock.
“Nationalist Convention Deadlock,” New Orleans Star, July 10, 1960.
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MASS WALKOUT BY MCCORKER AND SUPPORTERS
FORT CALHOUN - After the party convention announced last night that Sean Orton had been elected as the Nationalists’ presidential candidate, rival Senator McCorker of Georgia and most of his supporters stormed out of the convention in protest after McCorker announced that the nomination had been stolen by “non-elected hack delegates” and that he would not support Orton’s run. Nearly one in four delegates left the convention center in downtown Fort Calhoun, and it seems likely that McCorker will try and launch an independent bid for the presidency.
“Mass Walkout By McCorker and Supporters,” Franklin Observer, July 13, 1960.
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MCCORKER WILL RUN AS INDEPENDENT, MAKING FOR FOUR WAY RACE
FORT CALHOUN - Senator Leonard McCorker of Georgia has announced that he will be launching an independent bid to become president of the United States, after the Nationalist Party voted to back Representative Sean Orton of Ohio as their nominee. “This nation is on the brink or moral chaos, and too many in our party have become complacent as the Liberals and godless Communalists have rolled out one corruptive piece of legislation after another. James Nolan tried to make a course correction, but Timothy Priest gave in to the immorality that is sweeping the nation.
This announcement means that there will be a four way race for the presidency after all, between McCorker, Orton, CPUS candidate Georgina Lincoln, and the soon-to-be confirmed Liberal candidate, likely Elijah Simpson. This split within the Nationalists is likely to lead to a repeat of the 1958 congressional elections, which saw Morality League candidates try and remove sitting moderate Nationalists, which resulted in huge gains for the CPUS and the Liberals.
“McCorker Will Run as Independent, Making for Four Way Race,” Chicago Herald, July 14, 1960.
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SIMPSON CHOOSES EUBANKS AS RUNNING MATE AHEAD OF CONVENTION
BROOKLYN - Elijah Simpson, who has secured more than enough delegates to win the Liberal nomination for the presidency when the party convention starts later this week, has announced today that he is picking Juliana Eubanks as his running mate. This seems to be a popular move among wide swaths of the party faithful, and will likely pull in supporters of Simpson’s rival, Sherri Andrews. This also means that three of the four vice presidential nominees are women, a first in American history. In addition to Eubanks, there is Alexandra Clayborn of the CPUS, and Lucille Barrow that Nationalist candidate Sean Orton is running with. Only the independent ticket of Senator McCorker and his running mate, Jack Spencer, remains all-male.
“Simpson Chooses Eubanks as Running Mate Ahead of Convention,” Brooklyn Standard, August 1, 1960.
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MILLIONS TUNE IN TO WATCH FOUR-WAY DEBATE
NEW ORLEANS - An estimated seven million people tuned their telecinema sets in to watch the first of two planned telecinemagraphed debates between the four candidates for the Presidency, which will be broadcast live from New Orleans on ABN and PBC, the two largest national telecinema networks. One of the biggest things people were looking out for are how Senator McCorker and Representative Orton will act towards each other, the two bitter rivals that seem to have split the support of the Nationalists. The other thing that viewers were hoping to see was how well Georgina Lincoln of the CPUS handles herself. As the Nationalist vote is likely to split, the election will probably come down to a competition between Lincoln and her Liberal opponent, Elijah Simpson.
The hour and a half debate did not disappoint, allowing all the candidates to get some key screen time. When the four candidates came out and greeted one another, Senator McCorker notably did not shake the hand of Simpson, and tried to ignore his fellow Nationalist as much as possible. When asked by the moderator, ABN’s senior evening news anchor Charles Locke, asked the Senator if he was worried that his campaign would cost the Nationalists Washington House, McCorker replied, “I am the only true Nationalist running. If the party has been abandoned by those that are more worried about money and power than in true leadership and moral fortitude, I say good riddance. I believe we can still win the presidency next month, but even if we do not, we true Nationalists will be back and we will make ourselves heard.”
Senator Lincoln also had several shining moments. When McCorker promised to reestablish the Office of Morality, she challenged by saying, “Senator, aren’t you tired of your crusade? How many lives must you crush to satisfy the altar of your Old Testament deity?” McCorker then responded, saying, “There you go Mr. Locke, a prime example of the godlessness of the Communalist Party. Senator Lincoln and all who follow her politics are unfit to lead. They do not acknowledge the Almight..” at this point the Senator from Indiana interrupted, saying, “Now hold on Senator, you do not get to deride my faith and call me godless on national telecinema and get away with it. No sir! I am a faithful Christian. I believe in Christ’s message of love and forgiveness, and that we are called to show that love to our fellow man. It is precisely because of my Christian faith that I am a Communalist, not in spite of it.”
“Millions Tune in to Watch Four-Way Debate,” St. Louis Courier, October 12, 1960.
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LINCOLN, ORTON BEST MCCORKER, SIMPSON IN SECOND DEBATE
WILBURTON, IO - After the second telecinemagraphed debate, this time at the campus of the University of Iowa, most polsters believe that Georgina Lincoln and Sean Orton came out in the lead. This surprises some, who felt that Elijah Simpson would be battling it out with Senator Lincoln for top spot, not trailing behind with the mostly unpopular McCorker. Political science professor Eliza Kent of the University of the United States explained it thus: “Lincoln and Simpson are too much alike in message. A new America says she, a new tomorrow says Simpson. And people are excited about the prospect of electing the first female president. Not to mention the CPUS is one the rise nationally. I wouldn’t be surprised if we even see an elector or two in historically conservative states that have never given any to the CPUS to have at least one vote go to Senator Lincoln. This is why Orton has been able to rise to number two. Somewhere between half and two thirds of Nationalists don’t like McCorker, so they’re siding with him. And since he presents a clearer alternative to Lincoln that the Liberal candidate, undecided voters who find voting for a communalist too radical a choice, Orton makes a nice alternative. He’s young, charismatic, and full of vitality. He’s twenty years younger than Lincoln too, which also adds to the contrast.
“Lincoln, Orton Best McCorker, Simpson in Second Debate,” Franklin Observer, October 20, 1960.
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LINCOLN TAKES FIRST IN ELECTION, SIMPSON OR ORTON EXPECTED TO SUPPORT
FRANKLIN - Senator Georgina Lincoln of the Communalist Party of the United States has won the most electoral votes in yesterday’s election, 218 out of 582 up for grabs. It takes 292 electoral votes to win the presidency, so it is likely expected that either Elijah Simpson (who won 164 votes) or Sean Orton (who won 132 votes) will lend their support and push Lincoln past the finish line. In fourth place, Senator McCorker’s independent bid for the presidency managed to gain 68 electoral votes, robbing Orton of second place.
“Lincoln Takes First in Election, Simpson or Orton Expected to Support,” Boston Eagle, November 2, 1960.
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SIMPSON GIVES SUPPORT TO LINCOLN: WE ARE OVERDUE FOR A FEMALE PRESIDENT
FRANKLIN - Representative Elijah Simpson announced today that he would be giving the 164 electors he won during the election two weeks ago over to Senator Georgina Lincoln’s campaign, effectively making her the winner of the 1960 presidential election. In his statement, Simpson told reporters that, “The Liberal and Communalist Party, while not seeing eye to eye on a vast number of issues, believe in the overall vision of a brighter future for the average American citizen, not the rich elite. Nor do we believe that the role of the federal government is to shy away into obscurity and allow for a hodgepodge of state regulations to strangle our united republic. Therefore, I am giving my full support to Senator Lincoln. And frankly, we are overdue for a female president. We are the last member of the North American Union to have never had a female leader.”
“Simpson Gives Support to Lincoln: We are Overdue for a Female President,” Brooklyn Standard, November 15, 1960.
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At long last, the Priest Presidency update is finished!
I hope you enjoy! Like I said earlier, this will probably be the last new update for a little while. Grad school work is going to start increasing over the next month and a half and I need to focus there. I'll still be working on this as I can, but I doubt I will have a new full update like this until May at the earliest.
As always, any question, suggestions, or critiques, feel free to post them below. Happy to discuss the TL, just won't be able to make another major update for a bit.
Thank you all for your continued support of this TL. Also, if you haven't yet voted for the Turtledoves, this TL is in the running so consider voting for Washington Burns if you haven't already.
Now, on to homework
SAVANNAH, GA - In a fiery speech given to a hospitable hometown crowd, Senator Leonard McCorker of the Nationalist Party announced that he was running for the presidency. “We must take our party back, and we must ensure that the moral course set out by President Nolan is maintained. The current administration has strayed too far. But as bad as Priest has been, allowing a Liberal or, God forbid, a Communalist, to take control of Washington House would be far worse.” McCorker appeals to the social conservative wing of the Nationalist Party, but those more focused on business and state’s rights are less enthused by his candidacy, and there is expected to be a strong primary fight between the Senator from Georgia and at least two or three other contenders.
“McCorker Announces Candidacy,” New Orleans Star, December 10, 1959.
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LINCOLN PROMISES “NEW AMERICA” IN CANDIDACY ANNOUNCEMENT
INDIANAPOLIS - Senator Georgina Lincoln, formerly the governor of Indiana who was the vice presidential candidate for the CPUS during the 1954 election, has announced that she hopes to be her party’s nominee for the presidency this November. Making the announcement at the site of her childhood home in the Indianapolis suburb of New Owensville, Lincoln told those gathered in the local Community Hall that “We need a new America! One that takes care of the workers and common folk, one that does not put the needs of captains of industry before the needs of the laborers in their factories. An America that accepts every citizen just as they are and does not expect them to conform to some idealized version of humanity that does not exist. We need an America that will not discriminate against people because of who they love. We need an America that looks to its future for inspiration, not its past.”
As our readers are aware CPUS does not conduct primary elections like the Liberals or the Nationalists, instead conducting local, state, and finally national level party congresses to decide on candidates and platform, so we will not know until the May party congress just who pulls ahead as the likley candidate, but Mrs. Lincoln has a strong following and seems to be the early frontrunner.
“Lincoln Promises “New America” in Candidacy Announcement,” The American Worker, January 2, 1960.
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MCCORKER LEADS ORTON IN PRIMARIES
FRANKLIN - Senator Leonard McCorker leads Representative Sean Orton of Ohio in the first three rounds of Nationalist Party primaries, currently having taken place in about half of the states. Orton, a moderate, is campaigning hard on being the “next generation” of the Nationalist Party. At 37, he’s one of the youngest candidates to ever seek the presidency, and nearly thirty years younger than McCorker. Orton claims that “for the Nationalist Party to remain relevant in the second half of the twentieth century, it has to let go of some of the social morality issues that Nolan and now McCorker and their supporters have been harping on.”
Despite early returns in favor of McCorker, it is still too early to make any predictions. Several populous states that lean Nationalist, such as Oregon or Missouri, have yet to vote, and in those states McCorker is not as popular. Also, regardless of how the primary elections go, a third of the delegates at the summer party convention are “free will delegates,” mostly state and federal office holders within the party, who act as sort of a guiding hand, and McCorker has not won over many friends from that group.
“McCorker Leads Orton in Primaries,” Boston Eagle, March 4, 1960.
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POTTER CONCEDES TO SIMPSON AND ANDREWS
ASTORIA - Katherine Potter, who had been the vice presidential Liberal Party nominee for the 1954 election before the tragedy of the Phillips assassination propelled her into the top spot on the ticket, has conceded to Elijah Simpson, the Governor of Pennsylvania, and Sherri Andrews, Representative from Louisiana, after losing all of the primary races held in this most recent round of voting by the Liberal party. After a strong start in the January primaries, coming in first in three states and second in three more, she came in last place in all but two states in February, and bottomed out in every race this month. “It is clear to me that Liberal Party voters are focused on either Governor Simpson or Representative Andrews, and so it is time for me to bow out and let the party decide which of these two candidates deserves to be our nominee in November.” Potter is refusing to back either remaining candidate, but says she will support whoever wins the final nomination at this summer’s party convention.
“Potter Concedes to Simpson,” Astoria Dispatch, March 23, 1960.
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TELECINEMA IN COLOR? TEST BROADCAST A SUCCESS IN CALIFORNIA
SAN FRANCISCO - Almost since the outset of commercially viable telecinema broadcasts, the public and industry insiders alike have clamored for the day when such transmissions would appear on our TC screens in “living color.” Now, it looks like that day has arrived, with successful tests made in the Californian city of San Francisco. Jose Milton, director of TeleCine de California Uno, or TCC-1, the republic’s biggest private telecinema broadcaster, announced that a month-long test of color transmissions in the San Francisco Bay area had been a success. “The technology works. We have been working with companies here in California and in Texas, and hope to make this a regular thing in the near future.”
Companies such as Cine America out of California and FuturTechnik out of Texas were involved in this project, and they both say that the technology is now feasible, and it is only a matter of making affordable TC sets that can be purchased by the general public, and helping broadcasters adapt their transmission capabilities. FuturTechnik CEO Ferdinand Meyer thinks that color telecinema broadcasts are likely to become common place by the end of the decade.
“Telecinema in Color? Test Broadcast a Success in California,” St. Louis Courier, April 18, 1960.
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LINCOLN CONFIRMED BY CPUS ANNUAL CONGRESS
PHILADELPHIA - The Communalist Party of the United States has officially voted to make Georgina Lincoln, Senator and former Governor of Indiana, their party’s candidate for the upcoming presidential election this November. This will be the seventh time that a CPUS candidate will be on the national presidential ballot, and the first time for a woman to be the party’s nominee. In a bold move, the CPUS nominated Alexandra Clayborn, a representative from Mississippi, as Lincoln’s running mate. This is the first time in American history that any political party has nominated only women for their national ticket, and if they win the duo will make history in several ways: first woman president; first communalist president; first black woman vice president. The popularity of the communalist party has been gaining in recent years, and most political observers believe that the nation will either choose the CPUS or the Liberals, after twelve years of Nationalist control of Washington House.
“Lincoln Confirmed by CPUS Annual Congress,” Brooklyn Standard, May 4, 1960.
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NATIONALIST CONVENTION DEADLOCK
FORT CALHOUN - As the Nationalists gather in the capital and largest city of Platte, their party seems divided and in deadlock as to who their nominee for the presidency should be. The primaries have ended in a dead heat between ultra-conservative Leonard McCorker and moderate Sean Orton, representing not just two different ideologies but also two different generations. When the Global War ended in 1938, Orton was just finishing secondary school. McCorker was leading men in the fight to keep Choson from being overrun. Orton thinks that the party should give up it’s anti-homophilia stance. McCorker believes they should double-down in their defense of “God’s moral order.”
In the end, it will come down to the “free-will delegates,” members of Congress and state legislatures who are supposed to serve as a “guiding hand” to the party. Among those men (and a few women), McCorker is not as popular, and that may be what breaks the deadlock.
“Nationalist Convention Deadlock,” New Orleans Star, July 10, 1960.
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MASS WALKOUT BY MCCORKER AND SUPPORTERS
FORT CALHOUN - After the party convention announced last night that Sean Orton had been elected as the Nationalists’ presidential candidate, rival Senator McCorker of Georgia and most of his supporters stormed out of the convention in protest after McCorker announced that the nomination had been stolen by “non-elected hack delegates” and that he would not support Orton’s run. Nearly one in four delegates left the convention center in downtown Fort Calhoun, and it seems likely that McCorker will try and launch an independent bid for the presidency.
“Mass Walkout By McCorker and Supporters,” Franklin Observer, July 13, 1960.
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MCCORKER WILL RUN AS INDEPENDENT, MAKING FOR FOUR WAY RACE
FORT CALHOUN - Senator Leonard McCorker of Georgia has announced that he will be launching an independent bid to become president of the United States, after the Nationalist Party voted to back Representative Sean Orton of Ohio as their nominee. “This nation is on the brink or moral chaos, and too many in our party have become complacent as the Liberals and godless Communalists have rolled out one corruptive piece of legislation after another. James Nolan tried to make a course correction, but Timothy Priest gave in to the immorality that is sweeping the nation.
This announcement means that there will be a four way race for the presidency after all, between McCorker, Orton, CPUS candidate Georgina Lincoln, and the soon-to-be confirmed Liberal candidate, likely Elijah Simpson. This split within the Nationalists is likely to lead to a repeat of the 1958 congressional elections, which saw Morality League candidates try and remove sitting moderate Nationalists, which resulted in huge gains for the CPUS and the Liberals.
“McCorker Will Run as Independent, Making for Four Way Race,” Chicago Herald, July 14, 1960.
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SIMPSON CHOOSES EUBANKS AS RUNNING MATE AHEAD OF CONVENTION
BROOKLYN - Elijah Simpson, who has secured more than enough delegates to win the Liberal nomination for the presidency when the party convention starts later this week, has announced today that he is picking Juliana Eubanks as his running mate. This seems to be a popular move among wide swaths of the party faithful, and will likely pull in supporters of Simpson’s rival, Sherri Andrews. This also means that three of the four vice presidential nominees are women, a first in American history. In addition to Eubanks, there is Alexandra Clayborn of the CPUS, and Lucille Barrow that Nationalist candidate Sean Orton is running with. Only the independent ticket of Senator McCorker and his running mate, Jack Spencer, remains all-male.
“Simpson Chooses Eubanks as Running Mate Ahead of Convention,” Brooklyn Standard, August 1, 1960.
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MILLIONS TUNE IN TO WATCH FOUR-WAY DEBATE
NEW ORLEANS - An estimated seven million people tuned their telecinema sets in to watch the first of two planned telecinemagraphed debates between the four candidates for the Presidency, which will be broadcast live from New Orleans on ABN and PBC, the two largest national telecinema networks. One of the biggest things people were looking out for are how Senator McCorker and Representative Orton will act towards each other, the two bitter rivals that seem to have split the support of the Nationalists. The other thing that viewers were hoping to see was how well Georgina Lincoln of the CPUS handles herself. As the Nationalist vote is likely to split, the election will probably come down to a competition between Lincoln and her Liberal opponent, Elijah Simpson.
The hour and a half debate did not disappoint, allowing all the candidates to get some key screen time. When the four candidates came out and greeted one another, Senator McCorker notably did not shake the hand of Simpson, and tried to ignore his fellow Nationalist as much as possible. When asked by the moderator, ABN’s senior evening news anchor Charles Locke, asked the Senator if he was worried that his campaign would cost the Nationalists Washington House, McCorker replied, “I am the only true Nationalist running. If the party has been abandoned by those that are more worried about money and power than in true leadership and moral fortitude, I say good riddance. I believe we can still win the presidency next month, but even if we do not, we true Nationalists will be back and we will make ourselves heard.”
Senator Lincoln also had several shining moments. When McCorker promised to reestablish the Office of Morality, she challenged by saying, “Senator, aren’t you tired of your crusade? How many lives must you crush to satisfy the altar of your Old Testament deity?” McCorker then responded, saying, “There you go Mr. Locke, a prime example of the godlessness of the Communalist Party. Senator Lincoln and all who follow her politics are unfit to lead. They do not acknowledge the Almight..” at this point the Senator from Indiana interrupted, saying, “Now hold on Senator, you do not get to deride my faith and call me godless on national telecinema and get away with it. No sir! I am a faithful Christian. I believe in Christ’s message of love and forgiveness, and that we are called to show that love to our fellow man. It is precisely because of my Christian faith that I am a Communalist, not in spite of it.”
“Millions Tune in to Watch Four-Way Debate,” St. Louis Courier, October 12, 1960.
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LINCOLN, ORTON BEST MCCORKER, SIMPSON IN SECOND DEBATE
WILBURTON, IO - After the second telecinemagraphed debate, this time at the campus of the University of Iowa, most polsters believe that Georgina Lincoln and Sean Orton came out in the lead. This surprises some, who felt that Elijah Simpson would be battling it out with Senator Lincoln for top spot, not trailing behind with the mostly unpopular McCorker. Political science professor Eliza Kent of the University of the United States explained it thus: “Lincoln and Simpson are too much alike in message. A new America says she, a new tomorrow says Simpson. And people are excited about the prospect of electing the first female president. Not to mention the CPUS is one the rise nationally. I wouldn’t be surprised if we even see an elector or two in historically conservative states that have never given any to the CPUS to have at least one vote go to Senator Lincoln. This is why Orton has been able to rise to number two. Somewhere between half and two thirds of Nationalists don’t like McCorker, so they’re siding with him. And since he presents a clearer alternative to Lincoln that the Liberal candidate, undecided voters who find voting for a communalist too radical a choice, Orton makes a nice alternative. He’s young, charismatic, and full of vitality. He’s twenty years younger than Lincoln too, which also adds to the contrast.
“Lincoln, Orton Best McCorker, Simpson in Second Debate,” Franklin Observer, October 20, 1960.
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LINCOLN TAKES FIRST IN ELECTION, SIMPSON OR ORTON EXPECTED TO SUPPORT
FRANKLIN - Senator Georgina Lincoln of the Communalist Party of the United States has won the most electoral votes in yesterday’s election, 218 out of 582 up for grabs. It takes 292 electoral votes to win the presidency, so it is likely expected that either Elijah Simpson (who won 164 votes) or Sean Orton (who won 132 votes) will lend their support and push Lincoln past the finish line. In fourth place, Senator McCorker’s independent bid for the presidency managed to gain 68 electoral votes, robbing Orton of second place.
“Lincoln Takes First in Election, Simpson or Orton Expected to Support,” Boston Eagle, November 2, 1960.
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SIMPSON GIVES SUPPORT TO LINCOLN: WE ARE OVERDUE FOR A FEMALE PRESIDENT
FRANKLIN - Representative Elijah Simpson announced today that he would be giving the 164 electors he won during the election two weeks ago over to Senator Georgina Lincoln’s campaign, effectively making her the winner of the 1960 presidential election. In his statement, Simpson told reporters that, “The Liberal and Communalist Party, while not seeing eye to eye on a vast number of issues, believe in the overall vision of a brighter future for the average American citizen, not the rich elite. Nor do we believe that the role of the federal government is to shy away into obscurity and allow for a hodgepodge of state regulations to strangle our united republic. Therefore, I am giving my full support to Senator Lincoln. And frankly, we are overdue for a female president. We are the last member of the North American Union to have never had a female leader.”
“Simpson Gives Support to Lincoln: We are Overdue for a Female President,” Brooklyn Standard, November 15, 1960.
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At long last, the Priest Presidency update is finished!
I hope you enjoy! Like I said earlier, this will probably be the last new update for a little while. Grad school work is going to start increasing over the next month and a half and I need to focus there. I'll still be working on this as I can, but I doubt I will have a new full update like this until May at the earliest.
As always, any question, suggestions, or critiques, feel free to post them below. Happy to discuss the TL, just won't be able to make another major update for a bit.
Thank you all for your continued support of this TL. Also, if you haven't yet voted for the Turtledoves, this TL is in the running so consider voting for Washington Burns if you haven't already.
Now, on to homework
- Eckener
- Word Count: 2.9k