The death of Roosevelt sent shockwaves across both political parties as the months moved on. Conservative newspapers reported that this was. “The final nail in the coffin of progressivism.” industry leaders rejoiced with John D Rockefeller stating. “The Old Moose’s ass has finally been nailed to the devil's wall.” progressives sobbed, they spoke of this as the death bed of America, how the nation shall fall once again into destitute and despair and that there would not be a shining light at the end. But another force was mobilizing, the Populist. The Populists had put themselves to the left of the Progressives, who were by all standards fairly moderate folks. The death of Roosevelt opened up an opportunity for them, to organize at a national level, galvanize the people and take hold of one of the two parties, if that didn’t work run a third-party campaign.
The Populist forces needed someone to lead the charge, who better than Mr. Silver himself, William Jennings Bryan. Bryan still didn’t feel like he was finished after losing to Harding, and had only gone to the leftover time. With the death of Roosevelt, Bryan felt it was now or never, that he and the populist would lead this country into a god-given golden age, or America would fall into satanic destitute and ruin, so Bryan began campaigning, crossing the country speaking at rallies. Spreading the message of Populism, accusing Rockefeller of putting a bullet into old Roosevelt. He went to the gold mines and urged the workers to Unionize to fight back. He went down to old Louisiana and talked with the poor and the rural, the hicks, telling them that it was time to rise up and make their voices heard.
“I swear to you, the people of this great state, that Washington is perfectly fine with crucifying you on a cross of oil, gold, and steel. They will be fine with denying you are worth it. They look down upon you, gentle farmers and spit on you. Will you allow them to do this any longer!” Bryan shouted, with the fervor of David in his voice. “NO!” shouted the crowd back. Jennings looked to the crowd, and saw a little redheaded child all muddy and dirtied up. “Child come forth.” the Child looked shocked and looked around confused, and slowly stepped onto the stage. “Son what is your name.” The boy looked around nervously. “H-Huey.” he said. Bryan slapped his knee and looked to the crowd. “Children like Huey are ignored and beaten by the men in Wall Street. Folks like Rockefeller of standard oil make a profit off of Huey's hard labor…” shouted Bryan. Huey still felt pretty nervous but the crowd was applauding Bryan.
“So, it is time for folks like you to champion the cause of the people. AND TELL THE MEN IN WASHINGTON, THAT THIS IS REPUBLIC IS GOVERNED BY THE PEOPLE, NOT BY THE FEW RICH TYCOONS!, IF NOT FOR ME DO IT FOR CHILDREN LIKE HUEY, SO THEY MAY HAVE SOME BREAD ON THE TABLE EVERY NIGHT, DO IT SO THAT EVERY MAN MAY BE A KING!” Shouted Bryan launching his fist in the air. The crowd cheered and whooped applauding, Bryan lifted Huey onto his shoulders and the crowd was chanting his name. “Huey, Huey, Huey.” Bryan smiled at the child. “What's your full name son,” he said with a smile. “Huey Long sir!” said Huey with a broad smile. “Well my boy, it looks like Louisiana won’t be forgetting your name any time soon.”
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The Oval Office
Lafollette was reading the newspaper. Bryan was at it again, campaigning up and down the united states. Along with his buddies and his brother, Lafollette sympathized a lot with Bryans's movement, but he felt that he was a little too radical, that was beside the point. He was hoping his railroad tax would be able to get through congress without the damn conservatives blocking it. It was a tedious negotiation, and it felt like Conservatives were always ready to pounce and topple the whole damn government, but steady ship sails straight and the administration has been generally sailing straight since Roosevelt's death. Ah Roosevelt, what a great man, if only he were here, he probably could have bullied Congress into submission. Lafollette thought as he read the newspaper. His thoughts were interrupted as once again an aid busted into the room. “Mr. President.” Lafollette sighed. “What is it?” he asked. “Taft is planning to primary you,” he said.
Lafollette stopped, he was shocked, stunned into silence. He took a deep breath as he felt anger soaring through him. “Get the telegrams going, contact my allies. Get every damn Progressive paper to condemn the bastard Taft!” he shouted slamming his fist on his desk. The aid quickly rushed out, he sighed and chuckled slightly. Why did aids always have to deliver the bad news?
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Over the coming months going towards both the Democratic and Republican conventions. It looked to the average American the parties were tearing each other apart. Progressive Republican newspapers were attacking Taft and other conservatives, conservative democratic papers launched attack ads against Bryan, decrying him as a socialist, some deep southern papers decried him as a negro lover. Bryan responded by increasing his campaign targeting places in the deep south and rallying the poor whites around him, decrying the traditional plantation owners and waged a personal war against the mining tycoons in West Virginia.
LaFollette in return began rallying midwesterners towards him, calling out for a fair deal, for the rich to pay their fair share but emphasized the need for reconciliation. Some Union types did not appreciate this, leading to some more radical unions to either endorse Bryan or Eugene Debs of the Socialist. Taft responded to the constant attacks by urging for a smaller government, saying the progressives were overstepping their bounds and decried the sheer radicalism of the Populist. But Taft was not the most Conservative person in this race, that goes to former confederate general Francis Cockrell who quickly rallied, the rich in the south and in other democratic strongholds towards him claiming that Bryan was nothing more than a. “Lying Luciferian loving Marxist who was planning to seize the old plantation owners farms and destroy the good old oil tycoons." Reactionaries rallied behind Cockrell, Bryan responded by going to the most ardent reactionary poor communities and telling them how the plantation owners were keeping them down through fiery speeches, winning over large crowds.
Things were getting tense, there were even some brawls breaking out in congress between Conservatives and Progressives. Name slinging and it looked like a full-blown civil war was ready to burst as the Republican national convention approached. Would Roosevelt's wishes be achieved or would LaFollette be tossed aside and once again will the trust rule America.
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The Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention was a mess right at the start, there were some brawls between some delegates. It was primordial chaos. Speakers made speeches either endorsing or condemning progressivism or Conservatism. LaFollette delivered a speech, praising the deeds of Teddy and channeling the need to further progress for Equality in the United States. It was then Taft's turn to speak. “The passing of Roosevelt was tragic, he was a good man, but his vision was definitely filled with unconstitutionality,” he said, with a gasp from the convention floor. “Progressives and Populist champion the people they see, but they forget that this country is ruled by the Constitution not the rebel-rousing of the masses, Yes it is good to progress, but doing it to fast and too hard will just lead to ruin, we must remember our founders made a constitutional republic, not a democracy of the masses!” Taft said and many Republican delegates stood up and applauded. LaFollette was disgusted with the speech and was hoping once this was all over he could sink any chance of Taft political career afterward.
The delegates were beginning to be counted, LaFollette organized meetings with several major republican delegates. After several hours the counting was over and the delegates were to be announced. “The winner of the Republican national convention is with 499 delegates is William Taft.” LaFollette spits out his water over vice-presidential candidate Fairbanks who was, unfortunately, sitting right next to him.
After an hour with the vice presidential nominee, it was expected for LaFollette to make a concession speech to unite the party. LaFollette was devastated, he wouldn’t be able to achieve teddies last wishes...unless. “I am expected to make a concession speech, but I am not gonna concede to some damn regressive fat cat.” there were gasp across the convention hall. “I am officially leaving the Republican Party, I urge any and all Progressives who actually give a damn about this country to follow.” he then stepped down from the stage and rushed out of the convention slamming the door on his way out, soon hundreds of progressive delegates followed.
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Aftermath
Progressives were fleeing left and right from the Republican Party, to join LaFollettes brand new “Radical Party.”, the Radicals platform was quite similar to some populist like William Jennings Bryan just more moderate in cases and far more internationalist, adopting Teddies “Speak softly and always carry a big stick.” as their foreign policy. Remaining Republicans denounced these splitters, condemning them and calling them a bunch of rebel-rousing Reds.
The reaction from the southern wing of the Democratic Party was Ecstatic, this would spell the end of the Party of Lincoln, hoping that the radicals and Republicans would vote split long enough they eventually destroy each other and the party of good old Jackson and Calhoun would rise again. Cockrell, in particular, made a heroic speech at one of his events. “The party of that bastard known as Lincoln is finally collapsing, now all that's left is that we kick these socialist bastards like Bryan from our party.”
Reactions from Bryans camp were interesting though, Bryan had tried to feel out LaFollette to see if run a joint ticket, LaFollette declined stating that yes he admire part of Bryans platform, but some parts were to damn radical, like the referendum amendment and making senate elected like the house. The strategist in Bryans campaign noted that, he would very likely win in a 3-way race when Bryan posed the question of a four-way race. His advisors just shrugged. We have to see the results of the convention.
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The Democratic National Convention
If the Republican National Convention was chaotic, the Democratic National Convention was complete turmoil. Bryan had successfully been able to make many Populists popular across the United States championing them to beat the old Democrats. Many of the old Bourbonites didn’t like this, so they tried to lock out the Populist and Bryan from the convention. In what is remembered as one of the most memorable parts of the decade, Bryan, his brother, and several other populist were able to scale the building open a window and descend down, successfully unlock the doors allowing the Populist delegation to come in, quickly a full-on brawl broke out afterwards between the Populist and Bourbons, which had to be broken up by many of the other delegates and Cockrell and Bryan had to be divided from each other as the two went at it.
Speeches were made with William Randoplh Hearst calling for Democratic Unity in the face of Republican Disunity. Charles Bryan denounced Conservatism in his speech accusing Cockrell of being a butcher of the American people because of his past as a Confederate leader. Chants of Dixie land were sung by the bourbons while the Populist countered with labor music and Yankee doodle. Several more brawls broke out and had to be split up once again.
So, hoping to get this over with the delegates began to be cast. After several ballots, it looked like Bryan was about to clinch the nomination, but it looked like the kingmaker would be John Sharp Williams who had decided to run as an almost compromise candidate between the two splitting wings of the Democratic Party. Nobody knows though what lead to Williams endorsing Cockrell, was it because he was promised the vice presidency, was it because of old southern loyalty, or was it just a distaste of Bryan, no one knows but Williams made a fiery speech endorsing Cockrell for the nomination. The Entire Populist delegation with Bryan left.
Later that Day Bryan had gathered every single reporter he could find and made a makeshift stage out of several crates. “The Democratic Party has betrayed the common people of the United States, they have stabbed the people in the back and endorsed an old traitor like Cockrell, I will not let this stand, thus I and the rest of the Populist delegation and every single Populist or Progressive Democrat are leaving the Democratic Party and joining the Populist, I urge all my followers to follow and vote Populist in the general.”
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Aftermath
Reactions across the country were quite too diverse, with many democrats up north abandoning the party and joining the quickly rising Populist, even some Progressives from the Radical went and joined the new party. It also looked like it was gonna be a four-way race between Progressive ideas and Conservative, Reactionary ideas. Republicans had tried to a coalition with the Democrats but the Bourbons declined, believing that with Cockrell they could crush the Party of Lincoln.
With only several months to the election, all four major parties campaigned across America, preaching their ideas. Bryan championed that he put the people first and end control by the minority. The Radicals preached the idea of Progressivism, condemning Bryans radicalism but also attacking Conservatism of Taft and Reactionary nature of Cockrell. The Republicans campaigned on a common-sense platform, portraying the Populist and Radicals as Socialist infiltrators and Cockrell as a revival of the old South, a neo-confederate movement of sorts. Cockrell was all over the place, he condemned the other three as socialist pigs. He berated Lincoln and Republicanism which practically made him unelectable in the north, he just didn’t realize it. This led to some Moderates up north fleeing to the Republicans as the Cockrell campaign got more and more hostile to Northern ideas and began reflecting a Neo-Confederate movement.
But when November Eighth rolled around, it was the citizens to decide who become the next President would it be the Populist Bryan, Radical LaFollette, Conservative Taft or the Reactionary Cockrell.
