Cuban Intervention

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Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. was an American politician and statesman, and served as the 35th President of the United States from 1953-1961. He was born on September 8, 1888, in Boston, Massachusetts to Patrick and Mary Augusta Kennedy. As a young man, he graduated from Harvard University in 1912 and would marry Rose Fitzgerald, daughter of Boston mayor John F. “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald. He made his fortune through a variety of enterprises, mostly in the stock market. While the extent of his involvement in bootlegging at the height of Prohibition is debatable, he nevertheless cultivated business ties with elements of what became the Five Families as many businessmen did during this time. His involvement with them would only deepen over time.

In 1932, Kennedy through his support behind the eventual nominee Franklin D. Roosevelt, despite his own conservative political leanings. His son, the noted historian John F. Kennedy once recalled that his father’s politics were somewhere “to the right of Hoover.” Roosevelt rewarded Kennedy’s fundraising efforts by appointing him to be the first head of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 1934. Kennedy was also key in shoring up Irish-American support for the New Deal after one-time ally Father Charles Coughlin broke with Roosevelt. Despite this, Kennedy and Coughlin would remain friends, with the latter praising the former as being one of the few “shining stars” in the Roosevelt administration.

With the loss of Roosevelt in 1936 to Landon due to the spoiler effect of Long’s candidacy, Kennedy soon found himself bereft of his political patron. He understood that Roosevelt was unlikely to mount a political comeback due to declining health and understood that the winds were shifting in favor of Long within the Democratic Party. He worked toward mending bridges with both Coughlin and Long in the years leading up to the 1940 political convention, as he had aspirations for his son Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. His efforts paid off more than he would imagine, being surprised when Long asked him to be his running mate. Long had chosen Kennedy as a sop to disgruntled Roosevelt-supporters. However, the move was especially risky, given that Al Smith had lost in 1928 with many attributing the loss to religious prejudices at the time. Having welded a coalition of Northern Louisiana evangelicals and Bayou Catholics, Long had experience with transcending religious prejudice. Regardless, Kennedy’s religion seemed to have little bearing on the Democratic ticket as Long handily defeated the unpopular Landon in a landslide.

From his position as Vice President, Kennedy largely served as Long’s liaison to Northeastern “ethnics,” predominately Irish and Italians. Despite this, he was not as supportive of Long’s radical plans of wealth-redistribution. He nevertheless kept his vocal opposition to a minimum, preferring to bide his time. While disappointed that Long had opted to run for a third term in 1948, Kennedy would enjoy Long’s endorsement for the 1952 Democratic nomination. Given that the opposition to Long was still rife with disorganization and division, Kennedy handily won the election with his running mate Estes Kefauver of Tennessee. Rumors abounded that Kennedy’s connection to the Italian Mafia was responsible for his success in places such as Illinois and New York. While Kennedy did enjoy the support of the Mob, the extent to which they affected the election in key contests remains a point of contention among historians.

Kennedy proved to be much more moderate than his illustrious predecessor, supporting the cutting of corporate taxes and levies on assets. Long would openly criticize Kennedy from retirement for this “betrayal,” but a stroke prevent Long from making good on a threat to run against his successor in 1956. Despite this, Kennedy would continue to enjoy solid, if not enthusiastic support among his fellow Democrats. Regarding foreign policy, Kennedy continued his predecessor’s isolationist predilections. Unlike Long, however, Kennedy was not as averse to making moderately positive statements on the Nazi regime. However, it was during his term that Nazi Germany collapsed into civil war following Hitler’s death. Kennedy would end up receiving the ambassadors sent by the victorious military-junta under Marshal Erwin Rommel, declining to meet with representatives of the exiled SS government in Namibia.

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Despite this, Kennedy’s administration would find itself swallowed into a foreign policy quagmire with the Cuban Intervention beginning in the latter half of his first term. For years following independence, the Cuban government had undergone a series of regime changes due to economic and political instability. While the Teller Amendment had officially been revoked by the Roosevelt Administration via a 1934 treaty, this did not end American intervention in Cuba both politically and economically.

In September 1933, a broadly left-wing coup known as Sergeant’s Revolt overthrew President Carlos Manuel de Céspedes y Quesada and imprisoned many of his supporters including Desiderio Arnaz, a member of the Cuban House of Representatives and former mayor of Santiago de Cuba. Hailing from what was practically Cuban nobility, Arnaz and his family were imprisoned for six months and were only released on the condition that he would go into exile. The Arnazes lived in Miami for several years, but would return following the collapse of the broad-left wing government in 1938. With support from American business interests, the new regime consolidated under the awkwardly named Partido de Unidad Nacional por el Progreso y la Reconstrucción (“Party of National Unity for Progress and Reconstruction”), known more colloquially as the Nacionales or Arnacistas. The party maintained its power through a series of carefully orchestrated elections. Arnaz himself would be elected in 1946 as president, and would solidify his power over the following years.

It was during this time that the Mafia’s influence grew in Cuba as well, with Havana being a major center for organized crime. Havana had become a center for gambling and prostitution, being a popular destination for America’s elite. What’s more is that Cuba emerged as a banking center with many American businessmen opting to park their money in Cuba to avoid Long’s tax policies. These and other factors led to increased wealth disparity and social tensions. It was only a matter of time before these tensions would explode into a full-blown revolution.

On June 20, 1955, a coalition of military officers and student activists launched a coup in Havana. While tactically successful, its execution proved sloppy. For one, Arnaz was not in Havana, having fled the night before after being tipped-off about the coup. Second, rogue soldiers and students had engaged in indiscriminate killings of Americans, with some of their more prominent victims being high-level Mob bosses. Many of these killings proved to be especially brutal, with one Mafioso’s corpse being dragged by motorcycles through the streets of Havana. The coup made headlines throughout the world and proved to be the perfect fodder for American newspapers. Images of mangled American corpses graced the front pages of many newspapers in a way reminiscent of the Yellow Journalism leading up to the Spanish-American War. Public outcry grew for avenging the death of their countrymen. Despite his reluctance, President Kennedy issued an ultimatum to the putschists demanding the respect of American-held property as well as reparations to the families of Americans killed. The sums demanded by the American government for reparations were far too high for the Cuban government to agree to, prompting Kennedy to authorize the invasion of Cuba.

Beginning July 1, American troops launched a two-pronged invasion: one from the North outside of Havana and another from the Bay of Pigs not far from Guantanamo Bay. The relatively weak grip of the putschists on essential infrastructure made it relatively easy for American and Arnasita forces to take over the country. The worst fighting was in Havana where the putschists had the most control, but the fighting was over in a fortnight. Arnaz was returned to power under a new constitution which not only gave more power to the office of president but also guaranteed a treaty of perptual “friendship” between the United States and Cuba, in effect reinstated the Teller Amendment.

Opposition to the regime emerged almost immediately, but suffered from poor coordination. Despite this, enough opposition groups were able to form an umbrella organization called Movimento por la Independencia Cubana (“Cuban Independence Movement”) or MIC. The movement brought together disgruntled military officers, communists, liberals, and falangists in an attempt to provide a united front against Arnaz and his American backers. However, it was one group in particular that was able to emerge as the most prominent.

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, known affectionately as “El Comandante” by his supporters, quickly became the face of the Anti-American Resistance. The illegitimate son of a moderately prosperous sugar cane farmer in eastern Cuba in 1926, Castro might have seemed to be an unlikely revolutionary. As a troublesome youth, his frustrated father sent him to a Jesuit school in Havana. There, he developed an interest in politics, and was exposed for the first time to National Syndicalism, an ideology that featured prominently among the Nationalists in the Spanish Civil War. The triumph of Francisco Franco over the Republicans in 1938 saw attempts to export Falangism throughout the Hispanidad or Spanish-speaking world. One such organization La Falange Cubana was established to promote the ideology in Cuba. Castro would briefly join this organization, but was eventually expelled by jealous party leaders fearful of his charisma. Castro opted to form his own organization Falange Nacional Cubana or FNC which saw many former FC members join him. Scholars debate as to how “Falangist” or “Fascist” was Castro. First and foremost, Castro was a Cuban nationalist, and seemed to be open to any vehicle that would achieve his aim, fascist or otherwise. Despite the obvious Spanish influence, Castro found himself drawn more to the example of Benito Mussolini. Scholars have placed Castro more to the “Left” of Fascism with his support of syndicalism and nationalistic trade unionism as well as his advocacy for a civic rather than racial national identity. Also, Castro’s attitude towards the Catholic Church was ambivalent at best, seeing its utility only as far as it could serve the interests of Cuba.

Arnaz had attempted to capture several times prior to the coup, but the latter would often escape thanks to the former being preoccupied with other opposition factions. Following the American invasion and reinstatement of Arnaz, Castro agreed to work with the MIC. The FNC operated mostly in the eastern part of Cuba, ironically enough near Arnaz’s power base. Successes enjoyed by the FNC allowed for them to emerge as the leading faction within the MIC; and Castro, through his charisma and larger-than-life persona, became the effective face of the movement.

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Meanwhile, American forces sent to prop up the Arnaz regime would see a decline in morale as what was supposed to be a six-week operation drag on into a several years-long occupation. American soldiers unfamiliar with counter-insurgency techniques would suffer loss after loss at the hands of MIC guerillas. In addition to military setbacks, the attention that Arnaz had begun to receive by the American public had caused many Americans to rethink their support of his restoration. Stories of the extent of Arnaz’s Mafia connections made it to the American press. In addition, lurid stories regarding his son Desiderio Arnaz III – known affectionately and derisively as “Desi” – had also reached American shores. Given that he was the Cuban dictator’s son, he enjoyed a considerable amount of power and privilege which he used – and abused – regularly. He was fond of trolling Havana’s nightclubs, often hitting on the wives of his subordinate officers. His seemingly insatiable appetites that could and did result in violence earned him an infamous reputation, making him both feared and hated by men on both sides. In 1958, he was kidnapped, allegedly by FNC guerillas, and was found strung up by piano wire in a rural garage outside of Havana. While the FNC was officially blamed for the incident – a credit that the organization readily accepted – some historians suggest that Desi was actually murdered by some of his own men as it would be difficult for FNC insurgents to get close enough to him.

Towards the end of Kennedy’s administration, an economic downturn followed by the steady stream of sensational stories coming out of Cuba soured the public on the Democratic Party. By this time, the Anti-Longist coalition finally managed to produce a united front in the form of the Constitutional Alliance. Harold Stassen, the Constitutional Alliance candidate, managed to defeat then-Vice President and Democratic nominee Estes Kefauver handily, becoming the first non-Democratic president since 1936 to win the presidency. Stassen campaigned on pulling American troops from Cuba after securing a peace deal. By November of 1961, the last of American troops had withdrawn. Arnaz, having been refused asylum in the United States, fled to Venezuela and then to Brazil where he died in 1968. The MIC became the new government, inaugurating a new constitution the next year.

The MIC won nearly all of the seats in the Cuban Congress with Castro winning the presidency as head of the coalition. Once in office, he quickly used his position to consolidate his power by purging non-FNC members of the coalition as well as some rivals within his own camp. Having solidified his position, Castro embarked on a campaign of “national rebirth” through a nation-wide crackdown on vice as well as traces of “American decadence” in Cuban culture. Despite his own ambivalence towards religion, he welcomed an alliance with the Catholic Church to lend legitimacy to his regime, though in private conversations with Church leaders he made it clear who was truly in charge in Cuba. Castro also supported substantive land reform and created a national corporation charged with negotiating with foreign nations regarding trade of Cuban cash crops. While in power, he also sought to export his brand of Falangism to parts of South America in what amounted to a one-nation crusade against American imperialism. He managed to survive several assassination attempts, including several that were linked to the Mafia. However, he would live to an old age, dying in 2009.

The legacy of the war is still shrouded in controversy. Conspiracy theorists have argued that Kennedy was directly pressured by the Mob to protect their interests in Cuba under threat from the military junta. Some former Mob insiders have claimed this, though no evidence suggests that this is the case. That has not stopped Hollywood from making a number of films playing off this alleged connection between Kennedy, Sr. and the mob with the most notable being The Godfather and its subsequent sequels.
Well, it looks like that I Love Lucy will have Lucy fall in love with another man since Desi Arnaz went full Batista.
 
With Gene Roddenbery becoming L. Ron Hubbard, who knows if George Lucas could come up with Star Wars or gets to make Flash Gordon. There's a 50/50 chance for both
To be honest, I haven't given much thought to Lucas in this timeline. Given that I'm working on a reboot, I may not get to him.
Have you made a list of TTL presidents? That would be an interesting thing to see
I have a list somewhere. However, I've made a mistake in my calculations that requires me to make a revision in my list. However, as I've said, I'm planning on retiring this TL soon so I don't think I'll post an exhaustive list, at least for now.
This TL is so much fun
Thank you so much. I try.
I'm excited for when we get to the Constitutional Alliance stuff
I'll give that some thought. I do need to do some elaboration on the CA. However, as I said previously, I'm probably not going to go back to that later.
Well, it looks like that I Love Lucy will have Lucy fall in love with another man since Desi Arnaz went full Batista.
Technically, I was going more for an Uday Hussein with Desi Arnaz, but you get the idea.
 
What happens to people like Eisenhower,
Unremarkable career officer.
Unremarkable lawyer who gains recognition as a talented musician.
Since Joe, Jr. is still alive ITTL, Joe, Sr. doesn't really care what happens to Bobby. Probably an unremarkable lawyer.
or The Beatles?
All four members' births were butterflied away as they were all born significantly after the POD.
 
For Europe after the German Civil War, they probably have their own version of "Denazification" with all Nazi symbols and propaganda being removed as well as said imagery being illegal.
 
Kevin Finnerty
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Kevin Finnerty is the Chairman of the Federal Reserve and member of the Federal Reserve for Arizona. Born to an Irish-American family in Scranton, Pennsylvania to a union family, Finnerty grew up with an affinity for the interests of labor. In high school, he demonstrated enormous athletic skill, even making the varsity team. He surprised everyone by pursuing a more academic route: first by completing his bachelor's degree at Seton Hall followed by a JD at Columbia University. During his graduate work, he became associated with environmental interest groups and tried, as he would later put it, "make it work" between labor and environmental groups. He found work as a corporate lawyer for a time before moving on to Arizona when new business opportunities emerged. Bored with corporate work, however, he turned to politics, being elected to the position of Secretary of State for Arizona, first in line for succession to the governorship. He was tapped by President Alec Reed for the Interior Department as under secretary for environmental reclamation. Hungry for something more substantial, he resigned the position in order to prepare for his run to serve on the Federal Reserve. Many have speculated that he might make a play for the Democratic nomination in 2024, with some seeing him as a compromise candidate between the "Long" and "Kennedy" wings of the party. Only time will tell.
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A very, VERY late St. Patrick's Day special. I hope you guys enjoy. ;)
 
For Europe after the German Civil War, they probably have their own version of "Denazification" with all Nazi symbols and propaganda being removed as well as said imagery being illegal.
I'll refer you to a previous post:
Germany tends to be inward looking rather than outward, as most countries tend to be in this timeline. Following the German Civil War, the ruling clique of generals wanted to promote a Christian German culture rather than the Pagan one by the Nazis, with emphasis on great German rulers from the Middle Ages onward. The heavy emphasis on Luther, Bismark, and other great figures from Christian Germany are meant to prop up the largely conservative regime. Think Russia post-Soviet Union: attempting to downplay, and in some cases condemn the previous Nazi regime while attempting to co-opt symbols (e.g., Germania/Berlin) to appeal to the "height" of German power.

The Nazi Party and related organizations are banned (largely in response to Namibia), but that doesn't wholly deter Nazi nostalgia in some quarters. In the years leading to the Civil War, Germany began to experience an economic downturn which soured the Nazi regime in the eyes of many, making the transition to a conservative regime much more easier. However, that doesn't stop some from playing up old cultural facets of Nazi Germany, if only for the tourists. Volkwagens, Volksempfängers, Einheitsempfängers, Nazi-era football kits among others represent a simpler, triumphant, if not chaotic and oppressive time. Think East German ostalgie.
 
What I meant was that the rest of Europe erases all traces of Nazi Germany aside from it's country of origin.
I would say it would depend on the country. Poland has definitely done so. The Baltic Federation, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Ukraine have not been quick in their own "Denazification" for various reasons. Officially, the National Socialist German Workers' Party is formally banned in all of the former Third Reich.
 
All four members' births were butterflied away as they were all born significantly after the POD.
On the topic of the Beetles, their births happened before or after when Huey Long was elected President in 1941. This does not mean that they will be necessarily the same people as OTL or anyone born decades after the POD. It's worth noting that many of the parents or grandparents of said OTL historical figures were born in the 1900s-1930s or earlier so because of the fact that Long is never assassinated they might meet different people and have alternate children who might or might fill the same role as them. The whole thing is basically inspired by the "Alternate History Siblings" of Thande's Look to the West in which certain individuals are based on one or more real life people and are similar in some respects even if they do lead different lives (i.e. the Duke of Marlborough for Winston Churchill and Martin Hiedler for Adolf Hitler).
 
And how Baltic Federation survives? Why Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Belarus not declared independence after collapse of the Nazi Rule in Ostland?
 
The World of APD: Longvilles
The World of APD: Longvilles

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One of Wright's initial concept drawings for "Broadacre City."

Frank Lloyd Wright was already a household name by the time of the Long Administration, known for his unique architecture that defied convention. Beginning in the 1930s, he began to outline his vision for urban planning, beginning with his 1932 book The Disappearing City. From this emerged his Broadacre City concept which sought to create decentralized communities of property holders that emphasized the use of the automobile. In 1935, Wright's students at Taliesin completed a large scale model of his concept that was first displayed at the Industrial Arts Exposition in New York City. Wright further refined his project, and was even contracted to design several homes along the principles exhibited in his Broadacre concept.

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An example of "Usonian" architecture found in many Longvilles. Note the attempt to blend the house seamlessly into the surrounding environment.

Upon his election to the presidency in 1940, Long hoped to make good on his plans for new towns and housing developments as part of his "Share Our Wealth" program. He found in Wright's vision many of the same principles that he had held. Furthermore, Long wanted to associate himself with anything modern, and saw Wright's name as a legitimizing factor in his program. While Wright was initially reluctant to be associated with Long, he saw an opportunity to see his vision implemented. The first of these Longvilles were built as part of the Arkansas River Authority and Missouri River Authority, where employees building and maintaining dams and and power plants. Often with names such as Longville, Wrightville, Kennedy, Usonia, Taliesin, Broadacre, Smithville, Norrisville, among others. Soon, Broadacre communities sprung up in other states. In theory, these communities featured architectural styles that reflected the local environment and incorporated local materials in their construction. However, the Taliesin influence was unmistakable, with critics pointing to overwhelming similarities between different settlements. Later, Longvilles would be criticized for encouraging dependence on cars. Wright bristled at this criticisms, including the label of "Longville" being used to describe his utopian vision for urban planning. Nevertheless, Longvilles had found a lasting presence in American culture, being as American as Apple Pie.

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An example of an Usonian service station in Taliesin, Oregon, a town which was built to house workers on the Columbia River Authority.
 
Apologies for the late replies.

On the topic of the Beetles, their births happened before or after when Huey Long was elected President in 1941. This does not mean that they will be necessarily the same people as OTL or anyone born decades after the POD. It's worth noting that many of the parents or grandparents of said OTL historical figures were born in the 1900s-1930s or earlier so because of the fact that Long is never assassinated they might meet different people and have alternate children who might or might fill the same role as them. The whole thing is basically inspired by the "Alternate History Siblings" of Thande's Look to the West in which certain individuals are based on one or more real life people and are similar in some respects even if they do lead different lives (i.e. the Duke of Marlborough for Winston Churchill and Martin Hiedler for Adolf Hitler).
That's possible. I think that the Fab Four as the Fab Four meeting each other in the same way, or even a similar way as OTL is not terribly plausible. There could be a Beatles equivalent in universe, but I'd say it would be very, very different from OTL.

And how Baltic Federation survives? Why Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Belarus not declared independence after collapse of the Nazi Rule in Ostland?
The Baltic Federation survives because of the sparsity of the Batlic peoples thanks to Nazi racial policies. At this stage, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania do not have sizeable populations to maintain any level of independence outside of cooperation with each other.
 
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